I can't let Peyton Cook's March 7 letter go unanswered. He rails against Democrats for facilitating "defeat" in Iraq. I'm not a Democrat, nor a Republican for that matter, but there are major problems with his assertions.

First, he speaks of defeat or failure in Iraq. Well, sir, I seem to recall we invaded Iraq to depose a brutal dictator and destroy weapons of mass destruction he supposedly had. Mission accomplished!

No one said our mission in Iraq was to enforce our notion of democracy, which probably does not fit Muslim culture. So until someone in authority defines "success," how will we know when it is time for our brave soldiers to come home?

Second, Mr. Cook asserts that President Bush sends our soldiers to Iraq "to defend this nation." From whom? It has been fully documented that there was no Iraqi involvement in the events of Sept. 11. So how are his actions defending our nation?

Finally, you are correct that "radical Islamic jihadists have pledged the destruction of our civilization." But it does not follow that continuing our military actions in Iraq will have any positive effect. If anything, the opposite is probably true.

What we need to do is get the State Department -- the diplomats, not the soldiers -- involved, as well as the United Nations and other nations, to attempt reconciliation between Islamic and non-Islamic countries. Unfortunately, the arrogance and naivete of President Bush has prevented that from happening.

Americans must hold our government accountable for executing the Iraqi war in an effective manner. Both Republicans and Democrats have failed in multiple ways, although warned many times by esteemed leaders such as Colin Powell. Where is the leadership wise and brave enough to lead us out of this morass?