The Iraqis don't want us there because we are unable to bring order to the anarchy we've created by overthrowing the government. We'll never be more than an occupation army that has killed thousands of civilians in the process of taking over their country.

So what are we supposed to do, then, just pull out and leave the Iraqis to sort out the mess we created? Surely that would lead to civil war. Well, you know, that may be what it's going to take for Iraqis to settle their differences.

The increasing violence now has pressured the Bush government into seeking help from the U.N. in the form of both troops and money. The trouble is that the U.S. wants help; it does not want to surrender control.

With an average of one American dying and 10 injured each day in Iraq, the polls sure look a lot different than they did five months ago when the troops were marching on Baghdad, wiping out thousands of Iraqi defenders with hardly a flinch.

The latest poll by Newsweek had 69 percent of Americans saying they were concerned that the United States would be bogged down for many years in Iraq without making much progress in achieving its goals.

It's hard to achieve goals that were bogus in the first place because they were based on false information.

Nearly half, 47 percent, said they thought the $1 billion a week price tag in Iraq was going to create serious problems with our economy.

And not only the economy. What about education, the jobless, health care, infrastructure and the environment?

Remember during the invasion when polls showed 70 percent of Americans supported the war? It's easier to cheer when you're winning, isn't it?

Now, as the body bags mount, many military families and veterans are leading the charge against the occupation. If you have a loved one in Iraq, it's becoming more difficult to see the meaning in dying there.

Numerous groups are forming across the country to pressure the president and Congress to bring the troops home — now. One, called Military Families Speak Out, demonstrated in Crawford, Texas, last month near the Bush ranch. They were irked because the president was egging on the Saddam loyalists who were targeting American soldiers.

Bush's tough-guy talk (responding to a deadly Baghdad bombing with "Bring 'em on") also angered another group so much that it took on the name "Bring the Troops Home Now." Composed of military families, veterans, active-duty personnel, reservists and others, the group is seeking to mobilize others with military connections "to demand an end to the occupation of Iraq and other misguided military adventures, and an immediate return of all U.S. troops to their home-duty stations."

The casualties and the growing awareness that troops are being killed or injured, not in defense of America, but in an immoral aggression, are upsetting. But, in addition, many know now that the government lied to its people and its troops to justify war in the months leading up to the invasion.

They also know now that the government had no idea what was going to occur once Iraq was conquered. Bush and his cohorts figured the Iraqis would welcome their conquerors and just help them rebuild the country without any opposition. And they went ahead blindly despite the warnings from numerous experts who foresaw the chaos after a successful invasion. Ignorance compounds the lies.

Then there are the contracts for troop maintenance and rebuilding Iraq that were given without bidding to companies connected to the administration. The most blatant, of course, is the multi-billion-dollar contract to Haliburton, Dick Cheney's former firm. Tell me he's not going to cash in on that some day.

So it is no surprise that Bush's approval rating in the Newsweek poll has dropped from 71 percent in April to 53 percent in August. And more people polled do not favor another term for Bush (49 percent) than those who do (44 percent).

The problem is that it is another 16 months before Bush and his junta leave office. We can only imagine what kind of damage will be done before then. And it is unfortunate it may take that added damage to convince enough voters to send him back to Texas.

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Cary Brunswick is managing editor of The Daily Star. He can be reached at (607) 441-7217 or cary@thedailystar.com.