JUST NOTICED THIS NICK DENTON POST from March 31 of last year, on partitioning Iraq:

Let’s remind ourselves why the US intended to preserve the integrity of Iraq. Turkey was fearful of an independent Kurdistan, and Saudi Arabia hostile to the empowerment of the Shiites. And the US did not want to alienate the Sunni Arabs who dominate Iraq. Well, Turkey betrayed the US, and has forfeited its privileges; anything that makes the Saudis fearful is fine by me; and the Sunni Arab establishment failed to turn against Saddam. So screw them all.

Read the whole thing. Via email, Nick suggests that this is still a good idea. I’m not sure what I think about this — it seems to me that the notion that old colonial borders are sacrosanct has caused enormous trouble throughout the world, and dividing Iraq would certainly send a long-term lesson about what happens to countries that resist the United States. But neither of those, by itself, makes it the thing to do. It’s worth thinking about, though. (It’s also worth noting the rather gloomy tone of this post — the war’s going badly, we need to rethink, the regime isn’t collapsing like the Administration thought — all from just before we utterly routed Saddam. Ups and downs are normal in wartime, and it’s a mistake to let either the depression or the elation of the moment get the upper hand.)

UPDATE: Andrew Sullivan (in his London Times column) and Joel Mowbray have more upbeat assessments.