Saddam repays the Left for their support for him...

[Divinus Arma]

Tribesman, what do you mean where am I getting my information? All of this is publicly available.


Well you write this......
Yes, there are still a few trouble spots such as parts of Baghdad sometimes and al Ramadi but generally speaking, there just is no action.

This seems to be the consenus. Things are slowing down, winding down, wrapping up, whatever you want to call it.

Yet as attacks are increasing then how can it be slowing down , you mention Baghdad which still has the same amount of attacks as before , you say (in several threads) that fallujah is quiet , yet it has more attacks now than before the assault , you completely ignore that previously quiet areas , especially in the north , have had a big upsurge in attacks .
So how can an increase in attacks be described as "slowing down" or "winding down" .

Fair enough. I can address this. I thought you were asking about the information regarding the elections, constitution, and others in my list. But regarding this; My information comes from boots on the ground- My fellow Marines who regularly cycle through my day-to-day contacts. I work on the largest Marine Corps Base in the country where 1/3 of the entire force is stationed. Being in Law Enforcement on that base, I have almost daily contact with various Marines who "just got back". Some of these are close friends, others are total strangers. You can listen to the media all you want, but I'm telling you info direct from the guys on the ground. I'm sure we can at least agree that the various media outlets each have a political agenda- wouldn't you say that is fair? So in this instance you are getting info that is direct from the guys and not filtered through a dozen different executives who all have a different reason to show specific content. Big news sells papers, encourages advertisers, and makes the evening edition. I hope you can take this for it's worth. I would plainly state here if I were told that it is getting worse. I may be politically inclined, but I'm no liar. That would just be self-defeating.

edit to add ...Quit putting your head in the sand and look at the big picture.
The big picture looks even worse.

Well if you refer to the general climate of religious extremism and Islamic intolerance of the west then you are correct. But nothing we can do short of obediance to Islam will suffice. For example, that cartoon was published by a private entity with no requirement to adhere to Islam. To refuse to publish it, or encourage government regulation, would be counter to western ideals of free speech and religious freedom (which of course also means freedom from religion, as so many American atheists will scream). The big picture I refer to is exactly what Seamus explained:

Div is suggesting that signs of a nascent democracy in Iraq point toward success in establishing a functioning democratic state (other than Israel) in the region. Should that occur, most of the experts I've read suggest that this could engender change that would profoundly influence the region and begin to diminish the root causes and conditions that promote fundamentalist islamic terror groups

We would amplify terrorism to the extreme.
You are doing that already .

And what would you recommend?

We must maintain our course and see it through.
It does help if you are on the right course in the first place .

I understand sunk cost decision making and the resultant propensity to continue in an unprofitable direction because of resources expended. In this instance the benefits have so far been profitable and despite the continued costs appear to be maintaining a sustained profitability in liberty and democratization.

I know that is hard for you folks with the "instant gratification" cultural mindset
Errrrr.... the instant gratification mindset were the idiots that did "invasion lite" and "nation unbuilding" without thinking and planning .

I agree with you that the administration failed to plan well for regime collapse and the subsequent power vacuum. I also agree that this oversight is virtual incompetence. We should always demand accountability in government. Unfortunately, the alternative to continuing the Global War against Terrorism is less appetizing. Withdrawal from Iraq would cause a collapse in the infant Iraqi Democracy and further embolden the Islamic extremist movement.

EDIT: And make no mistake, that is exactly what would happen if we handed decision making over to the American Democratic Party. With some excpetions, the Democrats are not shy in this respect.

If you would like to make a comparison with Vietnam, then consder the political similarities. Seamus articulated this perfectly:

I wish we hadn't stepped into somebody else's colonial rebellion, but we did. Having done so, we then hamstrung our military by not letting them fight all out -- and they still won tactically (though public opinion and war weariness undercut that).

We should all be able to find unity in this statement. Regardless of our differences in the reasoning behind going into Iraq, we must not allow war weariness, public opinion, and military micro-management to undercut operational success. The end result would be strategic failure- the big picture that we all care so much about. We should be unified towards this end and this end alone.

because this is what "Last Throes" looks like, right?

Report: Iraqi insurgency more confident, coordinated
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/...cnn_topstories

We will have to agree to disagree on this. I do not find CNN to be an unbiased politically neutral source, just as I am sure you would not find KOGO radio or Fox News to be politically neutral.

This is my reply: (Article dated Jan 31, 2006)http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006..._341_31_06.txt

meanwhile, let's look at how the American forces are doing:
http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwash...y/13889046.htm

I'm having difficuly accessing your link fromt his computer. However, if you seek to imply that coalition forces are somehow losing, then I reply with this: (Article Dated Feb 14, 2006)
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/i...-us-role_x.htm

and how the Iraqi people are doing since "Mission Accomplished"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3962969.stm

I agree: It is a tragic and unnecessary waste of life- but this would end if the Domestic Insurgents (Sunnis) would lay down their arms, join in the politcial process, and subvert the activities of foreign terrorists. In the meantime, is life better for the Iraqis now or during the rule of Saddam Hussein?

Must I provide a link, or is Saddam's oppression of his own people well known enough? Surely, you can't believe him to be a benevolent dictator?

Wow - you know if I didn't know better...

Well now you do. The information is generally public knowledge. The problem is the frame in which we view it. Do you feed your mind with self-reassuring viewpoints or do you attempt to gain truth by reading multiple viewpoints?

The opposing sides many never agree on the justification for going into Iraq for the GWOT. I understand and accept this. But let's look forward and see what we can do, what we must do. I do not think it naive to believe we can find common ground against Islamic extremism- an ideal that would seek to enslave the world in totalitarian theocracy.