A few weeks ago, the Iraq War was in the news again, briefly: That’s because Donald Trump went all Cindy Sheehan on the subject. In response, Victor Davis Hanson had an important piece on our site — at least I regard it as important: “Iraq: The Real Story.”
VDH is my guest on Q&A. He walks me through the Iraq War — actually, the larger Iraq drama, starting with the 1991 Gulf War. He remembers things that have been fogged up or skewed or mythologized. He does not let the fog machine take over.
Toward the end of the ’cast, I ask Victor something like this: What is the practical effect of misremembering the Iraq War, or letting the myth reign? Any? Oh, yes, says Victor. This misremembering or myth has already played a role in American foreign-policy misjudgments.
Whether you agree with VDH on the Iraq War or not, I think you will find him well worth hearing out on this subject (as on all). I, for one, am keenly grateful for what VDH does. He does the hard work of trying to establish truthful historical memory, and this work is sometimes thankless.