In a fascinating and extremely well-written piece in the NY Times, a bunch of grunts get together and discuss the situation on the ground. Some selected excerpts: To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched. As responsible infantrymen and noncommissioned … Read More
Better Off
Susie at Suburban Guerilla: Iraqi moms are prostituting themselves to feed their children. But hey, at least they don’t have to live under Saddam Hussein! Meanwhile, the “number of coalition military deaths in the war in Iraq has reached 4,000,” with the majority of the fatalities — 3,702 — suffered by U.S. soldiers. Forty-four U.S. troops have died this month.
The Surge Report Card
President Bush — July 12, 2007: This September, as Congress has required, General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker will return to Washington to provide a more comprehensive assessment. By that time, we hope to see further improvement in the positive areas, the beginning of improvement in the negative areas. We’ll also have a clearer picture of how the new strategy is … Read More
Just Call Them Terrorists…
This can’t be good: Iranian Unit to Be Labeled ‘Terrorist’ U.S. Moving Against Revolutionary Guard By Robin Wright Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, August 15, 2007; A01 The United States has decided to designate Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, the country’s 125,000-strong elite military branch, as a "specially designated global terrorist," according to U.S. officials, a move that allows Washington to … Read More
Dick Cheney ’94: Invading Baghdad Would Create Quagmire
Hmmmmm….. The response, of course is that "9/11 changed everything". Except, you know, the consequences of invading Iraq. Here’s the transcript of the key moments: Q: Do you think the U.S., or U.N. forces, should have moved into Baghdad? A: No. Q: Why not? A: Because if we’d gone to Baghdad we would have been all alone. There wouldn’t have … Read More
Clinton v Obama
It’s a minor skirmish in my eyes, but it has had "legs". Obama recently gave a tough speech about combatting terrorism: Obama said if elected in November 2008 he would be willing to attack inside Pakistan with or without approval from the Pakistani government, a move that would likely cause anxiety in the already troubled region. "If we have actionable … Read More
Six Years Ago Today
Larry Johnson, a former CIA officer and the State Department’s counterterrorism chief, had written dozens of PDBs during Bush 41’s presidency. PDBs, he said, are usually brief and dispassionate documents. But the PDB dated of Aug. 6, 2001 was a page and a half, and had a title meant to capture the president’s attention. It was "the intelligence-community equivalent of … Read More
Lost Guns
I mentioned it briefly last week; today it leads the Washington Post: The Pentagon has lost track of about 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, according to a new government report, raising fears that some of those weapons have fallen into the hands of insurgents fighting U.S. forces in Iraq. The … Read More
The Cunning Use Of Flags
So Russia has laid claim to the land underneath the North Pole by submersing themselves down there and planting a flag? Is that how it is done? Planting a flag? That’s so …17th century. Right, Eddie?
We Can’t Account For Weapons?
At least 190,000 weapons issued to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005 cannot be accounted for, the Government Accountability Office concludes in a new report. The Pentagon "cannot fully account for about 110,000 AK-47 assault rifles, 80,000 pistols, 135,000 items of body armor and 115,000 helmets reported as issued to Iraqi forces." The weapons vanished from the ledgers as … Read More
Duh, Ya Think?
Too little, too late: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney acknowledged on Tuesday he was wrong in 2005 when he insisted the insurgency in Iraq was in its "last throes." It was Cheney’s most direct public admission of how badly the administration had underestimated the strength of America’s enemies in the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq.
Roughly 70% of Soldiers Still Support Bush
Sampling size: two The other 30% of the soldiers got blown off in Afghanistan and Iraq. More from the White House photo-op: THE PRESIDENT: I’ve been running with Max and Allen — I mean, Neil. I met these guys at Walter Reed. Neil lost both legs, and he told me he’s going to run with me on the South Lawn … Read More
Saving Private Beauchamp
The blogosphere is abuzz over Scott Thomas Beauchamp’s Iraq blogging. Mr. Beauchamp blogged some controversial posts about his military unit for The New Republic, under the pseudonym of Scott Thomas. The posts were deeply disturbing. In one, an Iraqi boy who calls himself James Bond has his tongue cut out for talking to Americans; in the other, dogs feast on … Read More
The Unauthorized “Christians United For Israel” Tour
Max Blumenthal has done it again. He attended a conference of the "Christians United for Israel" people, and brought his camera. What he saw was alarming. Watch it. Rapture Ready: The Unauthorized Christians United for Israel Tour from huffpost and Vimeo. There is, of course, nothing inherently wrong with anybody being pro-Israel. What makes me squirm about these people is … Read More
The Imperial Presidency And War Powers
This op-ed in the New York Times gets it right, both morally and historically: The nation is heading toward a constitutional showdown over the Iraq war. Congress is moving closer to passing a bill to limit or end the war, but President Bush insists Congress doesn’t have the power to do it. “I don’t think Congress ought to be running … Read More