The Top Ten Myths About Iraq

The Top Ten Myths about Iraq, 2008 by Juan Cole:

1. Iraqis are safer because of Bush's War.


2. Large numbers of Iraqis in exile abroad have returned.


3. Iraqis are materially better off because of Bush's war.


4. The Bush administration scored a major victory with its Status of Forces Agreement.


5. Minorities in Iraq are safer since Bush's invasion.


6. The sole explanation for the fall in the monthly death rate for Iraqi civilians was the troop escalation or surge of 30,000 extra US troops in 2007.


7. John McCain alleged that if the US left Iraq, it would be promptly taken over by al-Qaeda.


8. The Iraq War made the world safer from terrorism.


9. Bush went to war in Iraq because he was given bad intelligence about Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction capabilities.


10. Douglas Feith and other Neoconservatives didn't really want a war with Iraq (!).