Finally Iraq War is Over

From AFP:
NASIRIYAH, Iraq — Iraq took control of the last American military base in the country on Friday, a day after US forces marked the end of their mission, bringing a divisive war to a low-key conclusion.
The transfer of the sprawling installation on the outskirts of the southern city of Nasiriyah is a final step ahead of a complete US withdrawal from Iraq in the coming days.

The Imam Ali Base, known to the US military as Camp Adder, housed 15,000 American troops at its peak and was officially signed over at a ceremony attended by US Colonel Richard Kaiser and Hussein al-Assadi, the Iraqi official in charge of base transfers.

After the two men signed documents transferring the base to Iraq, Iraqi Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Hakim Abboud said it marked "a day of freedom."

"We promise to our people to be faithful to our army, our Iraq, and to work for its unity," said Abboud, the commander of air force units on Imam Ali Base.

Friday's handover comes after US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta and US commanders took part in a subdued "casing of the colours" ceremony on Thursday near Baghdad airport, the first site US forces occupied in Baghdad during the 2003 invasion.

All that remains of the American military in Iraq are around 4,000 soldiers, down from a peak of nearly 170,000 troops and 505 bases across the country.

After the end of the year, the US embassy will retain just 157 US soldiers, for training of Iraqi forces, and a group of marines to secure the diplomatic mission.

Adios sandbox

Finally the Iraq fucking war is over. I mean shit I remember like it was yesterday when that beady-eyed fuck George Bush promised us all that we were going to find Saddam sitting on a mountain of chemical weapons and shit. Years, billions of dollars, and thousands of dead soldiers later here we are. What has changed? Not a whole lot. 

But we can learn from this shit. The pretense for the war in Iraq is probably the most under-rated straight up lie the government has told the American people and the world. So let us try to get over Iraq, but never forget the lie that was told to all of us that cost us our tax money, our brave soldiers, and any goodwill we had in the Middle East until we invaded Iraq.