138,000 U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Iraq within two years, according to Obama’s plan.

Will the U.S. and the rest of the civilized world be able to simply say: “Iraq is the problem of the Iraqis” when chaos and violence ensues after our departure, and thousands of thousands of additional innocent Iraqi lives are lost? I foresee this as extremely probable, and believe this scenario is unconscionable.

However, I also think the United States can not currently afford to police an entire nation, where the majority of people would like to see us leave.

So, let’s give them a clear choice.

Why don’t we set up fortified cities in the desert, where people who would like the benefits of living in a free, peaceful city with education, and job opportunities can have that chance? These would not simply be refugee camps, where conditions can be deplorable, but safe cities that the U.S. is strategically committed to building and maintaining. And, those who don’t want to live under U.S. protection and ideals can stay in their current homes, and live (or die) with the consequences.

The Masdar city, a state of the art planned city in Abu Dhabi that will be a zero-carbon, and zero waste city will be home to 50,000 people. Price tag: $22 billion. That’s less than two months of our current spending levels in Iraq of $12 billion a month. And, clearly we can provide clean, safe housing for significantly less than the luxurious Masdar City.

Or, we could build floating cities, which would not infringe on sovereign land.

We should be willing to defend those who want freedom and safety, rather than to write-off their slaughter from afar, as we did in the case of Rwanda and Darfur.