Reflecting on Iraq: Is it a 'syndrome' or rather, perhaps, hard-earned 'wisdom'? And is there a generational break here?

My CNAS colleague Phil Carter, reacting to yesterday's item about how the experience of Iraq is affecting the Obama
administration's consideration of intervening in Syria, sent me this thoughtful note:

Iraq
has replaced Vietnam as the lens through which we see foreign policy decisions.
However, I don't like the term "Iraq syndrome" -- in large part
because it suggests there's something wrong, and that this is a condition to be
ameliorated or recovered from. Instead, I prefer to think of our
national sense of the Iraq war as "Iraq experience" or "Iraq
wisdom." We gathered this experience and wisdom the hard
way, acquiring it at a cost of trillions of dollars, and tens of thousands
of killed or wounded, to say nothing of the cost to the Iraqis. We ought
not casually discard this wisdom and experience, or set it aside so that
we can once again go abroad in search of monsters to destroy, to use
John Quincy Adams' memorable phrase.

Tom again: I think he is right, but
I think there also is a generational aspect to this. I think younger people -- and
to me, that means anyone under 40 -- are more affected by this than are older
people.

One of the great things about CNAS
is that we actually have conversations like this. In my experience, not all
think tanks do. You can find out more by coming to the annual hoedown on
June 12. It
is, as we have noted, the Woodstock of wonkery. But with better refreshments.