Mark Steyn: Don't Let Iraq's Tempest in a Teacup Rattle You

The Chicago Sun-Times ^ | April 11, 2004 | Mark Steyn

[quidnunc]

The coalition approach to Iraq was summed up a year ago by a British colonel. Explaining how they were trying to secure Basra without blowing up buildings and causing a lot of death and destruction, he said, ''We don't want to go in and rattle all their teacups.''

The avoidance of teacup-rattling remains a priority. Last week in Fallujah, American troops had rockets fired at them from a mosque. So they fired back, but with the state-of-the-art laser-guided weaponry that kills the insurgents but leaves the mosque virtually untouched. I'd have been quite happy to see it blown up with the old-school non-laser imprecise munitions. But leveling mosques is felt to be insensitive, so on we go, avoiding the rattling of teacups, whether Sunni or Shiite.

The problem with this deference to the locals is that, partly in consequence, most of the folks who are getting rattled are on our side.

So how bad are things in Iraq?

Answer: not very. Fallujah is not the new Mogadishu, Muqtaba al-Sadr is not the new Ayatollah Khomeini and, despite what Ted Kennedy says, Iraq is not ''George Bush's Vietnam.'' Or even George Bush's Chappaquiddick.

Here's a good rule of thumb: The Pentagon's demonstrated in two wars now that it's got beyond Vietnam. If a politician or pundit can't, pay him no further heed. If Sen. Kennedy wants to give rhetorical aid and comfort to the enemy, he could at least be less lazy about it.

Now here's the more important question: Are the Iraqi people on the American side?

Answer: No.

-snip-

[samtheman]

The Iraqis will go with the winning side. And, though the Americans had a bad week last week, the insurgents had a worse one, losing as many men in seven days as U.S. forces did in the last year. The best way to make plain you're the winning side is to crush the other guys -- and rattle their teacups so loudly even CNN can't paint it as a setback.

Bush has already shown he understands this concept by not waiting around for all the theoretical discussions to reach a well-ordered conclusion (in other words: never) and instead just going in and invading Iraq.

Just do it. That's what got us there in the first place (over the heads of the wind-bagged theorists). And that's what will win this for us (over the heads of the whining nay-sayers).

Just do it. Go in there and kill the bad guys.

Just as the argument about Iraq is now over (even Joker Kerry says we have to "stay the course"), so the argument about military tactics will be over once we kill all the bad guys.

Kill them.

Just do it.

[Servant of the 9]

despite what Ted Kennedy says, Iraq is not ''George Bush's Vietnam.'' Or even George Bush's Chappaquiddick.

Sharpest cut of all.

So9

[Redbob]

"I say we smash the whole damned cupboard."

I'll second that!
All in favor, say 'aye!'

[LA Conservative]

They go with the strong horse, whether or not that strong horse is a monarchy, a military secular dictator, or an islamofacist theocracy.

It is in such an environment that I begin to have grave doubts as to whether a democracy can thrive in an Arab land, considering that the very beginning of their history revolves around bloody struggles, that Islam encourages lying and cheating for the sake of honor in the pursuit of ambition.

Maybe the previous Western leaders of last century knew what they were doing when they installed the strong man of their choosing. Perhaps we need to consider that strategy once again.

Don't get me wrong, I back Bush 100% and I think this is a noble and necessary effort, (see my tag line)but I think it is also healthy to debate the strategy.

[DuncanWaring]

"Aye"

And sow it to salt afterwards.

[BlessedByLiberty]

Tet Offensive reminded me of the interview between Kerry and Woodruf posted here yesterday. Kerry was ranting about Iraq being Bush's mistake and that he would add troops. Woodruf actually quoted Kerry back to himself asking "how could you ask someone to die for a mistake?"

Comparing a war that is an undeclared World War to Viet Nam will be the downfall of the Democrats. This war traverses continents, resides in rogue nations and spreads everywhere it is a world war. Declare it as such and let's get on with it.

Kennedy, Dean, Gore and all of the other 'we still want to be relevant' radicals will be the beginning of Kerry's undoing. His complete unraveling will come from his own shameful post Viet Nam behavior.

[Slings and Arrows]

And in the Arab world, the indifferent are the biggest demographic. They sit things out, they see which strong horse has jostled his way to the head of the pack, and they go along with him. The Turks. The British. The British-installed king. The thug who murders the king. The thug who murders the thug who murders the king.

Israel, take note!

[litany_of_lies]

Good job getting the article before it's linked at the Sun-Times.

[litany_of_lies]

Why excerpt only? The Cgo ST is not on the excerpt list, and I posted Steyn's full ST article last week without consequence.

[Salman]

... considering that the very beginning of their history revolves around bloody struggles ...

So did ours. So did everyone's. I'll be very cautiously optimistic for now.

[GeorgiaYankee]

Where did the "Arab Street" go? I haven't any big anti-US demonstrations from them since Afghanistan.

[EternalHope]

The Iraqis will go with the winning side. And, though the Americans had a bad week last week, the insurgents had a worse one, losing as many men in seven days as U.S. forces did in the last year. The best way to make plain you're the winning side is to crush the other guys -- and rattle their teacups so loudly even CNN can't paint it as a setback.

Good article. This is the last paragraph.

[Demetrius Slaughter]

Strong horse bump.

[rockrr]

"And in the Arab world, the indifferent are the biggest demographic. They sit things out, they see which strong horse has jostled his way to the head of the pack, and they go along with him."

And, like any other pack of wild dogs, they watch for an opportunity to rip them limb from limb.......

[Pokey78]

Sometimes you just have to draw the line. Excerpting, unless you feel the column is too important to excerpt.

That makes sense. </sarcasm>

[Pokey78]

quid needs no reason. quid excerpts because he/she can.

[Pokey78]

Someone gave away the secret last week. I was hoping the Happy Excerpter didn't see the post.

Oh well.

[LA Conservative]

"So did ours. So did everyone's. I'll be very cautiously optimistic for now."



Yes, but our bloody struggles were in the prosecution of freedom and liberty. Islam, to quote Samuel Huntington (I think) has bloody borders. Islamic struggles are always about control and the imposition of Islamofascism, or what they would call sharia.

[CarryaBigStick]

"I say we smash the whole damned cupboard."

I'll second that! All in favor, say 'aye!'

AYE!!

And while we're at it make a grease spot out of any radical mullah who opens his big fat mouth.

[goldstategop]

Exactly. The Iraqis don't love us but they will join whoever's on the winning side. Its time to break the teacups up and crush the insurgents with all the means at our disposal? It is good PR? No. Is it democratic? Definitely not. But it IS war and in war one seeks to win and if the U.S military kowtows to the terrorists by offering them ceasefires and concessions we will lose. We have to WIN. Its time to finish the job.