You break it, he buys it

The problem with Colin Powell’s “Pottery Barn” theory on Iraq—we broke it, so we have to buy/fix it (besides that that’s not Pottery Barn’s policy)—is that the people who “broke” Iraq by choosing to invade it and doing such a poor job of planning and implementation are not the same people who get maimed and killed trying to “fix” Iraq. Back in the pre-democratic days of kings and lords, the common people complained that during all the wars for resources and “honor” those who started the wars and who stood to gain by them were usually relatively safe on their horses far behind the front lines. At least the kings and lords were usually there. Today, looking at the casualty lists, not even generals seem to be in any danger (or they’re amazingly lucky). The real decision-makers aren’t even on the same continent as the fighting they pontificate about. And this is considered the more rational, civilized way to fight wars—by proxy.

So the next time I break something in a store, I guess I should find the person with the least ability to protest and say, “Send him the bill.”