Last U.S. Troops leave Iraq, ending their war on a whimper
The last convoy of U.S. soldiers pulled out of Iraq on Sunday, ending nearly nine years of war that cost almost 4,500 American and tens of thousands of Iraqi lives and left a country grappling with political uncertainty.
"A good chunk of me is happy to leave. I spent 31 months in this country," said Sgt. Steven Schirmer, 25, after three tours of Iraq since 2007. "It almost seems I can have a life now, though I know I am probably going to Afghanistan in 2013. Once these wars end I wonder what I will end up doing."
--- Reuters via TPM and The New York Times have excellent pieces on the withdrawal, which is handled as such a low-key event, all things considered. No grand parades, no great monuments, no mission accomplished banners...
