The warlords and troublemakers are peacefull now because the US is giving them so much money and arms to stay quiet.
The radical cleric is getting much more powerful but he has stayed peaceful because he is getting more powerful.
Once the US is gone the warlords will fight over power but we won't care anymore as no Americans will be killed.
_________________ The Dark Prince
Thu Jul 03, 2008 1:08 pm
Beeblebrox
All Star Poster
Joined: Wed Dec 01, 2004 9:40 pm Posts: 4679
Re: The Surge is working
KidRock69x wrote:
Quote:
Iraq has met all but three of 18 original benchmarks set by Congress last year to measure security, political and economic progress, according to a report by the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
....
The embassy judged that the only remaining shortfalls were the Baghdad government's failure to enact and implement laws governing the oil industry and the disarmament of militia and insurgent groups, and continuing problems with the professionalism of the Iraqi police. All other goals -- including preparations for upcoming elections, reform of de-Baathification and disarmament laws, progress on enacting and spending Iraq's budget, and the capabilities of the Iraqi army -- were rated "satisfactory."
Petraeus' "report" was almost entirely written by the White House anyway.
Still, this is not going to be good in the long term.
_________________ It's my lucky crack pipe.
Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:40 pm
Beeblebrox
All Star Poster
Joined: Wed Dec 01, 2004 9:40 pm Posts: 4679
Re: The Surge is working
Anton Chigurh wrote:
Petraeus' "report" was almost entirely written by the White House anyway.
Well, yeah. And the part of the article that Kidrock skipped over seems important to note:
The embassy's evaluation, compiled in May, contrasts sharply with other recent assessments that Iraq has failed to achieve many of the goals that the Baghdad government and President Bush said would be reached by the end of 2007. A report by the Government Accountability Office, released last week, cited little improvement in the political and economic spheres and noted continuing military problems despite a significant decline in overall violence.
Thu Jul 03, 2008 6:00 pm
Caius
A very honest-hearted fellow
Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 8:02 pm Posts: 4767
Re: The Surge is working
Quote:
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama left open the possibility on Thursday of revising his 16-month timetable for withdrawing U.S. combat forces from Iraq, saying he could "refine" his stance after he visits the country.
Obama, an early opponent of the war who made his stance a centrepiece of his Democratic presidential campaign, said he would not support a long-term U.S. presence in Iraq but wanted to ensure any U.S. withdrawal was orderly and safe
Nobody's withdrawing from Iraq before 2012. Not even your hippiest hippie. Now, if I'm proven wrong, I'll erect a monument to the person who did it.
_________________ It's my lucky crack pipe.
Thu Jul 03, 2008 10:41 pm
Caius
A very honest-hearted fellow
Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 8:02 pm Posts: 4767
Re: The Surge is working
Quote:
BAGHDAD, Sept. 1 -- The U.S. military on Monday handed the Iraqi government responsibility for security in Anbar province, the former stronghold of the Sunni insurgency that has now become one of the safest areas in country.
The transfer of authority took place as U.S. forces are hoping to shift many of the 25,000 Marines from Anbar to Afghanistan, which is seeing violence crest as security improves in Iraq.
U.S. officials viewed the transfer as a sign of the success of the American effort and the growing strength of Iraqi security forces.
....
But even as Iraqis celebrated the milestone, concerns lingered about a campaign by the Shiite-led central government to halt one of the key reasons Anbar has become safer: the Awakening Councils, groups of former Sunni insurgents who now cooperate with U.S. troops.
The Awakening movement had its start in Anbar and then spread across Iraq. More than 100,000 former Sunni insurgents are part of the group, each receiving about $300 a month from the U.S. government.
Shiite officials have attacked the movement as illegitimate and have recently issued more than 650 arrest warrants for people in areas west of Baghdad to shut the movement down.
Strange how we don't really hear much about Iraq anymore.
Mon Sep 01, 2008 7:18 pm
A. G.
Draughty
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:23 am Posts: 13347
Re: The Surge is working
Yep but that cuts both ways. Bush/McCain may not get enough credit for the surge but at the same time it wasn't long ago that those two acted like setting a time table to leave like Obama wanted was incompetence or treason and now they have done it themselves.
Baghdad is a mess right now. It's evolved from a violent hotbed to... a collection of militant fiefdoms run by violent militias, separated by the walls that Americans built between all the neighborhoods. Going from one area to another through no man's land is incredibly dangerous. It's like a combination of Cold War Berlin and post-Soviet-invasion Kabul:
We don't hear much about the plight of Iraqis because there is almost no American access to these areas.
I liken it to how a kid behaves when parents go away for the weekend. You are going from this strict oppressive control, to a time of transition to a government that is relativly new and powerless. People everywhere are taking advantage of that and you have to hope that eventually the new governement can get the law and order of the country back into some semblence of order.
I agree with your statement. Only time will tell how the situation will play out. The Middle East is such a tinderbox because so many places are "holy" there.
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