Iraq: Positive Developments
 

I think it helpful for those interested in Iraq to consider from time to time that there are, in fact, more productive things happening on a daily basis there, besides the doom and gloom of the Daily Suicide Bombing News Update, where the mantra of the media remains: "If it Bleeds, it Leads."

There is much more going on in Iraq besides Insurgency Terrorism; much that "Doesn't Bleed", and would make for less sensational - but more relevant - news to some.

Below are excerpts taken from the online publication, Opinion Journal (Wall Street Journal). It is an ongoing series, which chronicles some of the lesser-publicized events in Iraq you may be unaware of. Note that there are many links within the text below, at the source website, for further reference on particular matters.

I apologize for the formatting, as it makes the below article somewhat awkward to read. I wanted to include most of the content of the article for those who don't like to chase links. The original link is much easier to navigate.

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AFTER THE WAR

The Dhia Muhsin Example
A roundup of the past two weeks' good news from Iraq.

BY ARTHUR CHRENKOFF
Monday, May 23, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT


• SOCIETY

The selection of the new government finally reaches completion:

The Iraqi parliament has approved appointments for six cabinet vacancies, handing four more positions to the Sunni Arab minority.*.*.*.

Less than half of the National Assembly, 112 of the 155 legislators present, approved Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's six nominations on Sunday, including Shia Arab Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum as oil minister and Sunni military man Saadoun al-Duleimi as defence minister.

The other four designated ministers were Hashim Abdul-Rahman al-Shibli, a Sunni, as human rights minister; Mihsin Shlash, a Shia, as electricity minister; Osama al-Nujaifi, a Sunni, as industry minister; and Abed Mutlak al-Jiburi, a Sunni, as a deputy prime minister.

Reflecting an encouraging sentiment, Al-Shibili declined the nomination as Human Rights Minister, saying that "concentrating on sectarian identities leads to divisions in the society and state."

As it stands:
The new government, most of which was sworn in last week, includes 17 Shia ministers, eight Kurds, six Sunnis and a Christian. Three deputy premiers have also been named, one each for the Shia, Sunnis and Kurds. A fourth deputy premiership remains vacant; al-Jaafari has said he hopes to appoint a woman to the position.

Here's a list of all the positions. {LINK}

The main task ahead of the National Assembly is drafting Iraq's new constitution. The Assembly has already set up a 55-member committee to draft the document. In the meantime, Japan has volunteered to invite Iraqi experts to assist with them with the tasks ahead. And the U.S. Agency for International Development (PDF) is contributing:

--

USAIDs [sic] partner providing support to the [Transitional National Assembly] officially awarded 20 micro-grants to civil society organizations (CSOs) from South and South Central Iraq. The grants finance projects focused on promoting public awareness in the constitutional process.
Iraqi blogger Mohammed is noticing increasing number of announcements posted on the walls of Sunni mosques in Baghdad, encouraging the faithful to participate in the next election, scheduled for January 2005. Mohammed also reports this:

For the fourth week in a line, the "department of Sunni property" which is an official entity that takes care of Sunni mosques and Sunni heritage has been distributing inquiry forms to the people who attend the Friday prayers as such prayers are usually attended by more people than other week days.

The inquiry (or poll) includes four questions:
1-would you like to have a role in drafting the constitution?
2-would you like to participate in the next round of elections?
3-would you prefer to see a unified committee for the Sunni?
4-Are you with the call for joining the Iraqi army and police?
*You can submit any suggestions you have.

The results I could take a look at in Baghdad were as follows:
In "Ghaffar Al-Thunoob" mosque in A'adhamiyah, 273 people filled the forms and 96% of them answered the 4 questions with "yes."

In "Al-Yakeen" mosque in Al-Sha'ab quarter I wasn't able to get the exact number of the people who took the poll but the percentage of those who answered the 4 questions with "yes" was 92%.

In "Haj Ahmed Ra'oof" mosque in Al-Baladiyat quarter south east of Baghdad, 95% of those who took the poll answered all the questions with "yes."

--

In a related development:
The Iraqi Islamic Party, headed by Muhsin Abdul Hameed, has said it regards all acts of violence aimed at Iraqis as crimes of the utmost gravity. The party, which boycotted the January elections, has denounced all kinds of violence, regardless of whether the targets are Sunni, Shia, police, or National Guardsmen. The party called for dialogue instead of violence.

--

Meanwhile, in the former No.*1 hot spot:
The first democratically-elected city council of Fallujah held its inaugural meeting .*.*. at the Civil-Military Operations Center in Fallujah. The 20-member council met for approximately two hours, during which time they elected the chairman, vice chairman and secretary of the council. Imams, sheiks, engineers, lawyers, educators, administrators and businessmen are among those who make up the council.

--

In another USAID effort:
[The] Election Violence Education Resolution (EVER) Project is making some inroads into the Sunni-dominated areas north and west of Baghdad. In late March, the project's office in Arbil held trainings for all new Civil Society Organization (CSO) partners, including four from Mosul, four from Tikrit and two from Kirkuk. The Salah ad Din representative of the Independent Election Commission of Iraq (IECI) also attended. In total, 17 people were trained. This represents tremendous progress; in January, Tikrit had no participating CSOs, Kirkuk had only one and Mosul had only two. During the training, all program officers from these locations were present and now feel very united in purpose and comfortable with this northern partnership.

--

Postliberation Iraq offers unparalleled opportunities for Iraqi media and the arts:

After decades of government censorship and a two-year U.S. occupation, actors, filmmakers and television producers are embracing new artistic freedom to tell stories about Iraqis for an increasingly housebound audience.

A dozen new private TV channels are pumping out soap operas, sitcoms, reality shows and dramas. For the first time, Iraqi television is tackling issues of social injustice, government corruption and, on occasion, life under Saddam Hussein.

--

Another thing unthinkable under Saddam--freedom on the airwaves:

When the host of a radio talk show asked which government department provides the best services in Iraq, an irate listener spoke with frankness unthinkable under Saddam Hussein.

"There are no best services. They are all lousy," she told Uday al-Itawi, host of the popular Good Morning Orange City programme, one of Iraq's few call-in radio shows.

After two years of bloody chaos, some Iraqis are turning to talk radio to let off steam.

There is plenty to complain about, especially in towns like Baquba, a battleground between guerrillas and government and U.S. forces about 50 km (35 miles) north of Baghdad.

The on-air attempt to get official responses to grievances would have been unthinkable before a U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

"The most important thing about this programme is that people can be on the air live, and they can talk directly with officials," Wissam al-Obade, the FM station's manager, told Reuters.

While people call radio chat shows around the world, it is a rare freedom for Iraqis who endured years of human rights abuses under Saddam's iron-fisted rule.

--

Not to mention variety on TV:

Oprah has a fan base in Iraq. Iraqi mothers fret about the amount of time their teenagers spend watching "Star Academy," an Arabic-language cross between "American Idol" and "The Real World."

And an ad for the satellite channel MBC's new lineup--which includes "Inside Edition," "Jeopardy!" and "60 Minutes"--declares: "So you can watch what THEY watch."

Satellite dishes, which Saddam Hussein and his coterie withheld from ordinary Iraqis, have sprouted everywhere since his regime fell. They sit on the roofs of mansions and sidewalk vendors' stalls, pulling in hundreds of channels from all over the world. Even squatters in a bombed-out and looted club once reserved for air force officers have a receiver set up, next to a swimming pool filled with trash and a layer of green slime.

Before the war, television was all Saddam, all the time. Even music videos featured his image. Iraqis giddy to be free from the propaganda snapped up satellite dishes soon after American tanks rolled in. Watching television is one of the few safe forms of entertainment left in a country living under curfew and the constant fear of violence.

--

Cartoons, too, can now show life, warts and all--mostly warts--and jeer without fear or favor. Muayad Naama is Iraq's most popular cartoonist:

Mr. Naama's fortunes have risen and fallen with Iraq's own painful history. He was born in 1951, almost two decades before Mr. Hussein's Baath Party took control of the country. At the time, Baghdad was a bustling, cosmopolitan city with lively cafes and bars.

But when Mr. Hussein began in the late 1970's to clamp down on political opposition, including by the Communist Party, of which Mr. Naama was a member, his life quickly changed. In 1979, he was arrested and beaten. He still barely hears out of one ear as a result of the beatings.

Now, after decades of dictatorship, a chaotic political scene has burst forth. And unlike Mr. Hussein's government, under which open criticism brought dire, often fatal, consequences, the new Iraqi government appears to be fair game.

For that, and many other reasons, Mr. Naama said, life is better now. People can speak freely and practice their religion as they like, he said. The chaos and lack of rules, he said, must eventually improve.




• ECONOMY

Further liberalization is on the way:

The industry ministry plans to partially privatise most of its 46 state-owned companies, as part of the government's plan to establish a liberal free market economy.

Later this year, the ministry is expected to launch a search for domestic and foreign partners in the private sector to jointly run companies in the petrochemical, cement, sugar, silk and heavy industry sectors.
Initially, the ministry plans to privatise around ten small factories and companies that do not contribute greatly to the economy, such as those producing clothes and tyres.

"We have plans to develop and pave the way for domestic and foreign investment in these sectors," said Mohammed Abdullah, acting minister of industry.

Under Saddam, only Arab countries were allowed to invest in Iraq. But the new commercial laws established by the Coalition Provisional Authority, CPA, allow foreigners to own 100 per cent of Iraqi businesses--the exceptions being those dealing with natural resources such as oil.

--

The Iraqi Stock Exchange is reporting a great increase in activity. And foreigners are now allowed to buy and sell Iraqi securities. Here's more background about the past, the current operations and future challenges of the exchange:

On a recent Monday morning at the Iraq Stock Exchange, investors yammer into cell phones as about 30 traders on the floor scribble orders, study boards for stock prices or stand casually smoking cigarettes.

The scene doesn't match the frenetic pace of the New York Stock Exchange or the Chicago Board of Trade. This is Baghdad, after all. But the activity is a good sign for those who are trying to shore up the country's financial institutions despite the daily violence carried out by insurgents.

"Financial institutions and markets make our economy grow again," says Taha Ahmed Abdul Salam, the exchange's chief operating officer. "You can't do business unless you have good banks and good capital markets."

The Baghdad Stock Exchange opened in 1992, but under Saddam Hussein's regime it was heavily regulated. Exchange spokeswoman Jaimy Afham says stocks traded within a specific price range. The exchange closed amid the chaos after the collapse of Saddam's regime.

The exchange, renamed the Iraq Stock Exchange, reopened last June under the supervision of the Coalition Provisional Authority, Salam says. It started with 15 listed companies trading about 1 billion Iraqi dinars ($683,000) in shares daily, he says. Today, the exchange lists 89 companies and averages about $2 million in daily trading, he says.

A law created last year allows foreign investors to deal in Iraqi stocks and has encouraged trading, Salam says. The market subsequently was boosted by an influx of capital from Iraqi exiles and a recent increase in disposable income driven by higher government salaries, Afham says.

--

Iraqi banking system is also getting modernized:

Iraq's cash economy will get a jolt of modernity in the coming weeks--automated teller machines and credit cards, the president of the Trade Bank of Iraq said yesterday.

"We expect to have cash machines in 10 days in Baghdad," said Hussein al-Uzri, president of the Trade Bank of Iraq, which was set up in December 2003 as part of an international consortium of banks headed by JPMorgan Chase.

Besides serving as regular cash-dispensing machines, the ATMs are also expected to be used to pay government workers.

--

Meanwhile, as of May*10, Iraqi credit cards are internationally recognized. And foreign investment will in the future play a major role in helping the industry modernize and grow:

HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe's biggest bank by market value, won Iraqi approval to buy a local lender as it competes with Standard Chartered Plc and Arab banks to return to the country for the first time since 1964 nationalization.

HSBC will acquire a 75 percent stake for an undisclosed sum in Baghdad-based Dar Elsalam Investment Bank, upgrade the lender's communications and computer systems and expand its network of branches across the country, Faleh Dawood Salman, deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, said in a telephone interview. HSBC confirmed the talks today in a Regulatory News Service statement.

"We need banks like HSBC to modernize our banking system, and help finance foreign trade and lending," Salman said by telephone from Baghdad on May 15.

--

Iraqi authorities are receiving training and support thanks to USAID's Iraq Economic Governance II (IEG II) program (PDF) to help in economic reform and improving administration. Among the most recent initiatives: training courses for the officers from the Central Bank of Iraq "to improve its ability to conduct sound macroeconomic policy and supervise banking within the country"; drafting a comprehensive training program for the regulators; providing electricity capacity workshops for ministry employees; and working with the government on reforming tax system and introducing computerized budget system.

--

An increasing number of Iraqis can now afford to buy cars:

More than a million used cars have entered the country in the past two years, a traffic police study shows. The figure is double the number of cars that existed in the country before the fall of Baghdad to U.S. troops in April 2003, according to the study.

The study says the northern city [of] Mosul, for example, only had 57,000 registered cars in early 2003. But the number has surged to 125,000 now at a time there has been no improvement in roads, traffic signals and lights. On the contrary, conditions on roads have deteriorated, the study adds.
Former leader Saddam Hussein restricted the flow of cars to the country and the import of vehicles was an exclusive right which he exercised himself. He only gave new cars to his cronies and people showing unwavering loyalty.

Cars were expensive and not everyone could afford to buy one. But currently conditions have changed and civil servants earn meaningful wages enabling them to buy not only cars but many other commodities they could not afford in the past.

--

In a great case of turning swords into plowshares:

A major military corporation is now producing cranes and electrical cables instead of missiles and bombs.

Al-Simoud Enterprise, the pride of former regime's military industries, has been converted to civilian use.

Its main products include cranes, pylons, communication towers, concrete bridges and steel in addition to power infrastructure equipment. Three of the corporation's companies are now operational, said director-general Yousif Ali. One of the revitalized companies is specialized in the production of concrete blocks and electrical posts.

Another produces cranes with a capacity ranging from 5-50 tons. He said the corporation was in talks with Turkish and German companies on how to upgrade production.



• RECONSTRUCTION

Australia is committing more resources toward rebuilding Iraq:

The Australian Government will provide an additional $45 million over two years to provide further reconstruction assistance to Iraq. This funding demonstrates the Government's commitment to helping build stability and democracy in Iraq. This additional funding will bring Australia's total reconstruction commitment to Iraq to over $170 million since 2003.*.*.*.
Australia will continue to focus on those areas where it has particular expertise, including governance, agriculture, and related economic and trade reforms.

From one dry country to another, "assistance to Iraq's agricultural sector will include providing on-going training programmes in Australia for Ministry of Agriculture officials; utilising Australia's expertise in areas such as dry-land agriculture, irrigation, salinity and water resources management."

--

In Baghdad, USAID is working on the grass-roots level (PDF) to create economic opportunities and help the reconstruction process:

Since May 2003, USAID's Community Action Program (CAP) has been working in the poorest neighborhoods in Baghdad at the grassroots level, empowering Iraqi communities to develop and implement reconstruction projects and improving individual lives.*.*.*.

CAP's Business Development Program in Baghdad focuses on sustainable long term job creation, with a goal of creating over 100,000 jobs over the next fiscal year.*.*.*.

The CAP program also plays an essential role in building a foundation for democracy in Baghdad. Working with--and being represented by--[Community Action Groups], imparts an understanding of what a representative democracy should look like and how it can act to provide services to the citizenry. For example, a CAG selected as a priority the construction of a health clinic in their community. Within three months, the community members celebrated the opening of a clinic that can provide 200,000 residents with health benefits. Although projects like clearing debris from a road and pumping sewage out of facilities seem a small part of improving Iraq's future, these challenges impact every aspect of people's lives.

--

A province bordering Iran is getting some important infrastructure:

Two new bridges are to be constructed in the city of Amara, the capital of the southeastern province of Missan, the head of the department in charge of roads and bridges in the province said.

Mohammed Jassem said his office had completed the designs and readied equipment to start with the implementation "as soon as possible."*.*.*.
Jassem said a 16-km [10-mile] long road linking a border district with a major urban center was paved recently.

He also said his office constructed 24 smaller arched bridges on the Amara-Baghdad highway to protect the road against erosion and rain water.

--

Kirkuk and the surrounding area are receiving 1.65 billion dinars for various reconstruction projects in the area of roads, communications and agriculture.

--

Soon rural communities near Baghdad will enjoy clean drinking water, often for the first time:

Everyone knows that all living things need water to survive and during the upcoming summer months in Iraq, the demand for clean drinking water will drastically rise.

The near-term completion of a project in the Al-Rasheed district will fulfill this need and provide more than 100,000 villagers fresh water.
The $500,000 project began six months ago and employed 36 people, of which 30 were from the local area.

In the 2nd Kurtan village, which has roughly 5,000 residents, there hasn't been a source for purified water since it was formed, according to Capt. Christian Neels, the civil-military operations officer for 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment.

Sheik Alwan Kartan, a local tribal leader who has participated in the project since the beginning, said that the villagers who had cars could go to the adjacent areas to get water. Others who didn't have vehicles had to get their water from the canal that connects to the river, putting them at risk for disease.

"This project will supply the local population with drinking water and reduce some of the water-borne illnesses that the children are coming up with," Neels said.

--

In electricity news, Japan will be building $100*million, 60-megawatt thermal power station near Samawa in southern Iraq. Construction will begin this summer and is expected to be completed in 2007.

--

USAID (PDF) continues to work on rehabilitation of the power infrastructure:

The newly arrived V-94 combustion gas turbine and its generator have been placed on their foundations at the Taza substation outside of Kirkuk. Iraqi construction workers are currently assembling and aligning the unit on its foundation, welding the fuel lines and exhaust stack, and installing the electrical controls. Work at the substation includes the installation of the V-94 and a second combustion gas turbine, a V-64 unit. Combined, these turbines will add 325MW to the Iraq electricity grid.

Work continues on the rehabilitation of the Doura power plant in southern Baghdad. Upon completion, an additional 320 MW is projected to be available for Iraq's national electrical grid. Although its four steam boilers and turbines are each rated at 160MW, all have been poorly maintained for many years, largely due to spare parts shortages. Its cooling systems are now severely damaged so its turbines can no longer be operated at full-load without risk of further damage from overheating. As a result, the plant has operated far below its full-load rating of 640MW.

--


• HUMANITARIAN AID.

Cleanup in Fallujah continues:

More than 800 Iraqis recently participated in the removal of rubble in Fallujah from Operation Al Fajr.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) approved more than $840,000 to assist cleanup teams during the next two months.
"We've got to clean the rubble up," said Lt. Col. Harvey Williams, director, reconstruction cell, 5th Civil Affairs Group.

"Bottom line is we've got more than 1,100 young men engaged in the trash removal effort."

Navy Seabees cleared the streets after military operations in November; but as people returned they dispensed additional trash and rubble because the public dump was no longer operational, according to Multi-National Forces.

--

Even those who opposed the war are playing a role in helping to rebuild Iraq:

A Minnesota resident is among a group of Iraqis and others who will lead a clean up team in the destroyed city of Fallujah. Sami Rasouli is the former owner of Sindbad's restaurant on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis. He sold his business a few months ago and returned to his homeland of Iraq to help his family and the country recover from the war. He's a member of a group called the Muslim Peacemakers Team. They're cooperating with a group called the Christian Peacemakers Team in activities they hope will prevent civil war.

--

In Najaf, $500,000 worth of donated medical supplies have arrived for the needy local hospitals.

--

Meanwhile, thanks to the efforts of South Korean religious leaders, four important hospitals in Korea will cooperate in a project to train Iraqi medical personnel from the southeastern part of the country:

The project itself entails training 16 Iraqi medical teams--including medical specialists, Ph. D. and other medical students--in Korea who will then be able to apply new methods and techniques back home. .*.*. As part of the project, Iraqi patients would also receive medical care in the four participating Korean hospitals.

--

And this, from the U.S.:

The leaders of the Rapid Prototyping (RP) industry will announce today free medical support for victims in Iraq at the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) Rapid Prototyping & Manufacturing conference in Dearborn US. "RP for Baghdad" is a humanitarian joint effort of Fried Vancraen-Materialise, Abe Reichental-3D Systems, Scott Crump-Stratasys and Tom Clay-Z-Corporation to provide medical models for victims in Iraq.

The effort will focus on the most severely injured victims with serious head injuries or missing limbs. While helping people in serious need, the RP industry will demonstrate how its technology can fundamentally influence people's lives for the better. Even in the difficult environment of war, 3D printed models based on medical image data are important tools to support surgeons in the most complex craniofacial reconstruction surgeries.

The Iraqi League for Medical Profession is providing the infrastructure for this service. People with serious injuries will first be CT Scanned at a medical facility. The data from the scan will be processed using the Mimics software of Materialise to generate a 3D Model of the anatomy. 3D Systems, Stratasys and Z-Corporation will provide physical models based from the virtual model. The models will be delivered back to a surgeon in Iraq who can use this bone replica to plan and practice surgery on. As the project progresses the plan is to build RP parts for socket construction in artificial limbs.

--

A community in Massachusetts is collecting for Iraqi children:
"Someone Else's Child" is participating in a project with the Sundance School to acquire toys for children living in Iraq. A doctor from South Dakota who has been deployed to Iraq for three tours of duty has written to his local paper describing the needs of the children he has encountered. The doctor explains that the children he treats do not have toys or craft items.


So are people from North Dakota:

Shoes and pens donated from residents of this city and Harvey have been distributed to children in Iraq.

The drive was headed by Bert and Anna Marie Shomento of Minot. Their son, Bill, is a captain in the Montana National Guard. He's with the Idaho Brigade's 163rd Infantry Battalion in Iraq.

More than 7,000 pens and 773 pair of shoes were collected. Residents in the two cities also raised $815 to pay for postage.*.*.*.

"We passed out all of the shoes to some of the poorest folks in Iraq. They were extremely happy," Bill Shomento wrote in a recent e-mail.

"I explained to the mukhtar (village leader) that these shoes were not from the U.S. government but rather were from my hometown and that my parents had headed up the drive. The mukhtar sends you God's blessings and thanks you and the people of Minot for their generosity."


Students in Tallahassee, Fla., are helping a National Guardsmen bomb Iraq--with sweets:

Students at a middle school in Tallahassee, FL are getting generous with their candy. Students at Fairview Middle School wrapped candy in plastic bags and shipped two cartons to a Rhode Island National Guard helicopter pilot for distribution to Iraqi children.

The candies are being dropped in Baghdad and surrounding areas with messages such as "America Loves You." Teacher Jennifer Simmons says it's a friendly hello from Americans.

The project ties in with a school requirement that every student complete three hours of community service.

Brian Trapani, a Rhode Island National Guardsman who has been dropping "candy bombs" donated by others, has e-mailed to say the first box is already empty. His only cautionary note is "No Chocolate." It melts too easily in transit and in the desert heat.

As another report mentions, "the 'candy bombs' were inspired by the Berlin Airlift after World War II, when pilots would drop packages of chocolate or gum for children in Berlin."



• SECURITY.

U.S. forces are getting better at minimizing the damage from of roadside bombs:

The U.S. Army told Congress on Thursday it had sharply reduced the proportion of military casualties from roadside bombs in Iraq even as they have become increasingly powerful in the past year.

Even as insurgents continue to launch devastating attacks on Iraqi police, politicians and civilians, the ratio of death and injury among .*.*. U.S. troops from roadside "improvised explosive devices" has fallen by three-quarters, two generals told the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee.

--

The insurgency and the terror campaign, while bloody and persistent, are also suffering setbacks, although far less publicized. The February near-capture of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is bringing in some valuable intelligence:

Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's office said .*.*. the security forces had possessed significant information on Zarqawi's terror network in Iraq through the confessions of his driver.

In a statement, the office said that Zarqawi's driver shed light on the weakness of the terror network as a result of capturing and killing many leaders of the terror groups in Iraq by the security forces.*.*.*.

Further information provided by the driver might lead to the capture of other key elements in the network, said the statement, adding he also disclosed the external resources for the terrorist groups.

--

There are also increasing noises in Sunni circles about peaceful accommodation. [LINK]

--

Here's a fascinating glimpse on how American troops work every day in one Iraqi locality:

Even before the car bomb blew up at the head of his armoured column, Lieutenant Colonel Roger Cloutier of the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division had had a busy day trying to quell unrest in this Iraqi farming region.

The bombing late on Sunday that left one attacker dead but U.S. troops untouched ended a long day that saw him deal with a fight over a junkyard, threaten to cut off millions of dollars worth of projects and hand out candy to schoolchildren.

U.S. forces are using diplomacy, money and firepower in places like Muqdadiya, 80 km (50 miles) northeast of Baghdad, in a bid to weaken popular support for a raging insurgency.*.*.*.

His battalion is the target of an average of one roadside bomb a day, though attacks on the area's Iraqi forces have dwindled to almost nothing since local Muslim leaders issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, several weeks ago.*.*.*.

Cloutier told Mayor Allawi Farhan, police chief General Ammer Kamel and other officials at a meeting earlier in the day at city hall, a low-rise building surrounded by blast barriers, guards and barbed wire, that his patience was at an end.

"I want some names (of suspected bombers). As of now, all the money that is coming into the city for projects is going to stop," said Cloutier, who oversees 60 development projects worth $15 million.

Farhan, whose city has a jobless rate of 70 percent, pleaded for more time to get Sunni Muslims at the heart of the rebellion involved in politics.*.*.*.
"The people's mentality is not at that point yet. I, personally, I have told people repeatedly that if you don't attack the Americans they will stay on their bases," said the Sunni mayor, who has a personal security detail of 10 men.

Police chief Kamel, a Sunni imprisoned under Saddam, told Cloutier that seven of his 11 cars were out of service and he needed more officers.
He added, "I tell people every day, 'Hey, you ass-holes, they are building a road that Saddam didn't do anything about for 25 years. What the devil do you want?'"

Cloutier backed off his threat to cut project funds, agreeing to heavier patrolling and stricter enforcement of the 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew.

--

And here's a profile on American soldiers searching for weapons caches around Abu Ghraib:

"Life is a garden: dig it," one Soldier says, quoting the movie Joe Dirt before he begins to move earth with a rusted shovel.

When not conducting raids or other combat operations, Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, treat the town of Abu Ghraib like a giant treasure hunt as they leave no stone unturned in the search for weapons caches.

First Lt. Joshua Betty, a platoon leader from College Station, Texas, said digging for potential weapons is a daily routine for him and his Soldiers. Entire patrols are often dedicated to searching large areas for buried munitions.

"We're denying the enemy the ability to operate," Betty said. "It's become a big part of our operations. It's really starting to pay off."

--

Read also this story about everyday efforts to win hearts and minds near Samarra. [LINK]

--

"Iraqization" of security seems to have paid off in Mosul:

With local security forces now patrolling the city centre, Mosul residents say violence has ebbed.

The US began handing over security duties to Iraqi forces more than a month ago and now local police, army and Iraqi National Guardsmen can be seen patrolling the northwestern city.

"The Iraqi police, in cooperation with National Guard forces, are determined to impose security on the city," said police officer Waleed Hussein, 33.
Iraqi security forces lost control of Mosul in November 2004 under a sustained insurgent offensive, and have only recently retaken the city.

However, Mosul is still seen as a volatile area and there are periodic episodes of violence--such as on May 5, when a car bomb exploded near a police patrol, killing four officers and wounding several others.

But furniture seller Shawkee Ommar, 34, told IWPR that he can now stay out until 9 pm, unlike before when insurgents were controlling the city and he had to be home by 4 pm for safety reasons.

"Since the Iraqi forces came into the city, it has become quiet and we have led a normal life," he said. "There are explosions now and then, but right now we are living in peace compared with the past."

Ziyad Mohsin, an electricity directorate employee, 30, said the situation has been relatively calm since Iraqi forces restored security.

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And this is how Iraqization of security is working in practice elsewhere:

When Major Mark Borowski plunged with Iraqi troops into a date palm grove notorious as an insurgent hideout, he did something a U.S. officer would not have done a year ago--almost nothing.

Borowski's hands-off approach during the dawn sweep by hundreds of Iraqi soldiers marked the changing role of U.S. troops as they shift the burden of fighting insurgents onto under-equipped, barely trained Iraqi troops and police.

The brigade-size raid through dusty streets and a maze of towering palm trees, irrigation ditches and thickets at Buhriz, a town about 50 km (35 miles) north of Baghdad, was judged by U.S. officers to have been a success.

"I was pretty happy, this is a complex mission," Borowski, a battalion operations officer in the 3rd Infantry Division, told Reuters. "You saw the terrain. It was like the land that time forgot back there."

U.S. aircraft and artillery were available for support. But most of the few U.S. troops on the ground stayed close to their Humvees as Iraqi soldiers kicked down gates, searched through brush and bashed open the doors of uninhabited huts.

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The military authorities are also reporting successes in training Iraqi border guards:

The chief of border patrol training in Iraq believes the U.S. has now "turned a corner" in setting up an Iraqi border force.

Colonel William Wenger tells Associated Press Network News 20,000 border guards have been trained. And he says about half of the 250 border forts under construction with money from the U.S. and its coalition partners are now operational.

Wenger says there have been "some pretty remarkable successes" in rounding up would-be smugglers and insurgents in the areas that border Syria and Jordan. He says hundreds of men have been arrested and interrogated. Wenger says detainees "regularly" point Iraqi border forces to hidden caches of weapons and bomb-making materials and identify other insurgents.

Wenger says the detainees have come primarily from Syria, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates-but he also says there are a number of Iraqis too.

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Thanks, the doom and gloom gets old after a while.

That seems like a very easy dismissal of rather significant violence. It's more relevant that X number of Iraqi's are cleaning up Falujah than X number of people have been killed since the new government was installed? Why is that more relevant?

In the sense of justice and freedom, I see very little difference between present-day Iraq and Saddam Iraq. The primary difference seems to be the change from 1 man deciding how everyone else should live (who gets resources and who does not) vs. a dozen or so men deciding how everyone else should live. Meanwhile, quality of life has decreased and shows no sign of increasing - less electricity, less water, less food, more random violence.

Sure, there are positive developments - considering the thousands and thousands of lives that have been ended and billions and billions of dollars that have been spent, I would be suprised if there were zero positive developments. But to equate these minimal and often questionable positive developments with any degree of success, return on investment or fulfillment of purpose is to quite pointedly ignore reality and trivialize suffering and death.

I agree, reality gets old after awhile. Lucky for probably all of us we don't have to experience it in Iraq first hand.

Powerclown, thank you for starting this topic because I agree that we may not be getting all the news, both positive and negative. I have included the following article because of the insights of both reps and dems that have been there recently, and recent requests from the Iraqi government. I believe there is some good analysis in this article.

I don't see a "rosy" picture for the immediate future, but if the newly elected government wishes us to stay with increased strength, we have an obligation to support them.

Bush's Optimism on Iraq Debated
By Jim VandeHei and Peter Baker
The Washington Post

Sunday 05 June 2005

Rosy view in time of rising violence revives criticism.
President Bush's portrayal of a wilting insurgency in Iraq at a time of escalating violence and insecurity throughout the country is reviving the debate over the administration's Iraq strategy and the accuracy of its upbeat claims.

While Bush and Vice President Cheney offer optimistic assessments of the situation, a fresh wave of car bombings and other attacks killed 80 U.S. soldiers and more than 700 Iraqis last month alone and prompted Iraqi leaders to appeal to the administration for greater help. Privately, some administration officials have concluded the violence will not subside through this year.

The disconnect between Rose Garden optimism and Baghdad pessimism, according to government officials and independent analysts, stems not only from Bush's focus on tentative signs of long-term progress but also from the shrinking range of policy options available to him if he is wrong. Having set out on a course of trying to stand up a new constitutional, elected government with the security firepower to defend itself, Bush finds himself locked into a strategy that, even if it proves successful, foreshadows many more deadly months to come first, analysts said.

Military commanders in Iraq privately told a visiting congressional delegation last week that the United States is at least two years away from adequately training a viable Iraqi military but that it is no longer reasonable to consider augmenting U.S. troops already strained by the two-year operation, said Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.). "The idea that the insurgents are on the run and we are about to turn the corner, I did not hear that from anybody," Biden said in an interview.

Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), who joined Biden for part of the trip, said Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and others are misleading Americans about the number of functional Iraqi troops and warned the president to pay more attention to shutting off Syrian and Iranian assistance to the insurgency. "We don't want to raise the expectations of the American people prematurely," he said.

After dialing down criticism of Bush's policy following the successful January elections in Iraq, congressional Democrats are increasingly challenging the president's decisions and public assessments, and developing alternative policy ideas. "The administration has failed to level with the American people," said Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.). "It's terrible because they refuse to provide a full picture of what is really happening there."

Reid traveled to Iraq in April and was confined to heavily fortified zones in and around Baghdad and prohibited from visiting some of the most troubled areas where the insurgency is particularly strong. "The place is in turmoil," he said. Since then, Reid said, he has been meeting with former Clinton administration officials in an effort to devise a new Iraq plan, including the possibility of calling for more U.S. troops and requesting additional international assistance.

The White House says the focus on recent killings overshadows substantial long-term progress in Iraq, where the January elections allowed the United States to turn over more control for security to the Iraqis and set the stage for a new constitution to be written and approved this fall. Once that happens, White House officials say, a democratically elected Iraqi government protected by a better trained and equipped Iraqi military will hold off what remains of the insurgency and gradually allow U.S. forces to withdraw. Iraq's recent decision to put 40,000 troops around Baghdad, the most ambitious military move yet by the two-month-old government, proves that the U.S. plan to eventually turn over peacekeeping duties is not only viable, but working, White House officials maintain. Bush and Cheney, however, continue to decline to set deadlines for how long U.S. troops will remain.

"I am pleased that in less than a year's time, there's a democratically elected government in Iraq, there are thousands of Iraq soldiers trained and better equipped to fight for their own country [and] that our strategy is very clear," Bush said during a Rose Garden news conference Tuesday. Overall, he said, "I'm pleased with the progress." Cheney offered an even more hopeful assessment during a CNN interview aired the night before, saying the insurgency was in its "last throes."

Several Republicans questioned that evaluation. "I cannot say with any confidence that that is accurate," said Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Ohio), a member of the House International Relations Committee. "I think it's impossible to know how close we are to the insurgency being overcome."

It is not unusual for a president to put the most positive spin possible on U.S. policy, especially during a time of armed conflict when public support is crucial. But the administration's assertions about Iraq have been a source of controversy since the earliest days of the operation, from the insistence that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction to Cheney's claim of links between Iraq and al Qaeda to the rosy forecasts about how welcome U.S. troops would be.

A poll conducted last month by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press found that only 37 percent of those surveyed approved of Bush's Iraq policy, while the number of people telling pollsters the war was not worth the cost has been rising in recent months.

"We are just paying a heavy price for mistakes made before," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

"It's dangerous when U.S. officials start to believe their own propaganda," said David L. Phillips, a former State Department consultant who worked on Iraq planning but quit in frustration in 2003 and has written a book called "Losing Iraq: Inside the Postwar Reconstruction Fiasco." "I have no doubt that they genuinely think that Iraq is a smashing success and a milestone in their forward freedom strategy. But if you ask Iraqis, they have a different opinion."

Phillips added that U.S. officials keep pointing to landmarks such as the January elections as turning points but "at no point have any of these milestones proven to be breakthroughs."

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari last week lobbied Cheney and others for a more assertive U.S. military approach in Iraq, as well as for more help meeting the fall deadline for writing and approving a constitution. But even that carries risks. "Heavy-handed meddling by the Bush administration only undermines Iraq's new political leaders," Phillips said.

Peter Khalil, a former national security policy adviser for the Coalition Provisional Authority that ruled Iraq after Hussein's fall, said the rosy views expressed by Bush and Cheney reflect tentative hopes for progress down the road rather than a focus on day-to-day events at the moment. "They're thinking more long term when they make such optimistic remarks," said Khalil, now a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution. "There's some cause for optimism; however, things could turn badly very quickly."

Major Sunni leaders recently agreed to abandon their boycott of the political process; if they can be brought into the drafting of a new constitution and subsequent elections, Khalil and others say, it would undercut the elements of the insurgency that are powered by disaffection among the once-ruling Sunni minority. To do that, Khalil said, the new Shiite-led Iraqi government has to find the right balance in terms of including former members of Hussein's Sunni-dominated Baath Party.

"If you address these issues, it's very, very difficult to see them continue on in the use of violence because they become part of that [governing] structure," Khalil said.

A Western diplomat in Baghdad said victory would have to be won in a drawn-out struggle that will have peaks and valleys. "We should not expect some big-bang breakthrough so that one day the insurgency ends," he said on the condition of anonymity. "We should expect a long grind-it-out." After all, he said, "this is the hardest thing we've done to try to rebuild a state almost from zero."

"If you pull back far enough," he added, "you see a positive trend. . . . The negative is we've had some really spectacular car bombs, really gruesome car bombs and we've had a terrible civilian death toll. . . . The overall trend lines for the last six to seven months are better, but not so much better that we can say it's over or we won."

McCain said Bush needs to carefully balance his reassuring statements to a troubled nation with frank talk about the arduous and unpredictable future. "It's a long, hard struggle and very gradually maybe we are making progress," McCain said. "There are tough times ahead."

You're fears are warranted, pac-man. We all have them in these times of uncertainty.

But for now, just for a moment, maybe you can: Dare to Think of Good Things!

Every now and then I also appreciate a dose of perspective to objectify partisan political commentary. I'll be the first to acknowledge that Iraq is far from stable, obviously.

The scope of multinational reconstruction in Iraq is remarkable, and it seems to me it will only continue. At times I am downright encouraged about what Iraq could become in the future: a paradigm shift away from the outdated and self-defeating hatred of the Infidel, the influx of resources and investment into the region, the rising standards of living, a thriving educational system, an artistic and cultural re-awakening, prominent sporting events and various recreational endeavors, a booming travel industry, computer manufacturing and outsourcing industries, a successful health care system, state of the art scientific facilities...the list is infinite. And, finally, a country allied - through peace first and foremost - to the rest of the world.

Iraq could - could - truly be the start to a revolutionary period in Middle Eastern history, as well as a catalyst for change throughout troubled - and not so troubled - areas across the globe.

I'm tired of listening to politicians, Elphaba. I like to think for myself every now and then.

Thanks, anyway.

If my brother dies and I find a $100 bill in the street, should I celebrate?

I can't seem to focus on rather minor elements of positivity in the face of such major negativity.

the trouble with arguments of perspective is that most people are unable to form an informed opinion without regurgitating what the politicians or media present.

you have on one hand... an administration with a vested interest in accentuating the positive.

on the other you have a media environment that has everything to gain by sensationalizing any violence that makes a good news story.

what if you judged your own community by what you saw on the local news? what if your only source of information about your hometown came from the mayor? the picture would be blood-n-guts/crime/corruption from the first source and rosy from the second.

yet each one of us makes (what we consider to be) fully rational and informed decisions about some place on the other side of the world based on two methods few of us wholly trust.

i think it's time to call bullshit not just on the media and the politicians... but on eachother when our opinions of such matters are completely based upon the aforementioned sources.

i'm not suggesting that citizens give up searching for the truth of a matter, just that they recognize the limitations of the medium in which they perceive it. war has become a reality show, politics has become verbal sport... many of you (us?) are too far removed from the real consequences of the decisions being made to have anything meaningful to say about it.

Powerclown, I saw some positive developments in this article. Did you manage to read these statements:

"Peter Khalil, a former national security policy adviser for the Coalition Provisional Authority that ruled Iraq after Hussein's fall, said the rosy views expressed by Bush and Cheney reflect tentative hopes for progress down the road rather than a focus on day-to-day events at the moment. "They're thinking more long term when they make such optimistic remarks," said Khalil, now a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution. "There's some cause for optimism; however, things could turn badly very quickly."

"Major Sunni leaders recently agreed to abandon their boycott of the political process; if they can be brought into the drafting of a new constitution and subsequent elections, Khalil and others say, it would undercut the elements of the insurgency that are powered by disaffection among the once-ruling Sunni minority. To do that, Khalil said, the new Shiite-led Iraqi government has to find the right balance in terms of including former members of Hussein's Sunni-dominated Baath Party."

"If you address these issues, it's very, very difficult to see them continue on in the use of violence because they become part of that [governing] structure," Khalil said."

"A Western diplomat in Baghdad said victory would have to be won in a drawn-out struggle that will have peaks and valleys. "We should not expect some big-bang breakthrough so that one day the insurgency ends," he said on the condition of anonymity. "We should expect a long grind-it-out." After all, he said, "this is the hardest thing we've done to try to rebuild a state almost from zero."

"If you pull back far enough," he added, "you see a positive trend. . . . The negative is we've had some really spectacular car bombs, really gruesome car bombs and we've had a terrible civilian death toll. . . . The overall trend lines for the last six to seven months are better, but not so much better that we can say it's over or we won."

I hear you loud and clear, pac-man. It's not a pretty picture right now, by any stretch of the imagination.

For a moment, though, try to picture in your mind - create a sheer fantasy in your mind - that things turn out for the better, that Something Good comes of all this. ANYTHING was better than the way it was, for everyone involved, no? At this point in time, the Dialogue of Doom holds no interest for me anymore. One can bitch and whine about the bad things in Iraq until Kingdom Come, how simple is that? I can dredge up in my own mind the darkest, most miserable scenarios for Iraq, as I'm sure you can. Easiest thing in the world, right?

So. In the meantime, it doesn't hurt to shine some light on the positive in Iraq.

The "dialog of doom", as you put it - which seems to me to be the Description of Reality - should not and cannot be ignored, particularly if the basis for ignoring it is personal discomfort in facing it.

Beyond that, you appear to be speaking of hope. It is not impossible or even difficult to face the facts, which are very unpleasantly negative and still maintain hope. Hope is one thing, what is happening in the world is another.

An awesome sequence of paragraphs, irate. Some great points you make...

This passage, in particular, resonated loud and clear:
Th power of the press, indeed. I wonder at what point one can claim victory in this war-of-perception? At the point of defeat, at the point of victory, or somewhere in between?

My purpose here was simply to point the spotlight - for the moment anyway - on that bit of information maybe not normally read (speaking for myself here) and regurgitated time and again. Just another slice from the war-of-perception pie, as it were.

Honestly, Elphaba, when I read the entire story, the only thing that stuck in my mind was the above passage, which is clear to just about anyone not living under a rock, I would venture to guess. I am more interested in trying to found out as much as possible about what actually is going on in Iraq than I am about some politician's flowery, self-aggrandizing prose. Well Thank You Mr. Western-Diplomat-in-Baghdad for that colorful and descrpitive analysis! Your commentary on the matter is most informative!! Hopefully it was actually even you who said it, and not some creative embellishment on the Editor's part!! You remember Dan Rather, riiight?!? Your check is in the mail, btw!! :lol:

the "good things are happening in iraq" argument is a ruse. A coverup. It's an attempt to distract the American people from the real issue, and that is that the whole war was started on false premises, and hundreds of young American men and women have been killed, and thousands have been wounded, permanently disfigured, scarred, and handicapped as a result. And that's not to mention the vast numbers of non-Americans who were killed or maimed.

Lying to start a catastrophe, and then claiming that a little good came of it so everything must be alright and it's just the alarmist "evil liberal media" that's trying to portray the war as a bad thing is absurd.

This ends-justify-the-means approach is a dangerous one no matter what the situation. It certainly should not be encouraged as part of our foriegn policy.

No doubt you are aware the exact same thing could be said of a so-called "epilogue of expectation", as well.

Would one be entirely accurate to dismiss as lie and falsehood, those things happening in Iraq of a "constructive" nature, as originally posted here? Is the only human activity of note in Iraq today that of suicide bombing, kidnapping and roadside IEDs?

I never dismissed the positive things as a falsehood. I said that the media bashing is a distraction from the fact that it was an unjust war entered under false pretenses, and which got many thousands of people killed or permanently injured.

I would say that the positives certainly do not outweigh the negatives, and even if they did, lying to accomplish them is not something that should be acceptable from anyone in government, certainly not our president.

I'm curious, shakran. Please indulge me here: what is the point in wallowing in sorrow over events of the past? Fine, you made your point - Bush will never have your support for this war. But I have news for you: this thing in Iraq will be going on for a loooong, looong time after Bush is gone. It's not on Bush anymore.

Isn't it time to look forward YET? Isn't it time to stop pouting, dry your eyes, and stand up and work with the hand that has been dealt? Because unless you have a time machine, there is no other reality.


I'll give it a rest for now.

Powerclown, I feel that you might be tossing away any positive news in the article I cited, if there is also a CYA behind each statement. That's what some people do. It doesn't change the fact that there may be some hope for optimism from the sources I quoted from this article. It was never my intent to undermine your thread about the positives that can found.

those who forget history are doomed to repeat it, as we have learned with the men who forgot Vietnam and started this war. Bush is still in office, making bad decisions every week.

At which point are we going to look at his record and demand that something be done about it?

At which point are we going to stop justifying horribly bad moves by saying "gee it happened in the past, let's forget about it."

I'd sure like it if my bank would say they loaned me the money in the past, so we'll forget what I owe.

I bet there are a lot of criminals in jail who would love it if society would say "gee, it happened in the past, so let's forget about that silly old crime and set you free."

The hand that's been dealt is that we've killed and wounded so many people, spent the military coffers dry, all in this nebulous war on terror which, might I remind you, has still failed to catch or kill the only terrorist who has actually ever attacked the United States!

Not only has he attacked us, but he's attacked us twice. And he's still running around free as a bird while we go after this dink in the desert who never attacked us, and never even had the capability to attack us.

Am I gonna forget those decisions? Hell no, and it's the people that do that allow decisions like that to continue to be made.

There was no CYA involved at all. Where am I going? Am I leaving? Has the thread been locked already?

I was being honest when I mentioned to you what I took away from the article you posted. Maybe I should re-read it. It wasn't my intention to disparage the article you kindly provided.

I'm not dismissing as lies or falsehoods the constructive aspects you mentioned in your first post - I'm simply pointing out that they pale significantly in comparison to the hundreds that are being killed every month.

The comments you made in your first post seem to me to be attempts to dismiss the relevance of the violence in Iraq, expressly due to your discomfort over the existence of that violence. I wholeheartedly disagree. Which leads me to believe we do not have enough reports on the violence if you can so easily dismiss that which we have.

I guess it's not time to start looking ahead just yet. There are those good people of the nation who still prefer to dwell in the past, apparently.


I'm reminded of another thing:

There are not only people who refuse to look forward, there are people who are counting on America to fail in Iraq. I temporarily forgot about that when I started this thread. Dammit.

Thanks for trying powerclown.

I really want Iraq to develop a strong and stable democratic govenment. It will transform the middle east.

Not at all. I fully acknowledge the violence brought on by the Insurgency upon the populace. How can one miss it? What IS easy to miss is the non-violent, apparently unworthy-of-news changes taking place within Iraq.

More positive news from Iraq forthcoming...

Hehe sometimes we all forget PC :lol:

If Iraq comes out a stable and free democratic nation, just think of the implications for some world views?

It seems to me you are refusing to accept that there is a difference between dwelling on the past and critically analyzing the present and the events that directly led to the present. And your sarcastic tone is unfortunate.

What would you have Shakran do, powerclown? Shrug and accept that the same people who created the situation are the people who should now be supported in addressing it? That alone seems rather unwise - but even as those same people continue to deny the current state of the situation - is that what you expect should be supported?

Good to hear it. Maybe post a link or three here, then, if you come across one.

And obviously it's not just me wanting something positive to happen over there. Better people than myself are there risking their lives to create something decent from the ashes. And I'm not talking about the soldiers, I'm talking about ordinary people, Iraqis and non-Iraqis, working in office buildings, in libraries, in schools, in hospitals, in government buildings, etc. etc.

Their problem, pac, is that they've chosen the side that's built on lies, deceipt, and logical fallacies. The war WAS started based on lies, and whether Iraq becomes stable and peaceful (I'm not holding my breath) or not has no bearing on the fact that the United States was in the wrong.

Iraq is a quagmire. It's not going to be stable and peaceful any more than Vietnam was stable and peaceful.

There's no excuse for what this country did. We invaded a country that was no threat, could be no threat, and hadn't done anything to deserve our attack.

And we did it by lying about WMDs, insinuating Iraq and 9/11 were linked, and basically scaring the people into supporting the war.

Now that the lies are being exposed, the pro-war side is forced to use diversionary tactics to try and draw our attention away from that ugly fact. So they start whining about how the media covers bad things happening in Iraq - as though 20+ American soldiers getting killed by an insurgent bomb is a story that should be dropped in favor of one about an iraqi kid petting a puppy.

And then when someone like you or I steps up to the plate and calls attention to the diversionary tactic, they start calling us names, and accuse us of wanting the mission in Iraq to fail, and in some cases they even accuse us of wanting the soldiers to be killed so we can be proven right.

Well in the first place that's bullshit, and unless they can substantiate that with quotes from you or me in which we said we wanted the Iraq mission to fail or that we want soldiers to get killed, they should refrain from the baseless, slandarous (and incidentally, more diversionary) accusations.

Furthermore, the Iraq mission as originally pitched HAS failed.

It was pitched as an invasion that would make the US safer, and it hasn't. We're in every bit as much danger now as we ever were. And in fact we're probably in more danger - after all, we've just pissed off a whole passel of Iraq/Saddam supporters.

So yes. The Iraq mission is a failure. Changing it midstream from "keep us safe and eliminate imaginary WMDs" to "democratize iraq by forcing a government on them" (no one sees the irony there?) does not erase the original failure.

It doesn't appear that you do - you stated that the exceptionally marginal positive items you listed are more relevant than the lives that are being lost.

I guess in a sense, that is acknowledgement - acknowledgement through the act of marginalization.

Big news, which if it were not covered by the press would be a great disservice, will be when Iraq has more electricity than it did prior to the war. Big news will be when hundreds and hundreds of people don't die every month. Big news will be the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

But the building of a bridge in Amara? 7000 pens and 700 pairs of shoes were donated? The lack of blazing 72-point headlines of such information disappoints you?

Good point pac-man. I'm not judging the opinions of any member here, or anywhere else. I am curious to see what effect the anti-war vocalization will have, ultimately, in Iraq. Will antiwar sentiment here in America and elsewhere have a lasting effect on the reconstruction, for example?

As for lives lost, what would you have me do here, in this forum? Shall I hold prayer services each and every time someone dies in Iraq due to the conflict? Should I post pictures of the event for proof? If the implication is that I don't place much importance upon innocent people dying in Iraq, I have to say you are mistaken.

I'm not trying to justify the war here. I'm simply trying to shed light on other things besides the insurgency. Violence isn't the only thing of relevance in Iraq.

*This morning's update is brought to you in part through contributions made by the Carl S. Yaquinto Foundation for the Hopeful Restoration of Sparkling Kiwi Nellek White Orchids in the city of Basra, Southern Iraq.

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Former military corporation converted to civilian use

By Alya Qassem
Azzaman, May 7, 2005

A major military corporation is now producing cranes and electrical cables instead of missiles and bombs.

Al-Simoud Enterprise, the pride of former regime’s military industries, has been converted to civilian use.

Its main products include cranes, pylons, communication towers, concrete bridges and steel in addition to power infrastructure equipment.

Three of the corporation’s companies are now operational, said director-general Yousif Ali.

One of the revitalized companies is specialized in the production of concrete blocks and electrical posts.

Another produces cranes with a capacity ranging from 5-50 tons.

He said the corporation was in talks with Turkish and German companies on how to upgrade production.

Ali said it was difficult to bring the three idle firms on stream due to lack of electricity.

Foreign investment was welcome, he said, adding that the corporation was in need of “a comprehensive campaign” to modernize its aging equipment.

However, earnings from the three operational firms were not enough to cover expenses.

He said security was a problem for the corporation due to its proximity to an area known for mounting insurgent activity.

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It's a company that's out of money, can't produce well because there's no electricity, and its expenses outstrip its earnings.

Plus, insurgents are creating a security threat for the company.

How exactly is this good news?

i can't quite place it, but the way i read these words really bothered me. the way you ask these questions rhetorically seems to imply a sarcastic no to each of them. but i'm troubled...why wouldn't it be proper to pray for the dead of a conflict our nation helped create? Why wouldn't it be right to memorialize those who have lost their lives for this war? Especially when we're talking about the civilian casualties of Iraq...and that part of the absurdity of this rhetorical question is that of course we all know it can't be done. There are too many deaths to make it pratical to remember or even record them all. And that's what i find truely staggering.

Being that this is the internet, i can't tell how you wanted those words read. but when i read them, i don't like them much. they seem to negate the final sentence there.

You seem to be missing the point. It isn't about money. Its about freedom. When I read the sections about the new iraqi society and especially the economy, I was reading about how iraqis now have freedom they never used to have. Those are the good developments, the priceless ones.

I doubt he missed the point Stevo.

Yet to me it is all about the cost. This isn't a MasterCard add. Everything has a price. It's pefectly fair of people to ask whether this operation is worth continuing and to ask for accountability on the many blunders allong the way.

I'm sorry you feel that way, martinguerre. The only sentiment I was try to convey was that I do feel sorrow for those killed or wounded in this conflict. I do make a distinction, though, between those struggling for a better Iraq, and those working against it.

Iraqis' Favorite TV Station Marks First Anniversary

Azzaman, 2005-03-26

One year after its founding, Al-Sharqiya satellite channel has become Iraqi households’ most favorite television.

Transmitted over three satellites, the channel has created a remarkable niche in the Arab world, particularly in Iraq.

Baghdad University polls have shown the channel’s rating soaring and a recent survey saw it grabbing 53% of the highly competitive television market share in the country.

The channel’s success is mainly due to its independence and integrity. Unlike its major rivals, Al-Sharqiya is the country’s only independent television that is not associated to any particular group, faction, sect or religion inside or outside Iraq.

The 24-hour news and entertainment channel is beamed from two locations, one in Dubai and the other in Baghdad. It employs 250 reporters, cameramen, editors and administrators.

Al-Sharqiya is run by a board of directors that includes the channel’s major investors, who are also contributors in the Azzaman Group which publishes Iraq’s most widely read newspaper, Azzaman.

The channel is also transmitted terrestrially over most parts of Iraq and can be seen via satellite all over the country, the Arab World and by Iraqi expatriates in Europe and the Americas.

News makes up 11 percent of al-Sharqiya’s 24-hour transmission. Reality programs, documentaries, culture and political analysis feature high in the channel’s television menu.

What distinguishes al-Sharqiya from competitors is its focus on the reality of conditions in Iraq. It carries popular concerns right to Iraqis’ living rooms.

Al-Sharqiya currently has plans to diversify activities by introducing additional programs and separate sister channels.

It also intends to go public by having the channel listed on stock exchanges in a bid to raise its capital.

The directors have vowed to turn down offers or contributions from governments, political parties or groups as they strive to maintain the channel’s independence and integrity.

Marking the founding anniversary, al-Sharqiya launched a few days ago an interactive site to meet needs of the growing numbers of internet users in the country. The address is: www.alsharqiya.com

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*Today's Update is brought to you by The CETI Group of Greater Baghdad (Citizens for the Ethical Treatment of Insurgents)

I never said anything against accountability. But I'm sorry to hear that you would actually ask if our work in iraq is worth continuing. Its not a cliche, freedom is priceless.

For me, the issue has always been cost vs benefit. While there are some positive things coming out of Iraq, it's hard to see that the benefits outweigh the loss of life or monetary expense. It's particularly hard to see the cost vs benefit when looking strictly at US interests.

There is nothing wrong with starting a happy talk thread, but readers here should note that the "article"
featured here, is fresh from the blog of
Chrenkoff, filtered through the WSJ Opinion Journal, to raise it's standing. Here is the link to the blog where all of
Chrenkoff's material originates before it is dressed up for more mainstream distribution: http://chrenkoff.blogspot.com/2005/0...q-part-28.html . I see nothing wrong with communicating "news" via blogs, but the right cannot have it both ways:
I also think that nothing should take our attention away from this:

Tell that to the mom/sister/wife/kid of the dead soldier.

It's easy to sit back in your computer chair and preach to us that freedom is priceless. It becomes very different when you or a loved one has to go over there and put his life on the line for a lie.

And if freedom is so priceless, why did we go after Iraq first? There are plenty of dictators out there that make Saddam look like Mr. Rogers. Why aren't we going after them first?

The simple answer is that Bush & Co. didn't give a crap about democratizing Iraq. That just became an excuse once their WMD fabrications were exposed for the lies they were.

It is not our job to overthrow all the world's governments. It is hypocritical of us to force people to have a democratic government. The sooner we start concentrating on our problems and stop trying to meddle with everyone else's the better off we, and the rest of the world, will be.

I'm not sure what benefits you are referring to StanT. Do you care to eleborate? Same thing in regards to US interests...somewhat vague here, and I don't want to put words in your mouth.

Thanks for clarifying the situation, host. I just report what I read, as we all do here. Of course, the reader will continue to enjoy total freedom of choice and will come to those conclusions that most resonate with him/her. I consider myself lucky to be able to sound off without fear of prosecution or bodily harm.

It doesn't change the point that iraqis are more free now than they have been for centruies.

Ordinary Iraqis Wage A Successful Battle Against Insurgents

By ROBERT F. WORTH
Published: March 22, 2005
New York Times

BAGHDAD, Iraq, March 22 - Ordinary Iraqis rarely strike back at the insurgents who terrorize their country. But just before noon today, a carpenter named Dhia saw a troop of masked gunmen with grenades coming towards his shop and decided he had had enough.

As the gunmen emerged from their cars, Dhia and his young relatives shouldered their own AK-47's and opened fire, police and witnesses said. In the fierce gun battle that followed, three of the insurgents were killed, and the rest fled just after the police arrived. Two of Dhia's young nephews and a bystander were injured, the police said.

"We attacked them before they attacked us," Dhia, 35, his face still contorted with rage and excitement, said in a brief exchange at his shop a few hours after the battle. He did not give his last name. "We killed three of those who call themselves the mujahedeen. I am waiting for the rest of them to come and we will show them."

It was the first time that private citizens are known to have retaliated successfully against insurgents. There have been anecdotal reports of residents shooting at attackers after a bombing or assassination. But the gun battle today erupted in full view of half a dozen witnesses, including a Justice Ministry official who lives nearby.

The battle was the latest sign that Iraqis may be willing to start standing up against the attacks that leave dozens of people dead here nearly every week. After a suicide bombing in Hilla last month that killed 136 people, including a number of women and children, hundreds of residents demonstrated in front of the city hall every day for almost a week, chanting slogans against terrorism. Last week, a smaller but similar rally took place in Baghdad. Another demonstration is scheduled for Wednesday in the capital.

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*This update has no contributions or compensated spokesman.

Except for the dead ones.

I don't mean to be flip, but what is the math here? If the same number of Iraqis die in a "before Saddam/after Saddam" year, are they better off? If it's the same number, but the rest are free, does that make it ok?

What about if it's 1:2? Or 1:3? Is there some amount of death and suffering that could occur now that would make everyone say: geez, they ARE worse now than before?

I have a feeling there isn't a number high enough for some.



I'm not saying I know what those numbers are. But I'm not buying the blind assertion that things are better now. As I'm not buying the reverse. Sure seems like a good thing that Saddam is gone, to me.

But I can hold THAT opinion, and still fear where it's going. And be concerned that when all is said and done it won't have been worth it to America. If I had to bet my own money, I'd say that in 10 years we will be sorry we (the nation) did it this way.

We shall see. But I'm all for feeling good in the moment. Seize the day, guys.

One more thing: I can appreciate the outcome, and have contempt for the process. I don't believe the ends justify the means.

Because the "means" implies that other crap is going on as well. And that might not turn out so nice. The "means" is what builds trust. Within our nation, and without. And that's important.

That seems to be the piece that gets lost in the fray, somehow...

PowerClown, have you seen any commentary on small towns that have for the most part been left out of the fray? I would be curious to know if any changes were initiated by them after the fall of Saddam's government.

While I don't dispute the the "positive developments" that you pointed out while creating the topic, I think we are a long way off from justifying the cost of this war. The cost in lives, the hit on our (US) economy, and loss international respect far exceed the points that you make.

If we bring a stable, friendly to the West, democracy to the region, that will be worth quite a bit, far more than another dictator willing to help out Western interests.

And if the people of Iraq vote in US unfriendly people?

One thing here... the better part of the dead Iraqis are the BAD GUYS!
You say you agree that it's a good thing Saddam is out... then wouldn't you also agree that his little trained minions are dealt with?

yawn. Same old mish mosh in this thread as every other one. This is not an argument whether we should be in Iraq or not or whether the war will be "worth" it in the end. That matter is simply null and insignificant at this point. No matter where you stand you should be rooting for a safe, stable, and peaceful Iraq. Debates should be over how to best reconstruct Iraq and ensuring security, not whether we should be reconstructing and securing it or not.

That statement doesn't change the point that it was not our responsibility, our job, or our right to effect that change.

We are not the world's policeman. Trying to force democracy on everyone is a guaranteed way to get everyone pissed off at us. That does NOT enhance our national security.

And DukeNukem, you're dismissing the droves of Iraqi civilians who have been killed since the beginning of the war, and who continue to be killed every day.

As for them being more free, freedom does you no good if you can't leave your house to enjoy it. The average Iraqi today is taking his life into his hands just going to the grocery store. If that's the kind of freedom you're selling, I'm not buying.

Thanks for the acknowledgement...I understand and respect the points you make here. They are of course as valid as mine, or anyone elses.

I remain hopeful that this turbulent period in world history will bear fruit down the line, preferably sooner than later. When I look around, I see 'Globalization' bringing people of differing nations, cultures, religions, races, customs, etc. more closer together than ever before in history, and into potentially constructive, mutually beneficial working relationships. Because of this, I see a need for all to observe an international code of conduct, for all involved to be able to step up to the table with dignity and integrity, for all involved to step out of the shadows of the past. We are all aware now that there will be certain specific geopolitical areas of the world more sensitive than others. Nations need resources to look after the needs of their consumer-citizens. Law, order, and equilibrium need to be re-established once again amongst an ever-widening circle of nations in the new paradigm of Globalization. Growing pains are unavoidable, in my opinion, because nothing in life of value comes without a price. My 2 cents...

You mention changes made by small towns in Iraq; sorry, but I'm not sure I follow. What changes are you referring to?
Feel free to elaborate if you wish..... Agreed. You're last sentence hits the nail square on the head to my way of thinking as well. I look forward to just such a discussion here one day soon.

*More positive news out of Iraq that you won't hear about on CNN for whatever reason:
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US government backs loans to small businesses in Iraq (06/04/05)

This year, the US government will help more than 100,000 American small businesses obtain access to capital through SBA loans. Now it wants to help grow small and medium-size businesses in Iraq.

The Overseas Private Investment Corp., a federal agency that backs investments in developing countries, teamed with Citigroup to establish a $131 million loan program in Iraq. Iraqi financial institutions will tap these funds to make loans to small and medium-sized businesses.

"This facility is critical as a first step toward rejuvenating the private sector of Iraq as it strives to tap the capital markets," says Ross Connelly, OPIC's acting president and CEO.

OPIC provides political risk insurance, loans and loan guaranties to American businesses that invest in new and emerging markets. Fees cover the costs of its programs.

The agency also will pick a manager soon for a private equity investment fund that will invest in technology-based businesses in emerging markets. The purpose of the fund is to "bridge the digital divide in developing countries," according to the agency.

Source: Bizjournals
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doublepostdoublepost

I'm willing to give my question another read, Powerclown. :)

Are there any unaffected towns in Iraq that are now making their own political changes without fear of retribution?

Though I am opposed to the decision to invade Iraq, I hope that the 'new' Iraq will succed. I think most people would agree that an end to the fighting and Iraq becoming peacfull aswell as a having a government that represents the views of the Iraqi people is the most desirable outcome. The Iraqi politicians have a tough road ahead of them if they are to achieve this.

Here's a cool link to first hand accounts of what's happening on the ground in Iraq. Sort of like a diary. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4613785.stm

I think this is a really great idea. It really puts a human stamp and face on the "news". There's different experience, nothing "partisan". I think you'll get a lot out of it.

Did you guys hear the recent news of trying to raise teachers salaries in Iraq? I'd say that is a positive. And of course, another car bombing too unfortunately. There's good and bad.

I think the best approach, as always, would be to look at it from all directions.

- In my opinion we need to learn from our mistakes. This cannot be done if we don't hold any one accountable for them.

- Since the project is already on the way we need to think of how to succed in it's completion. As such we need to figure out what our goal is. "Freedom" is a great word to sell to the plebs but it doesn't mean much.

- If the outcome of the project looks grim then perhaps it's best to think about the option to pull out.

Good question. An overview of the political makeup of Iraq can be found HERE, among other places.

1) Northern Iraq, Kurd majority
2) Central Iraq, Sunni Arab majority
3) Southern Iraq, Shia Arab majority

The Kurds to the North are an autonomous ethnic group apart from the Sunnis & Shia. They are quite organized and relatively stable politically. Local governmental structures, based on tribal lines of authority, have been key to stability there.

Throughout the rest of Iraq, a strong centralized government with universal legitimacy is still in its infancy. For example, it is common in the Shia south and even in the poorer districts of Baghdad, to find a cleric at a small, local mosque regarded as a political/moral authority.

A similar role is played in Sunni regions by the heads of large, interconnected tribal groups that run businesses, dispense charity and provide a political lead for the entire community.

Time will reveal just how effective a centralized, democratic leadership (based in Baghdad) functions across this scenario.

Nice link, jorgelito...

Personal dispatches from all walks of life in Iraq. Simply awesome. Thank you.

*More bland, bloodless, non-violent, un-sexy, low calorie, low-ratings worthy news out of Iraq:
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Ministry Asks for Funds to Compensate Victims of Former Regime

By Sadeq Rahim
Azzaman, 2005-03-20

The Ministry of Human Rights wants to set aside 5% of oil revenues to compensate families of victims of the former regime.

A ministry statement, obtained by the newspaper, said the money should be deposited in a fund to be set up specifically to look after those still suffering from the regime’s atrocities.

The statement comes as the country marked the 17th anniversary of the chemical attack on the Kurdish city of Halabja in which 5,000 Kurds were killed.

“The money in the fund should be used to help the victims of Halabja and Anfal and those with diseases as a result of the use of chemical weapons,” the statement said.

In Anfal operations conducted before the end of the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war, more than 4,500 Kurdish villages were reported to have been destroyed and nearly 180,000 Kurds killed.

Non-governmental Iraqi rights organizations that sprang up after the fall of the regime are reported to have collected massive data on the victims, which also include tens of thousands of Iraqis who were uncovered in mass graves.

But still it is hard to have exact statistics on how many Iraqis suffered directly at the hands of the former regime.

The rights groups maintain that it is wrong to say that the atrocities were only directed at minority groups such Kurds and Shiites.

Most Iraqis suffered and there is hardly a person in Iraq who does not know about a case involving a violation of human rights, they say.

The ministry statement said chemical attacks targeted 250 villages in the north.

It also said there was still no information on “a great number of Iraqis” who were reported missing under the former regime.

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i wonder what the assumed relation is between this stream of information on the order of "the american occupation is doing some good"--which seems to me obvious at some level, at least in that it explains why there is not complete fiasco, complete catastrophe in iraq--and the legitimacy of the war itself. i recognize that some folk who oppose the war, and who opposed it, have some difficulty processing such "good" as is being done by the american occupation--but it seems to me that this cuts both ways, and that this thread is working entirely on conservative/bush administration grounds by trying to use such "good" as is being done as a way of avoiding troubling questions about the war itself, declaring them "moot" etc....

so how about it, folks--can you look simultaneously at this type of information, applaud it and concede that the war itself was illegitimate?

Simply look around you, roachboy. Up and down this thread, for example. A microcosm of a sentiment expressing itself clearly in the concerns of like-minded individuals. I find certain developments in Iraq - when I hear about them - astonishing, and find myself saying, "Hmm, I did not know that. You mean there is something happening over there besides anarchy and mayhem? Well, good to hear it. There seems to be progress here; in fact, there seems to be a reasonable basis for hope."

The process can be ugly - the destination worthwhile.

Thanks, Powerclown. Would this not explain why there is very little "doom and gloom" reporting regarding the Kurd's?

so you think that the ends justify the means.
wasn't that what the americans used to criticize stalin for? was this attitude not in itself the hallmark of an authoritarian regime, from the american viewpoint, not long ago?

and so, for you, questions about the war itself are in fact irrelevant?

i have read through the thread, and i note that the folks who raise this kind of objection are usually followed with yet another in a stream of happyface press pool releases of the type the bush administration has been trying to emphasize as part of their "public diplomacy" project over the past few months. public diplomacy of course being, in this case, a synonym for sell the war.

curious.

it is not that i have any real problem with the fact that in certain parts of iraq, the american occupation has been trying to do good things--in the context of an illegal and illegitimate occupation, of course. but i really do not understand how this functions to even begin to address the problems raised by the war itself.

Of course you can.

Just like some of us look at the casualties and things like Abu Gharib (sp?) and still think the war is in general a good thing.

I think much of it depends on your point of view.

obviously, lebell, if you are predisposed to support this war, then rationalizing the consequences, even the foulest ones (torture--the system of undefinite detentions without trial at lovely country-club settings like guantanamo--they are linked if you accept the administration's hogwash about this all being elements of the "war on terror")...

what i was asking about was what i see as the a motive for the thread itself--not just ok so there are some good things happening in the context of an illegal and illegitimate occupation--

but then you probably could have said the same of the belgian congo during the period when the belgians were doing brutal, horrific things to communities that did not make their rubber quota. for example--but elsewhere, there were nice buildings being put up and i am sure that the even the belgians could have found local people who would have been willing to argue on camera (*questions of motive never come up on camera if the person posing the question, and the apparatus distrubuting the clips, each have no interest in posing them) that their presence was not the wholesale catastrophe that anyone else would see in it--

but whatever--the question is about substituting this happyface list of Great Accomplishments on the part of the occupation for question about the legitimacy of the occupation.

this objection has been raised a number of times in the thread already and never gets an actual response. so i thought it time to force the matter.

Hi Roachboy, I don't think that the info is necessarily mutually exclusive. I intrpreted the original post more as: presenting another side to the situation on the ground there and not as ignoring the (obvious) negative stuff. My assumption is that the positive news isn't being substituted for the negative, rather it's being presented to provide another view.

I don't think anyone doubts for a minute that there are bad things happening: the bombings, security issues, infrastructure, soldier abuses... the list is long.

Hower, it is nice to hear, that amidst all the sh*t that's happening, there are glimmers of hope and positive instances occurring.

The legitimacy issue (IMO), is another issue altogether, maybe for another thread even. I think we can still appreciate the little positive stories coming out of Iraq, and still be anti-war or see the war as illegitinmate. I'm against the war but I still posted a link to some nice positive things in Iraq. I even mentioned how the locals were fed up with insurgents and started to fight back. I thought it would be good for balanced and stuff.

As far as troop withdrawal or exit strategy, (IMO), that is still another thread too we should open up (and play armchair generals & strategists) and disseminate the series of US foreign policy moves that got us into this "mess". (I have to wait until after finals :(

Anyways, I thought you raised really good points Roachboy, but maybe slightly off the main point of the thread (at least that's how I intrepreted it).

I would say yes, but add: relatively speaking.

The North is far from secured. Back in November 04, violence brought on by the insurgency (made up of 2 parts: FRE, Former Regime Elements, and extremists) was at an all-time (post-Hussein) high in areas in and immediately surrounding Mosul & Kirkuk, Northern Iraq. Short overview here. What the insurgency is trying to do in Northern Iraq is goad the Kurds into a sectarian war based on longstanding animosity between the Kurds and Sunni Arabs in the region. The insurgents are doing what they can to disrupt the political process of putting into effect a legal system based upon the rule of law and order, as opposed to how it was under Hussein (violence, fear and intimidation were the 'law' of the land, in every sense of the word).

So it's early days in the North as well. Coalition Forces in Mosul are in the process of transitioning over security responsibilities to local Iraqis. More on the matter can be read about here: Handoff to Iraqi Forces Being Tested in Mosul.

There is an interesting dynamic going on in the north right now too that may contribute to levels of reporting.

Turkey, Syria, and Iran are very concerned at developments in Kurdish areas as they have their own restive Kurds who may be influenced by developments in northern Iraq. For example, if some charismatic Kurdish cleric/leader unified all the Kurds and advocated independence and nationalization of the oil fields in Kirkuk et al, the situation would get real hairy, real quick. Kurds in Syria, Iran, and Turkey may try and follow suit or "seced" their areas to join a greater Kurdistan. That would create precedent. Most major powers and junior powers do not wish to see this happen for fear of a domino effect (EX: Timor, Kashmir, Tibet, Basque, etc).

The US supports Turkey (EU bid, NATO bid) as a hedge or thorn in Europe (to keep them in disarray) and as a friendly, democratic Muslim nation in the region. During the early stages of the invasion, Turkey sent soldiers to secure Mosul for fear of Kurds and possibly to gain some spoils of war but were told not to by the US so they retreated.

So the situation is awkward: The US often espouses supporting democracy and freedom for people but the reality is we rarely mean it (EX: lack of support for Taiwan). To support Kurds on humanitarian grounds and our own principles of democracy and freedom would alienate our ally Turkey as well as cause unrest in the region.

Also, Mosul has not been hit as hard with insurgent activity (at least reported) since the elections. Basra (in the south) has also been relatively quiet. In the US zone, Baghdad, is the most restive and insurgent due to the heavy Sunnis (who lost power and privilege) population.

An interesting note: Kurds are Sunni. Make me wonder why all the hostility. Just cause they're not Arab? What happened to Muslim brotherhood?

No reason why we can't have a bit of debate mixed in here.

I do think the ends justify the means here. One sometimes finds it awkward to debate another who is willing to cite extreme - and often times unrelated - data to the matter at hand. I say: "Yes, the ends justify the means in this particular situation". You respond with: "Yes, well that is the same, exact philosophy that allowed Stalin to murder 13 million people." The semantic problem here is that I am using the phrase to describe a situation completely unrelated to Stalin.

It's like saying, for example:

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"I support tearing down these trees to make room for a courthouse."

as having the semantic equivalence to:

"I support tearing down these trees to make room for a concentration camp.
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It seems to me you are comparing Apples to Oranges.



To address your other question: what "problems raised by the war" were you referring to?

NATO's Assistance to Iraq

NATO is helping Iraq provide for its own security by training Iraqi personnel and supporting the development of the country’s security institutions.
In response to a request by the Iraqi Interim Government, NATO has established a Training Mission in Iraq and will support the establishment of a training centre for senior security and defence officials.

All NATO member countries are contributing to the assistance, either in Iraq, outside of Iraq, through financial contributions or donations of equipment.

What is the aim of the operation?

NATO is involved in training, equipping, and technical assistance - not combat. The aim of the Training Mission is to help Iraq build the capability of its Government to address the security needs of the Iraqi people.

What does this mean in practice?

NATO is training and mentoring middle and senior level personnel from the Iraqi security forces in Iraq and outside of Iraq, at NATO schools and training centres. The Alliance also plays a role in co-ordinating offers of equipment and training from individual NATO and partner countries.

Since August 2004, a NATO Training Implementation Mission of about 50 officers has been working on the ground in Baghdad to train and mentor senior-level personnel from the Iraqi security forces.

The Alliance is now expanding and enhancing its assistance.

After the Summit meeting of NATO Heads of State and Government at the Alliance's Headquarters in Brussels, 22 February 2005, NATO's training mission will be fully staffed up to 360 personnel and fully funded.

It aims to provide training to about 1,000 Iraqi officers in the country, and about 500 outside of Iraq per year, as well as a significant amount of military equipment.

The next stage of expansion, which would lead to a further increase in personnel, will be NATO help in establishing an Iraqi Training Education and Doctrine Centre in 2005, to provide leadership and management training for the middle and senior level of the Iraqi forces.

In addition, the Alliance is also helping to coordinate training, equipment and technical assistance provided by NATO nations on a bilateral basis, both inside and outside of Iraq, to ensure that the Allies complement each other.

This work is carried out by a NATO Training and Equipment Coordination Group, which was established at NATO Headquarters on 8 October 2004.

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*The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is made up of the following member countries: Belgium,Bulgaria, Canada, CzechRep, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.

From what little I understand about the Kurds: While Sunni Arabs are Muslim, not all Kurds are Muslim. They are predominantly Muslim, but some tribes are also Jewish and Christian. Maybe the Arabs see them as not purely islam, or 'traitors to islam' etc..??Yes, I agree to an extent. But strictly speaking, I don't believe anyone thinks a democracy in Iraq will mirror a democracy in the US. I think the point is to instigate change from a dictatorship to some form of rule by/for the people. India, for example: a democracy, but not neccesarily identical to the form of democracy in the States.

Interesting read jorgelito...cheers.

Ah yes, the Kurds. I'm not too sure about the composition of Kurds and Sunnis but if you can wait a week or so (these damn finals) then I will try and pull up numbers. But in regards to their "conflict", I believe it's mostly based on ethnicity (RE: Sunni Arabs vs. Sunni Kurds).

So to illustrate (approximate):

Shias (Shiites) - Arab, muslim - 60%
Sunni - Arab, muslim - 20%
Kurds - Sunni, muslim - 20%
Other - Assyrians, Chaldeans, Jews, Christians - ??

There is a girl in my class; get this: she's French-Kurdish-Jew. But it's more through marriage I think.

Yeah, I don't have any disillusions of democracy blooming overnight in Iraq, but it's their own (in theory) and will evolve/grow accordingly. Likewise, it would be unreasonable for us (US) to expect the Iraqis (democracy) to start looking like ours.

When finals are over, I'd like to start a new thread on policy and strategy specific to Iraq.

Ok, I can't resist.

The thing about the Kurds and Arabs can be framed thusly:

Two schools of thought in the post-Ottoman years trying to decide what direction the newly formed states, mandates and territories, especially post-WWI.

Basically: pan-Arabism vis-a-vis pan-Islamism. So Iraq faced somewhat of an identity crisis in its nascent years. Are they Arabs? Muslims? or Iraqis?

Trying to reduce often complex idenity compositions into singular labels proved to be the disunifier. For example: Kurds are sunni muslim but do not consider themselves Iraqi nor Arab. Sunnis are Arab (or Kurds), muslim, and the traditional elites in Iraq though they are a numerical minority. Shia are Arab but not sunni, but are also Iraqi but feared to ally with Iranian shias which turned out to be an unfounded fear (because shia in Iran are not Arab, they are Persian).

The British (and League of Nations) faced this very problem back in the day; trying to "classify and label" the denizens of an Iraqi state artificially created from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire.

Secondly, the dynamic changed from empire to nation-states. Previously, the people of Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra were imperial Ottoman subjects, part of a diverse empire.

Jorgelito, you have offered an excellent beginning in understanding the region. If we make an attempt to follow the history of Mesopotamia, one of a very few great civilizations of the time, we may come closer to understanding the region as a whole.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...lown/trees.gif

New Iraqi Marshlands Restoration & Clean Water Projects in Southern Iraq

New York, 20 April 2005

The goal of restoring the environment and providing clean water and sanitation services to some 85,000 people living in the marshlands of southern Iraq moved a step closer today.

At six pilot project sites in Thi-Qar, Basrah, and Missan governorates, it was announced that environmentally sound technologies (ESTs) will be implemented on a pilot basis to see how they perform in bringing drinking water, sanitation systems and wetland management skills to local people and communities.

The “low tech” less polluting ESTs used will include restoration of reed beds and other marshland habitats that act as natural, water-filtration systems.

Considered suitable from a technical and social perspective, the pilot sites were selected by Iraqi ministries and the Marsh Arab Forum, in consultation with UNEP. The locations are Al-Kirmashiya, Badir Al-Rumaidh, Al-Masahab, Al-Jeweber, Al-Hadam and Al-Sewelmat.

The news from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) marshlands project, funded by the Government of Japan, was presented to participants at an Italian government sponsored meeting on the marshlands, held in the margins of the 13th session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) in New York.

The selection of the sites, the resulting on the ground activities and the wider application of the ESTs in the region, is a key stage in the implementation of UNEP’s multi-million dollar project to restore the Marshlands of Mesopotamia.

The Iraqi Marshlands, considered by some to be the location of the Biblical Garden of Eden, were massively damaged in the late 20th Century, partly as a result of new dams on the Tigris and Eurphrates river systems and partly as a result of massive drainage operations by the previous Iraqi regime.

In 2001, UNEP alerted the world to their plight when it released satellite images showing that 90 per cent of these fabled wetlands, home to rare and unique species like the Sacred Ibis and a spawning ground for Gulf fisheries, had been lost.

Further studies, released in 2003, showed that an additional three per cent or 325 square kilometres had gone. Experts feared that the entire wetlands, home to a 5,000 year-old civilisation could disappear entirely by 2008. With the collapse of the former Iraqi regime in mid-2003, local residents began opening floodgates and breaching embankments in order to bring water back into the marshlands.

“The challenge now is to restore the environment and provide clean water and sanitation services to the up to 85,000 people living there,” said Monique Barbut, Director of UNEP’s Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE), which is carrying out the $11 million project.

Other project activities include the establishment of a Marshland Information Network, an Internet-based system that allows those with an interest in the region to share their ideas and strategies. An Arabic version of UNEP’s Environmentally Sound Technology Information System (ESTIS) serves as the basis for the network.

Furthermore, a satellite-based observation system for marshland monitoring is now operational, and regular real-time reports will soon be available.

The project is also helping to train the Iraqi authorities, both at national government and local levels. To date approximately 160 Iraqi experts have been trained in wetland management and restoration, remote sensing analysis and community-based resource management.

Several other governments and non-governmental organizations are involved in the Iraqi Marshlands. The UNEP project is strengthening the coordination of these various efforts to ensure maximum benefit for the people and local environment.

To this end, UNEP is playing a key role in the development of a master plan for the restoration and development of the marshlands, the focus of the side-event that was held here at the CSD in New York today.

The UNEP project, “Support for Environmental Management of the Iraqi Marshlands”, is implemented through DTIE’s office in Japan, the International Environmental Technology Centre.

Information about the project is available at: http://marshlands.unep.or.jp/

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*I think it would be safe to say that Stalin never much cared about the environment.

This is very much an issue: http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topic...2&parent_id=18
Many of the Shia, including Khomeini, lived in Iraq after the Shah came into power and worshipped alongside the very people who were elected into power in the new government. The islamic extremist can't believe their good luck - the U.S. has paid to remove the Sunni elitist out of power for them, and installed their brothers as the new government. They will continue to take our money, watch our soldiers kill and be killed by the Sunnis insurgents who have oppressed them for the last 80 years, and then develop the theocracy they have always wanted.

The U.S. bankrolled Hussein's dictatorship and war against Iran specifically to keep this from happening! Of course they say they want democracy, the Shia comprise 60% of the population. Don't forget that Iran considers itself a democracy also... Our arrogance to believe that anyone in Iraq would have an allegiance to America is dumbfounding.

Ooops, I should have been more clear and specific. My post was in context of the Iran-Iraq War in which it was feared that the Shias in Iraq would ally with Iran but turns out no. In fact, Iraqi Shias fought against the Iranians. That is what I meant and referred to.

In that scope, Khomenei is still a "Persian" shia and not an Arab one. His exile in Iraq was convenient for Saddam looking to keep Iran on edge.

I did not know of the current govt. in Iraq to be comprised of Shias from Iran. This is new info for me (ah, the perils of studying history vs. current events). However, how this translates to how much or little influence Iran can impart over Iraq remains to be seen. Based on my cursory reading, IMO, probably not a whole lot.

Or how about this? Perhaps Irans' interest in "cooperating" with Iraq is premised on:
1. Establishing regional hegemony - a good time to make a move in a power vacuum.

2. Also, to keep the US at bay. Keep 'em busy with Iraq and presumably out of Iran.

3. Maybe establish a buffer state between Iran and US-friendly Saudi Arabia

In your opinion, do you think the Shias (in Iraq) want a theocracy? Iraq has always kind of leaned secular (I realize that was under sunni control) but are Shias and (Kurds even), leaning towards theocratic state?
I'm not so sure, I don't know enough about it at this moment. I'm not sure the 60% shias are so monolithic.

Although I am against the war, I believe there are Iraqis who would ally with the US. Don't know about numbers though. I just don't believe things are so black and white you know?

Hi jorgelito, actually they are Shia from Iraq who were elected into power, but they lived in Najaf with many of the Shiites who left Iran when Khomeini was exiled from 1965 - '78, and the Iranian Shiiites actually fought against the "Persians" during the war. Khomeini went back and overthrough the Shah in '79 and instituted Islamic law.

The government has leadership roles filled from the Sunni and the Kurds, but without any votes to back them up it is mostly for appearances. Even with the majority of the population, the Shiites have had no authority for the last 100 years, and have been considered "lower class". Believe that they are ready to take over and aligning with the Ayatolla locks in Shiite rule in that part of the country for a long time.... When drafting their Constitution Al Sadr made sure that the politicians based it all on Islamic law... Iran denies it but there are many reports that they have been funding Sadr's organization and rise to power in Iraq over the last year with upwards of $80 million.

Startling read, chickenribs. Reading this article, I have to say I also came to a different conclusion than you. Also, I was unaware that Foreign Minister Zerbari was Kurdish, and a peshmerga fighter at that. A good start to the democratization process I would say - how's that for tolerance and diversity?

It is inevitable for the 2 countries to have relations, and anything that would contribute to further stabilization in the region is a good thing in my opinion. There is much bad blood between them, though. We saw the atrocities both sides committed upon eachother during the 8 year Iraq-Iran War (1 million dead), which included the use of chemical weapons. There is much damage to repair, on many levels, and I would have to believe that neither possess short memories.

For the countries of the West, as well as Israel, I see the developing relationship in a favorable light insofar as there is now, potentially, an intermediary ally (Iraq) in direct contact (and with growing influnce, no doubt) with a radical government (Iran) hostile to the West and Israel. The 'calming effect ' that a stable, moderate Iraq could have upon Iran holds much promise. The Iranian iron-fist fundies who rule without a public mandate could very easily find themselves suddenly quite unpopular, unwelcome and - eventually - out on their asses.

This is the single, most important line in the article in my opinion:
A clear, unequivocal strike directly at al-Qaeda, it's leadership, it's supporters and those countires sympathetic to them. Zerbari knows a terrorist when he see one, plus he's a tough son of a bitch if he had the blessing of Iyad Allawi. I hope this sets a precedent of complete and total intolerance for the meddling by violent, religious fanaticism in both countries, hell, in the entire Middle East. I hope this sets the agenda loud and clear to those elements - whom Zerbari mentioned by name - that there will be no tolerance for fundamentalist terrorism.

Great read.

You're right, powerclown, I sound a bit negative and should adopt a "wait and see" attitude. The cooperation between the two countries will certainly help economically for both, and less hostility is always a good thing in my book.

The down side is the increasing nervousness of Turkey and Saudi Arabia, not to mention Pakistan. It is a great opportunity for the U.S. to exhibit some good faith effort in that part of the world if democracy is in fact all we want. As a country, we always seem to find a way to screw things up over there...

source: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/08/in...rtner=homepage

things grow curiouser and curiouser.

there have been concerns surfacing in various sectors--not entirely within, not entirely without the press pool--that iraq could be sliding into civil war. i do not pretend to know much for certain about this, but the moves outlined in the above article cannot help matters.

======================================================

by the way, this is an excellent source for information on iraq:

http://www.iwpr.net/iraq_index1.html

i'd have posted this earlier but i forgot about the site altogether.

this link is to the index page for analyses of iraq from this month
at the bottom of the page is a small link to the index: once you find it, things are a bit confusing at first, but you'll figure it out.

if you look here:

http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?iraq_ipm_index.html

you land on the index for a daily summary of what is being reported in iraqi newspapers. which is interesting.

there are other options as well--cruise around.

also, check out the homepage as well for links to other areas of iwpr coverage, which include afghanistan, central asia and the balkans.

Very interesting article roachboy. There are indeed positive elements to the article you posted. And there looks to be still more bloodless, boring, low-ratings worthy, but relevant news in line with this thread on the links you provided, so thanks.

It is no secret to anyone that the insurgency is composed of Sunni-Arabs, that ethnic group which made up Hussein's Baath party. There's a brief summary of their motivation a few threads up. They've lost the dictatorial power which they used to keep the entire country under a violent stranglehold for decades. Their method of governance is by now well understood: Fear, intimidation, torture, murder, mutilation, mass dirt naps in the desert, etc. were the traditional methods used to silence political dissent and opposition to Hussein and his Baath Party. This is encouraging news. That the Kurds and the Shiites are working together is quite a worthy achievement. When you think about it, here you have 2 ethnicities with a troubled history burying the hatchet to make tough, important decisions, within a legitimately formed (by popular vote) democratic process, guided by one unifying vision, as stated by Talabani himself: Needless to say, this courageous agreement between sides would never have been possible in Saddam Hussein's Iraq. "The establishment of a democratic, federal, and independent Iraq." One goal, one future, one destiny. It is very encouraging to hear this from one of the future lawmakers of Iraq.

What is also apparent is that Sunni-Arabs are going to have a larger and larger role in the government, and a prominent say in the writing of the constitution. This will undoubtedly be a difficult period for Sunni-Arab politicians, as they need to start the process of organizing and reinventing themselves into a party suitable to the new style of governance, and also show they are capable of joining the united Kurds/Shiites in the political process.

Wow, this is a very BAD idea. The British tried the same sh*t back inthe day with an Assyrian militia under their control.

Everything I've read (academic, policy papers, expert,not journalist, analysis) totally seems to be ignored.

My professor was telling us the other day how when he advised Reagan, all his advice was never taken. Same with alot of the visiting academics at our school including Warren Christopher (damn, I wish I took his class). But the major trend I noticed, is that the policies implemented never seem to be based on the policy advisors. Seems foolish and wasteful to me ( a poor student who obviously doesn't have the inside track to how Washington works).

Quick! Issue me a temp ban! I need to study but I can't resist talking with you guys! I am actually trying to finish up my 15 page paper on the British experience in Iraq during the Mandates Period (I have one complete page done). It's due by 2:30PM Thursday PST. Well, at least I have all my sources and citations tagged. My thesis is pretty tight (I think), I just need to type, type away. I think a page an hour plus two more hours for final edit should do it.

If anyone's interested, I can post updates every few hours or so, then the final.

Sh*t! Gotta go, go, go! *AhGAHRGHGAHHGRH!!1/.......

The thing about the Sunnis is that they're miffed about losing power/control they've enjoyed since the Ottoman era. The trick, IMO, is how to power share among the various groups that is meaningful and productive. No doubt, the Sunnis need to relinquish some power, but not be marginalized either. That's a major concern, making sure no one is shut out of the political process. Especially for legitimacy sake.

The key is careful implementation of political institutions and of course, securing the country and taking care of infrastructure and basic needs. Turn the power and water on and the people will be more helpful etc.etc. Secure the raods so people can get to work and school. Hire locals when contracting work. not paying some kid from Iowa $80,000 to drive a truck for a month. Hire a local for $1000. (average Iraqi salary - $6 a day) [I will provide source later] Talk about incentive! And, we, the American taxpayer will save loads!!

Ok, now I really have to get back.

Do you think it makes a difference that the controlling force today is instead an indigenous group such as the Kurds/Shia??
Totally agree.Hehehe, hopefully we'll still be here. :lol: Your personal insight into the matter is informative and appreciated. :thumbsup:

A little more insight as to why the Kurds and Shiite have become friendly:http://www.kurdmedia.com/reports.asp?id=2643
They work together to shut out the Sunni, and then the Shia gives up the northern part of Iraq and allows the Kurds to become an independant state, Kurdistan. Interesting... The Kurds are so geographically removed from the southern part of Iraq anyway, and they have wanted an independant state for a long time.

Hi guys, I'm back now. I finally finished my paper in the wee hours this morning and handed it in.

Ok, for today's positive development:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor..._re_mi_ea/iraq

Basically, Iraq's president, a Sunni Kurd, has extended political incorporation to Sunni Arabs in drafting a constitution by adding 25 more Sunnis to the constitution committee.

Now, obviously there is still a lot of tensions, infighting (sectarian) and alot of work to be done and the situation is still tenuous, BUT, this is a good first step. It's what some of us have been talking about around these threads.

Interesting note: Sunni Arab inclusion has been heavily pushed for by the US and EU.

That link goes to the article: "At Least 17 Bodies Found in Iraqi Town."
I suppose if you were an insurgent - or a sympathizer - this would be a positive development.
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*To elaborate on the above theme:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...wn/iraqmap.gif

Shi’ites Offer Sunnis Bigger Role in Iraq Constitution

26/05/2005
By Diala Saadeh

BAGHDAD, May 26 (Reuters) - Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government is reaching out to Sunni Arabs to ensure they play a bigger role in writing a new constitution, but this will not delay the process, the head of parliament’s constitutional committee said.

Humam al-Hamoudi told Reuters in an interview the constitution would be ready by an Aug. 15 deadline even if Sunni Arabs were given time to choose representatives to help draft the document.

"We are very determined to finish drawing up the constitution before the deadline," Hamoudi said.

Iraq’s parliament has appointed a 55-member committee to oversee the writing of the document, but it contains only two Sunni Arabs.

Although they make up around 20 percent of the population and dominated Iraq during the rule of Saddam Hussein, Sunni Arabs have been left with minimal representation in parliament because many of them boycotted the Jan. 30 elections. There are 17 Sunni Arab lawmakers in Iraq’s 275-member parliament.

But leading Sunni Arab groups said this month they wanted a greater role in parliament, and Washington has urged Iraq’s government to reach out to Sunnis to help defuse sectarian tension and undermine the Sunni Arab-dominated insurgency.

Hamoudi said he had talked to Sunni Arab groups and they would select representatives to serve on the expanded commission.

"They are likely to hold partial elections within the Sunni provinces to pick their representatives for the committee," he said.

"We need to discuss with the Sunnis what they demand for better participation. We will continue meeting them until we strike an agreement for the sake of the nation."

Under Iraq’s political timetable, once a constitution is written it must be approved by a referendum. If it is approved, new general elections will be held by the end of the year.

The rules of the referendum state that if a majority of voters in three provinces reject the constitution, it will be vetoed even if an overall majority of Iraqis approves the document.

The clause was inserted at the insistence of the Kurds, who want to ensure the constitution does not encroach upon their autonomy in northern Iraq, but it could give Sunni Arabs the chance to reject the document if they feel they have not been given adequate participation in drafting it.
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!@#$*&% Damn! *scratches head*

Ooops, I obviously posted incorectly. Thanks powerclown for correcting it. The article you posted is the one I was refering to.

Congrats on finishing your thesis, Jorgelito. Have you gotten any rest yet? :)

I would like to say to everyone posting in this topic that I greatly appreciate the information and links that you have provided. I feel much more informed about the region.

Thanks for your kind words and concern. I haven't been able to "rest" too much yet, as I have finals next week and one last paper (on globalization - good or bad?). But, I really can't complain though :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...n/training.gif

NATO to Expand Training of Iraqis

By Mark Mazzetti, Times Staff Writer
June 10, 2005

BRUSSELS — NATO plans to enlarge its efforts to improve Iraq's fledgling security forces by opening a base near Baghdad that will train 1,000 Iraqi officers each year, defense ministers gathered here said Thursday.

By September, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization plans to have completed a headquarters at Rustimiya near Baghdad, where alliance officers will run the training program to help quell the country's violent insurgency.

The headquarters will be funded jointly by NATO, the Iraqi government and the U.S. military's training command in Iraq, which is led by U.S. Army Lt. Gen. David H. Petraeus. The general was in Brussels on Thursday to discuss plans for the training mission.

NATO has 121 officers in Baghdad training Iraqi forces from the Defense and Interior ministries, alliance officials said. They expect that number to grow over the summer.

It has been nearly a year since NATO pledged to participate in the training of Iraqi troops. Its mission accounts for a fraction of the overall training effort, which the Pentagon considers its top priority in Iraq.

The alliance also plans to expand its role in Afghanistan. NATO troops operate mostly in and around Kabul, the capital, and in western Afghanistan, but there are plans to push the alliance-led International Security Assistance Force into southern Afghanistan, which was once the Taliban's base.

The ISAF troops, who now number more than 8,000, have been operating in Afghanistan since 2002 under a mandate from the United Nations, though for the first two years they limited their mission primarily to Kabul. NATO took command of the force in 2003.

Also Thursday, the alliance made official its decision to participate in a mission airlifting African peacekeeping troops into Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld praised NATO's efforts to operate beyond its traditional European borders, saying such missions help the alliance remain relevant in the post-Cold War world.

"NATO has great promise today, greater than in some time," he said.

Rumsfeld left Brussels on Thursday evening, cutting short by a day his weeklong trip through Asia and Europe. Pentagon officials traveling with him said he had shortened the trip in part to be in Washington for the visit of South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun, who will meet today with President Bush.
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*Note that this is Officer training as opposed to basic soldier training. It is widely acknowleded that after the Baath party was removed, along went the Iraqi officer corps with it. Rebuilding positions of military leadership is of vital importance. With leadership comes the foundation of an effective security force able to deal with the insurgency.

source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...100723_pf.html

from today's washington post.
have you noticed the degree to which stories like this are released over the weekend, kept out of the papers earlier in the workweek, when more folk are paying attention to the news?

this particular memo is confirmation of problems that appeared pretty obvious to folk who did not support the war and so were not as caught up in the round of "public diplomacy"/marketing of it carried out by the administration and its comrades in the right media.
the bush people did not have a plan.
apparently, the fantasies that emanated from paul wolfowitz about a qucik conventional military war and postwar period that would primarily be taken up with triumphant doughboys being showered with flowers by grateful iraqis in fact WAS the plan.
there still is no plan.

in a way, this thread is like reading an anarchist magazine in the odl scholl mode--hoping to find evidence for the revolution they knew was coming any minute now, any monute now, these journals would publish accounts of isolated actions apread across space and time, but juxtaposed in the journals so that a reader might think, were these journals their gateway to information about the world, the revolution was in fact about to break out everywhere.
but these journals were always mostly about the desires of the folk who assembled them.
not about the reality those desires were directed toward.

here, you see folk from more conservative dispositions who really wish that the war in iraq was either legitimate in itself or at least could be legitimated through "good works" constructing a collage of iraq as they would prefer to see it.

but the problems of the war itself, the lying that shaped consent, the cynical usage of the "war on terror" and so forth--these problems do not and will not go away.

i expect that the revelations about the magnitude of this administrations inetpness will only get worse.

the consequences of this ineptness are best shown by looking at the body count.

it also gives reason to question every narrative generated by the administration concerning what is happening in iraq.

I'm sure you are aware that Pincus is possibly one of the most liberal, anti-Bush reporters in Washington.

roachboy, given the stakes in Iraq, I'd be curious to hear your (or anyone else's) idea of what would be in the best interests of:

1) The Iraqis
2) The Region
3) The rest of the world

What kind of country (geo-politically speaking) do you all want to see Iraq become?