[TexKat]

Fallujah, Ramadi, and Habbinayah will be the hardest for the coalition forces to crack down the insurgency.

IMHO The Fallujan Game: We never got or had control of Fallujah for some reason.

The Fedeyeen, RG did not put up too much of a fight when we got to the sunni triangle. The RG and the Fedeyeen played hide and seek, catch me if you can, they laid low.

The major part of the war was said to have ended May1, 2003.

After just a few days we fell for the line hook line and sinker that the little ragtag Fallujah police should handled the fallujah area due to a few confrontations (lies of course) between the American troops and the fallujans. Part of the fallujah game to get and keep the occupier out of Fallujah.

What is in Fallujah? I heard a talking head say last week that it could be possible that perhaps the wmds could be in Fallujah. How well was Fallujah searched for wmds?

[Jim Noble]

We never got or had control of Fallujah for some reason

The reason is that our war planners did not believe that a heavy occupation with 60-70 divisions would be necessary, or at least, the ones who Rummy listened to did not believe it.

Whether they did not believe it because they were afraid our people would not support an Army of ten million will have to wait for the historians.

President Bush, IMO, could have had such an Army if he asked for it when he addressed Congress on 9/16/01.

He didn't, and we're fighting the only war our light and small forces will allow.

My God, I hope we win. The consequences of defeat are unthinkable.

[ubaldus]

Unfortunately, the Sunni triangle was not cleaned up after the victory. In May-June 2003 some decisive action in Fallujah etc was possible, but at the moment we did not want to alienate the Sunnis. This was a mistake, since Sunnis are not going to be important in a new Iraq, anyway.
At this moment, it is clear that the best scenario we can hope for is some kind of Shiite islamic republic, something halfway between Turkey and Iran, as envisioned by Sistani. As long as Shiite leadership is not too hostile to the US, this would be a good outcome.
Badr and his gang have to be dealt with, but doing so will require some explicit support from Sistani, and it's hard to see that happening.

[LdSentinal]

I'm not sure what's in Fallujah.

IMO, it looks like the coalition should have put the city under a blockade when that prison escape happened several months ago when 50+ detainees escaped.

I think the coalition should put Fallujah, Ramadi, and Habbinayah under a strict blockade. Nobody gets in. Nobody gets out.

Concentrate on Baghdad. It looks like Al-Sadr probably has a role in the insurgency in that city.