Kwan, quitting, and country

So the two schools of thought on Michelle Kwan go something like this:

*She was selfish for wanting to go to Italy when she knew that she probably wouldn't be able to compete, and the Olympic Committee was dumb for trusting her and letting her go. She did, however, make the right move in resigning from competition.

* Kwan is a brave athlete who was simply trying to do her best, and, regardless of the outcome, we should applaud her for being so, feisty, as well as honest, for allowing another athlete a shot at a gold she couldn't win.

Pick a side, I don't care. Both have merits, but the one thing that both arguments agree on is that Kwan did the right thing by quitting a competition she could not hope to win.

Now tell me, why is it that Americans can agree that it's ok to quit if it might allow a 15 year-old American ice skater a shiny medal, but that it's not ok to quit when it might save another 2200 Americans their lives?

Over-dramatic? Sure. Simplified? You bet. But the psychology fits. A public was fooled into thinking that someone could do a job that they couldn't. The competitor did her best. But she just couldn't accomplish the mission that she set out on. Not only that, but she knew that trying to compete would cost someone else, a fellow American, a chance at happiness. So when push came to shove, Michelle shoved herself out.

Now, in Iraq, it is painfully obvious that the American army, while still the best in the world, is not going to get the job done. Violence shows no signs of abating, public services are worse now than they were after a brutal 10-year international embargo, and we continue to lose good men and women over ground that we've won and lost for the past three years.

Not only that, but it seems that the only chance that the Iraqis might have for peace is if we let someone else take our place. Be it the UN, a new international coalition, or Iraqi troops themselves, the only chance that Iraqis have for stability and peace is for the US to honorably withdraw from combat.

It might be trite, but it's true.