but i think it s also got significant implications worldwide. the al-qaeda in iraq franchise was probably the biggest, it was considered al-qaeda s central front in the war against the west before the bush administration surge in 2007 and 8. and i think that if iraq descremeds into the kind of civil war that we see now in syria, that this problem, this radicalization, this opportunity for al-qaeda is only going to get much more serious across the entire middle east. bill: even if we were there in great numbers, what kind of numbers have had to keep there no prevent incidents like this? well, i think it s less a question of numbers than the political significance of the united states being there. you know, a lot of the effort was undertaken during the surge in particular to try and reinstill a feeling of iraqi determination to have a free nation, a secular nation. that s disappeared. now, it may have been a long shot to begin with, let s be clear, but it s disappeared with