Posted on 10/18/2005 7:01:26 PM PDT by FairOpinion
October 18, 2005: The referendum on the Iraqi constitution is over, with a turnout of 63 percent, compared with 58 percent in the January elections to select the transitional government. The al Qaeda and Baathist terrorists launched a total of 13 attacks – compared with 347 during the January elections. In essence, for the fourth time in the past twelve months, al Qaeda has failed to halt an election in either Afghanistan or Iraq. The next elections, to select the parliament, are slated for December 15 pending the results of the referendum. The constitution appears to have been ratified.
The successful referendum underscores just how impotent al Qaeda has become since the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. Four years ago, al Qaeda was able to launch a coordinated attack that killed 3,000 people in the United States. Now, al Qaeda has proven unable to oppose the United States after American troops have liberated two countries in al Qaeda’s backyard. These singular failures belie the claims of a quagmire coming from the mainstream media and critics of the Administration. Al Qaeda has been rejected by the people of Afghanistan and Iraq.
The American strategy of bringing democracy to Iraq is succeeding. So are the tactics that are being used to implement it. While the results are unknown, just the fact that the elections were held and were mostly violence-free is a victory in and of itself. The fact remains that the United States is achieving its objectives, while al Qaeda is not – al Qaeda is even failing to prevent the American objectives from being met. By any objective standard, al Qaeda is losing the war on terrorism in Iraq and Afghanistan. The only places they seem to be winning are in a number of newsrooms in the United States, and in Spain, where a series of bombs (combined with a major public relations misstep by the Spanish government) led to a change in government and Spanish withdrawal from Iraq.
This is not surprising. A number of the major media outlets have been focusing on the IED attack du jour, while missing the bigger picture. Also, since the failure to locate Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction, the media has taken a line that the liberation of Iraq was not worth the casualties (which are half of the total of fatalities suffered by the allies on D-Day). The media’s tendency to accentuate the negative has given al Qaeda a bit of a lifeline – their only hope for victory is that the anti-war movement, fuelled by the mainstream media, will wear down the political will of the United States. – Harold C. Hutchison (hchutch@ix.netcom.com)
"The media’s tendency to accentuate the negative has given al Qaeda a bit of a lifeline – their only hope for victory is that the anti-war movement, fuelled by the mainstream media, will wear down the political will of the United States."
That's why we have to fight not just Al Qaeda but all so-called anti-war terrorist sympathizers. Fight Aq in battel and in the battle of public opinion and fight the leftists by pointing out their lies. That's why the couterprotest against Cindy Sheehan and her ile, that FR had a major role in, was so important.
A big difference you won't see touted in MSM.
Develop the mental pictures and soundtrack yourself. LOL!
Haven't heard a lot about ol' Cindy lately, is she still out "traveling"? Her big anti-Bush movement turned out to be a big bust, no matter how much the MSM tried to shove her into our faces.
Correct. Bin Laden is of the opinion that America won't fight, and has been since Mogadishu. The only thing he can hold out for is the possibility that American public opinion will turn against fighting overseas. There's no reason why we should let that happen.
To the dems,old media,ted kennedy,durbin,etc.,fu.
This ain't the 60's anymore.
That would appear to be a little problem for the leftist liars in the news media.
Lots of second guessing along the way. Even here on FreeRepublic. Think of all the daily threads we had here, second guessing Fallujah and all the rest.
These people were wrong. The president and those who defended him were correct about how to cleanup Iraq.
Pray for W and Our Victorious Troops
To All on this Thread:
Your points are spot on. Unfortunately, the MSM will go silent and allow this period to pass and then pick up on their negative reporting. That's their way of "reporting the news".
Great article.
So true. The NVA and General Giap launched the TET Offensive in South VietNam in 1968 knowing they would suffer militarily but did so to support the anti-American movement in America. There are too many of us left to remember the traitors amongst us at that time and will not remain silent today. The MSM no longer has the corner on shaping the news to fit their agenda. There is truth out there. The military is doing a great job in Iraq and we cannot let them down by remaining silent.
What a nice sentence. How do ya like them facts.
The media's ability to convince al Qaeda that America was a disunited country, that Bush was a weak President and that the US wouldn't be able to retaliate if they attacked us is what caused this war in the first place.
I agree that our press and our sixties, aging anti-war crowd have contributed to the Islamist's belief that we wouldn't stick around for a fight.All the more important to win. A new generation can learn what victory means , and how it does not come without a price.
The media’s tendency to accentuate the negative....
in many areas, that's for sure.
Ah, but all they have to do is detonate an IED in Baghdad once every few days (preferably close to the Green Zone) for the MSM to make it look like anarchy reigns.
One question I have posed to cynics in my life who complain about exit strategies is "so what is Al Queda's exit strategy?" Never fails to stump them.
The downside of this is that it raises the stakes considerably for old AQ to launch a spectacular and damaging attack in the West. Good PR. Good move for them as they run out of air in Iraq. I think the 911 attacks were budgeted at around a quarter million dollars - all it takes is 19 people and some change.
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