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Originally Posted by onetime2
Chtulu23, my point about the statistics was not that they were biased or a "smear" but that if they can't account for Iraqi police and national guard in those statistics how can you or anyone else possibly think they are accurate enough to make any sort of analysis?
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And you would have a point if we were arguing over body counts in this thread, but the actual numbers of civilian dead are incidental in this case. The question is how do you win the hearts and minds of Iraqis while simultaneously defeating a well-entrenched guerilla opponent. We are losing cities and a hard push will be required to retake them. If, during this push, there are scores of civilians killed we will be inadvertantly recruiting for the insurgents. This is a delicate matter that deserves some consideration and goes well beyond partisan propaganda regardless of the complaints of some.