Regarding your article "Obama: Troops out of Iraq by Dec 31, 2011" (Oct. ), it shows of poor judgment on President Obama's part to make such a decision when it could be interpreted as a political campaign ploy for the 2012 election.
I think the U.S. should maintain a standing military force in Iraq just as we did — and still do — in Japan, Germany and South Korea to assure those peoples of our support for their democracies. A permanent military presence would also help prevent another civil war in Iraq and counter the influence of Iran, al-Qaida and the Taliban.
The U.S. has an obligation to protect the cause for which thousands of our military personnel — and tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians — have lost their lives since the 2003 invasion.
Quinton D. Thompson, Towson