Not much, if anything, according to the Times. If you'd like a probable picture of what Iraq, or parts of it anyway, would look like if the pull-outs continue, look to the oil-rich, non-sectarian, and relatively stable southern port-city of Basra. After giving up control about six months ago, the British now sit, waiting on the outskirts of a major player, second only to Baghdad, in Iraq's chances for a future without the hand-holding of outsiders, while murders and kidnappings continue to ratchet up.
My personal fave: "One especially disturbing trend is the slaying of at least 100 women in the last year, according to the police. The Iraqi authorities have blamed Shiite militiamen for many of those killing, saying the militants had probably deemed the women to be impious." Oh, and don't forget the "doctors, teachers, and other professionals," that are simply just too Western for these "holy" men. Hmm, visions of the Taliban or the Cultural Revolution dancing in anyones head?
Unfortunately, the lack of sectarian division in the predominantly Shiite population does not a cradle of civilization make.
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