Iraq: Where We Are, Where We’re Headed
March 4th, 2008 at 09:11am Mark Noonan
General Petraeus previews his upcoming April report to Congress:
Petraeus said he also will consider the progress Iraqi security forces have made. “The Iraqi surge of 2007 was well over 100,000,” he said citing the growth of the nation’s Army and police force. “Added to that is the 90,000 Sons of Iraq – the concerned local citizens – who have added considerably. (These forces are) substantially ‘thickening’ our forces.”
The general said he also will consider Iraqi civilian deaths in formulating his recommendations. “If your focus is on securing the people, then it is a metric you have to pay attention to, and we do,” he said.
Crocker will lay out the developments in the political arena and describe the laws that have passed over the past couple of months. The ambassador will talk about the potential for provincial elections in the fall and describe the economic situation, Petraeus said.
The general said he will lay out his recommendations “for the process by which we’ll go about assessing conditions in the wake of the drawdown of the surge brigade combat teams.” The drawdown of the original surge forces is set to end in July. He said he will explain the factors he will consider in making recommendations on subsequent withdrawals.
The way ahead in Iraq will not be easy, the general said. “Each day something bad happens,” he said. “(But) the relative degree of the bad news tends to be less.”
Progress of Iraqi forces; progress of Iraqi politics; increasing safety for the Iraqi people - that is what will drive decisions on troop levels. Fortunately, at least as long as President Bush is in office, we don’t have to worry about decisions being driven by someone trying to pay off MoveOn for their support in the 2008 campaign. In the end, we’ve done a very good thing in Iraq, and its all coming together at an increasing pace - al-Qaeda is now being reduced to hiding behind the skirts of women in order to carry out their attacks, while the Iraqi people gain increasing confidence in the future. We keep at this and show we won’t quit until its all won, then all will come out right - give a signal that domestic American politics will drive military decisions, and this thing will fall apart on us overnight.
Entry Filed under: War on Terror
34 Comments
1. Rana Quijotesca | March 4th, 2008 at 9:32 am
You claimed political progress in Iraq, but neither you nor the article you cited says what what that progress is… What progress are you talking about?
2. OhioOrrin | March 4th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Mark - I’m not convinced “we’ve done a very good thing in Iraq”. Let history judge.
But we have, at least, improved the mess after the (predicted) occupation debacle caused by the Rumsfeld strategy.
Many, many lessons learned including taking account of professional military criticism & NOT substituting assumptions for worst-case planning.
3. kjstrouble | March 4th, 2008 at 10:44 am
The article was about the standards General Petraeus is using to measure progress. He has not given the results yet, just how they will be measured. We know that the military believe there has been progress, even though the MSM refuses to report it. Lets how some one other than the usual trolls will post today.
4. bagni | March 4th, 2008 at 11:09 am
markraqi
us interstellar idiots are confused…as usual
if progress is being made politically
why oh why
would you let in that goofball ahmadinejad
to glad hand and make the u.s. look foolish?
don’t get it?
please enlighten us extraterrestials?
5. plainjane | March 4th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
Surge feel good story number 89.
John McCain said Monday that to win the White House he must convince a war-weary country that U.S. policy in Iraq is succeeding. If he can’t, “then I lose. I lose,”
If only the Repugs had spent even half of the time they use solving Iraqi problems to solve American citizens problems they may still hold Congress. Iraqis have their own government, they should use it.
6. congressive | March 4th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
“the relative degree of the bad news tends to be less.”
VICTORY! This is exactly how Bush described what “victory” would look like just last year. Still a few bombs, still a few deaths, but “manageable.”
Can we redeploy now? No, I guess that would be complete and total “surrender to the terrorists” or some such belligerent sweeping generalization.
When will the grown ups finally take over?
7. jayhay | March 4th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
You STILL believe we can fundamentally alter the forces at play in the Middle East with our military… Man, you are simply dreaming.
Winning is always just another 6 months away…
8. Joe | March 4th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Progress??? I thought that the mission was accomplished 1,587 days ago on October 29, 2003!
9. sleepygene | March 4th, 2008 at 2:40 pm
E.T. has a great point, doesn’t it bother anyone the royal treatment Ahmaddinejad got courtesy of the Iraqi government. When Bush goes to Iraq he has to go in the cover of darkness and can only stay for a few hours at a time.
I trust Petreaus will detail all the successes of the surge militarily and he will recommend keeping 130-140k troops in for 6 more months at least. Crocker’s has a tougher sale, not much positive going on politically.
10. SteaM | March 4th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Ah, what a carefully worded political statement.
In other words:
The work towards victory in the continueing US led occupation of Iraq, or aka The War on Terror: Iraq Edition, will be very hard. Every single day something bad happens. Even on a day when things aren’t as bad as the day before they are still really bad compared to Saddam’s Iraq and prior to Al Quada in Iraq.
The United States has invaded a sovereign nation based on false pretenses at an estimated cost of $2 trillion dollars theoretically handing Al Quada a win. It’s their mission to bleed us dry of money as we are knee deep in a quagmire that they lured us into using “fear”.
It used to be true that the only thing we had to fear was fear itself. Now it is no longer fear than can harm us. It is ourselves and our careless blind trust in our leadership.
911 was a test for us as a nation. We failed the test. We started this war in Iraq with too many false assumptions and careless “hopes”.
We failed. We keep failing. We have lost $2 trillion because of it.
Our economy, on top of the $2 trillion for the war, is being crippled by rising fuel costs and credit problems. We built this city on rock and roll? No. We built this country’s economy on oil. Without it we will fall apart unless we change and we will not. Some will try, the people will want to, but the government and it’s corporations will not. Very wealthy people who own the media, energy companies, banks, and lending services, will laugh up unitl the day that they too will fall like the rest of us.
Will the top 1% wealthiest of Americans point the figner at middle class America when things go sour? Will they ask “why won’t you go shopping!?” Will they watch their stocks crumble as no one can afford to invest anything and ask us what is the problem? Well, you wanted us to work harder and we did. But it wasn’t enough and it’s not our fault. The economy was built on a resource that is not renewable and became unstable as a foundation. There was so much shouting from the wealthy and the corporations and the politicians that told us to ignore peak oil. To ignore science regarding climate change due to burning coal and oil and raping the environment, mowing down the forests.
As species die due to our reckless behaviour, and the climate and weathers becomes more chaotic, we just pump more CO2 into the air to cool and heat our homes and offices. We are effectively killing our fellow living beings with not a care in the world. The conscience softened by denial. The realities blurred by misinformation campaigns funded by those who profit from the continued unsustainable and wasteful existance of human beings.
The war in Iraq seems like such a terrific tragedy with no end in sight. Victory cannot be defined by those who call peace advocates defeatists. While those who are called defeatists attempt to point out that victory cannot be achieved when the mission has been lost.
In the American political system opinions are straight down party lines. Republicans want to continue to fight for an unachievable victory. Asking their mililtary to keep fighting. Bringing their Generals before Congress to tell us things are getting better. The Democrats will keep trying to end the war while being called defeatists. The People will be caught in the middle with the media and the politicians both working against them by not telling them the truth. The People will have become to engrained in their faux peace time lives, not being asked to sacrifice for War in terms of a draft or even helping financially. They will be given tax cuts, sent $600 checks, and told to just go shopping where they will purchase products made in other countries … products made cheaply with child labor in communist countries.
11. FmrMarine | March 4th, 2008 at 6:12 pm
DUUUUHHH !!
Marxist liberals;
It is a WAR with radical islam, being played out in Iraq.
How dim can you morons be?
Sorry I forgot about the rocket scientist leftys who post here.
12. TiredofLibBullSh** | March 4th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Imbecile regurgitation:
“Progress??? I thought that the mission was accomplished 1,587 days ago on October 29, 2003!”
Still repeating that same tired old talking point that has been debunked time and again?
What can we expect from morons who bitch about Iraq, when we still have troops in the Balkans. How long has that mission been accomplished? Why aren’t they bitching about that?
Oh yeah, I forgot who was president then……
13. LibSweepinNov | March 4th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
like a true coward - Mark won’t
(1) serve in Iraq - though he could have and should have if he believes in it so much
(2) always finds a way out (it will be the liberals fault if it doesn’t work)
(3) completely delusional - ‘we have done a great thing, its all coming together’,
14. JD | March 4th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
No, we have not done a very good thing in Iraq. We are spending $12 billion dollars per month to maintain the quagmire. We invaded under false pretenses (lies) and we continue to spin the occupation as something noble, just, and Christian. It all goes against my traditionally conservative and Christian values.
15. Freedom1 | March 4th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
This is definitely PROGRESS in Iraq…
Islamic Violence Prompts Young Iraqis To Leave Islam “Young Iraqis are losing their faith in religion” - International Herald Tribune
16. Dennis | March 4th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
Iraqi Refugees: ‘Not Our Country to Return To’
by Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail
DAMASCUS - More Iraqis continue to flee their country than the numbers returning, despite official claims to the contrary.
Thousands fleeing say security is as bad as ever and that to return would be to accept death.
“Return to Iraq?” asks 35-year-old Ahmed Alwan, an Iraqi engineer now working at a restaurant in Damascus. “There is no Iraq to return to, my friend. Iraq only exists in our dreams and memories.”
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported September last year that there are between 1.2 and 1.4 million Iraqi refugees in Syria alone.
Most, like Alwan, do not intend to return.
“I shall never return to Iraq until the last American soldier and Iranian mullah leaves,” Alwan says. “It is their country now, not ours. The only thing that might take me back is when I decide to fight for Iraq’s real liberty.”
….
http://www.antiwar.com/ips/nazzal.php?articleid=12458
17. neocon | March 4th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
The desperation in regard to Iraq from our resident liberal lemmings is a thing of beauty. Like that forlorned woman who has been left at the alter, waiting and hoping her groom will return. Things have turned in Iraq, and there will be no honeymoon for the Democrats.
18. bongoman | March 4th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
Which serves to radicalise them even more. Real clever.
19. Dennis | March 4th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Fmr Marine says, “It is a WAR with radical islam, being played out in Iraq.
How dim can you morons be?”
No, we get that. Bush picked a fight with a third party (radical Islam) who had no foothold in Iraq at all before our cavalry arrived. We attracted the bad guys into battle in someone else’s house. Now innocent Iraqis, who did NOTHING against us, are most often the victims.
So how does that translate into having “done a great thing in Iraq”?
It’s kind of like smashing your way into a neighbor’s house and then picking a fight with your worst enemy in the rubble. You might not like either of them very much, but when the innocent kids start getting killed there’s some serious bad karma headed your way.
Now the violence is abating. Perhaps. But the karma isn’t done yet.
According to Noonan and Margolis all Bush’s actions are exempt from normal standards of ethics or morality. Just framing the issue usually gets you deleted for being “off topic”.
The only great thing we did in Iraq was start a chain reaction of violence that has killed hundreds of thousands of people so far - all for a utopian theory of “freedom” (just another word for nothing left to lose). And nobody really sees an end to the chain reaction of violence.
Even if it ended tomorrow it wouldn’t justify the lives already lost. To attempt to justify it is moral relativism of the basest sort. Coming from the mouths and pens of those who speak of a “culture of life” such justifications are a particularly grotesque obscenity.
20. Dennis | March 4th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Neocon - “The desperation in regard to Iraq from our resident liberal lemmings…”
Don’t listen to people on blogs - listen to the refugees. Listen to Iraqis - they can give you a dose of reality. At least the ones still alive to talk about it.
“It is cheaper here than in Iraq,” Hanan Jabbar, a 38-year-old housewife who fled to Syria five months ago, told IPS. “A liter of kerosene costs a dollar back home, while it’s 10 cents here. That is just one example for how impossible life now is in Iraq. My kids go to school safely and play like other children now without me worrying to death about them. God bless Syria and Jordan for having us, and God damn America and all its allies for doing all this to us.”
(from: Iraqi Refugees: ‘Not Our Country to Return To’, by Maki al-Nazzal and Dahr Jamail)
21. Mark Noonan | March 4th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
Dennis,
You bring that utter sh** in here? A story from “reporters” who have accused our magnificent soldiers of slaughtering Iraqi civilians? You want to believe that sort of thing, you go right ahead…rational people know enemy propaganda when they see it.
22. Christian Wright | March 4th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
The number of Iraqis killed by violence rose in February for the first time in several months, official figures show.
At least 633 civilians died, according to data from several ministries - up from more than 460 deaths in January.
The increase was mainly due to two attacks in Baghdad and one near Karbala that killed at least 150 people.
The sharp rise reverses a six-month trend of fewer casualties, but it is still down from 1,645 civilians killed in February 2007, according to Reuters.
The February 2006 bombing of a Shia shrine in Samarra triggered a wave of violence in Iraq that peaked with 1,992 deaths in January 2007, according to AFP news agency.
The trend of decreasing civilian deaths from violent attacks is being attributed to an increase in US troop numbers, a ceasefire from the Mehdi army Shia militia, and the growth of Sunni Arab neighbourhood security units.
23. Christian Wright | March 4th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
March is off to a bad start too.
“At least 25 people have been killed in two bombings in Baghdad despite increased security across the capital for the landmark visit of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president.
In the deadliest incident on Monday, 21 people were killed when an Iraqi army patrol was hit by a bomb in a parked car in Baghdad’s Bab al-Muadham area, police said.
Another four people were killed when a suicide car bomber rammed an Iraqi army checkpoint in Ghadeer in eastern Baghdad.
Two soldiers were among the dead in that blast, which destroyed three houses and set several cars ablaze. Another 10 people were wounded.
The bombings occurred despite security being tightened across Baghdad for Ahmadinejad’s visit, the first state visit by an Iranian president since the Iran-Iraq war.
US military commanders blame the al-Qaeda for most large-scale bombings in Iraq but there was no immediate indication of who was responsible for Monday’s bombings or whether they were directly linked to Ahmadinejad’s visit.”
Ahmadinajad is an honored guest of the Iraqi government. How do you feel about that?
24. Mark Noonan | March 4th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
CW,
Those events are horrible and we must pray for the people of Iraq and our brave soldiers…but things are better; to concentrate on the outrages of the wicked is to lose sight of what is important.
25. Freedom1 | March 4th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
It is a WAR with Islam, being played out in Iraq and the rest of the world. France…
Muslim “Youths” Ambush, Fire on French Police
“An exercise in discrimination at Harvard”- BostonHerald.com
In America, Australia and the UK…
“Sharia Creep” Around the World - Frontpagemagazine.com
America…Live From Dearbornistan: Welcome to Islamofascist, Price-Fixing Walmart (Store’s Agreement Not to Undercut Muslims Violates Federal Anti-Trust Laws) - DebbieSchlussel.com
26. Christian Wright | March 4th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
Freedom1:
The story in France is about poverty, not Islam. France segregates it Muslim population in suburban ghettos with no opportunity for work.
We don’t Muslims rising in the US because they are fully integrated in our society. My last employer was a Muslim.
The polite request made of Australian universities would be reasonable if it did not interfere with the majority of students. I am sure they will work something out.
Who cares about burkins? I bet some members of the Christian Right would love to put their females in more modest swim wear.
Don’t like the Muslim nurse story; but I don’t like the Christian pharmacist stories about refusing to sell birth control even more.
As for soft jihad. Teaching “Intelligent Design” in public schools can be considered soft Christianity.
You are in a state of panic over nothing or over something that has Christian parallels.
27. Christian Wright | March 4th, 2008 at 11:21 pm
Deleted - off topic.
28. Freedom1 | March 4th, 2008 at 11:52 pm
Violence in Thailand’s Muslim South Intensifies - VOA Story (Video) Muslims have been finding an excuse to kill Buddhists since the seventh centur. Muslims have killed, beheaded, burned alive, thousands of Buddhists in just the last 4 years in Thailand.
Muslim Polygamy Rampant in the West - (Pajamas Media)
Polygamy is just something Westerners will need to get used as they attempt to make Islam feel at home. “Take My Wives. . . Please!”: The emergent phenomenon of Muslim men taking multiple wives should be a cause for worry in the Western world, warns David J. Rusin.
29. Dennis | March 5th, 2008 at 12:16 am
Mark Noonan at 9:59: Dennis, You bring that utter sh** in here? A story from “reporters” who have accused our magnificent soldiers of slaughtering Iraqi civilians?
Mark, I heard the same kind of emotional reaction back before Abu Ghraib hit the world press and folks like you were denying such a thing was possible.
But please focus: this issue isn’t about our troops, it is about existing conditions that prevent literally millions of Iraqis from returning “home.” There has been sectarian partition, there has been ethnic cleansing; there is no “home” left for most of them. They have nothing.
For you, sitting comfortably wherever you may be, that isn’t an issue. For you, it is all about some pie-in-the-sky idea of bringing “freedom” - so easy for you to say “We’ve done a very good thing in Iraq.” You don’t have a family living in squalor on a back street in Amman. You haven’t lost that nice home in the Mansour district and have to learn a whole new set of skills just to survive. Would you trade places with any of those displaced Iraqis you seem to think are so blessed that George Bush’s war came to their rescue?
I didn’t think so.
30. Dennis | March 5th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Deleted - off topic.
31. Mark Noonan | March 5th, 2008 at 12:56 am
Dennis,
The stories you relate are the product of enemy progandists…if you wish to believe them, that is your business. I don’t.
32. LibSweepinNov | March 5th, 2008 at 2:50 am
right Mark - anything you don’t want to hear - just delete and it will all go away
33. What? | March 5th, 2008 at 3:17 am
Mark writes:
The stories you relate are the product of enemy progandists
Mark,
Don’t you think the people who you call enemy proprogandists could levy the same insult at you?
This blog is largely designed to increase and maintain support in the belief our continued presence in Iraq is both necessary and noble. You accomplishe this goal in part through selectively posting news stories that re-inforce the questionable notion that success in Iraq is highly likely and that Iraqis are happy we invaded.
Isn’t presenting this incomplete picture of Iraq the same propoganda you are accusing the Arab authors of committing? Or is this sort of like the water-boarding thing where it is not torture when we do it but it is when done by others?
34. SteaM | March 5th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Mark,
Dennis is right. These articles, these personal accounts of what life is like for Iraqis living the reality of their post-US led invasion life are extremely depressing. They paint the picture of what we have done to them and their country. Their amazingly priceless collection of historical artworks, sculptures, documents, some of the most ancient human history all looted, destroyed, or burned. Their homes and neighborhoods destroyed. Their innocent family members: woman, children, fathers, son, grandparents, many killed violently and it’s our fault.
That’s not propoganda. And how can you say that? I mean that’s just being stubborn on your part. Is it because you don’t want to or cannot believe it? I’m sorry but that’s your own damn fault.
Do you think the fact that 2 million people have left Iraq is any indication that things are not going well?
How childish and irresponsible it is for you to act this way. We all supported this at first because of a knee-jerk reaction to 911 so we are ultimately at fault for this failed war but it is not OK to ignore the fact that things are going so badly. That’s just wrong and possibly you do this because if you didn’t it would mean going against your party and this would shake your foundation.
Hey, take the blue pill. Every thing will be fine.