This paper revisits the sanctions era in Iraq. The theory of economic sanctions and the larger question of whether or not sanctions work are briefly discussed. The immediate effects of sanctions on the lives of Iraqis are reviewed next. But the main objective of the paper is to assess the far-reaching implications of economic sanctions. In this regard, the paper posits that even though they weakened Iraq with respect to its neighbors, the sanctions weakened society with respect to the state. According to the theory of sanctions, this is the opposite of what is required for sanctions to work. Indeed, it is argued that the sanctions re-enforced social divisions and induced a 'brain drain' out of Iraq, depriving Iraq of its secular and professional classes (that would be expected to advance democratization) and amplifying the problems associated with capital formation (that is required for reconstruction). The economic and political chaos and fragmentation evident today in Iraq is consequently in large part explained by sanctions.