Scores of people are now dead in Iraq. The New York Times calls the violence "the worst sectarian violence since the American invasion."

But, this should come as no surprise. Indeed, the strife in Iraq is the reality, not the pronouncements of progress in Iraq that we hear from the president. The U.S. invasion set the stage for this violence. War begets more war and more violence. The long-standing, generations-long tensions between the Sunnis and Shiites have been made worse by the U.S. occupation.

And it's the reason the occupation must end immediately. I can't predict what will happen once U.S. troops leave--the invasion has created a wound that will not easily heal.

But, it is abundantly clear that, as long as American forces are present in Iraq, the violence, death and destruction will continue.