You don't believe that two decades of heavy Western presence in Iraq has played any role in the exposure to western culture?
Nope, very little if any.
This has nothing to do with our presence over there. This has everything to do with the internet and social media. We may have been immersed in the web for the last decade but the middle east is slightly behind us. And after several years of seeing freedom right on their home computers, the young people want a taste of it for themselves.
I think we take for granted the internet and everything it has to offer. Just imagine the world of excitement now available to these young people for the very first time. It's very hard to keep your people oppressed when you can no longer regulate what they see and hear.