Iraqi Blogger: Situation "Spiralling out of Control"

[Filibuster_60]

I realize that blogs don't really belong here, but this being an update from Zeyad, a normally pro-coalition Iraqi dentist in Baghdad, I think it's far too important to be relegated to the back pages: http://healingiraq.blogspot.com

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on or off this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

[max_rpf]

"chaos and unrest have rapidly spread to several other cities in Iraq such as Mosul, Ba'quba, and Kirkuk"

??? We haven't heard anything about this -- Maybe he is mistaking kurdish celebrations...

[JasonC]

"...from what Al-Jazeera is showing"

His problem.

As for whether events are spiralling out of control, if they are let them. If more Iraqis want to die opposing us, come on out and die. Personally I think it is all rather hyped, and that after a few thousand have been taken up on their generous offer to die and be damned, the rest will be somewhat quieter. But if it is a few tens of thousands, so be it. We aren't going anywhere. All we have to do is re-elect Bush and let the military do its job, and they can't remotely stop us.

[Gracey]

bump for later

[JasonC]

Sure we have, there have been tiny incidents in which 2 people at a time get killed, and maybe 4 others wounded or kidnapped. But he is watching Al-Jaz. So to him these are the battle of Stalingrad, part II.

[Clara Lou]

Here's another blogspot from Iraq. Compare.

[OpusatFR]

"...proxy war is being waged against the US on Iraqi soil by several countries and powers with Iraqis as the fuel and the fire, just like Lebanon was during the late seventies and eighties..."

Iran and Syria at the forefront. What would happen if right at this point in time, a rebellion started in Iran, and Syria found itself on the point of the knife?

This is begining to look like the domino theory in reverse.

[Hoosier-Daddy]

We need to start a rumor that the American soldiers are greasing the barrels of their weapons with pig-fat. Maybe even show a couple of marines reaming their rifles with pig-fat on Al-Jiz.

[max_rpf]

They could just as easily be watching Rita on FNC. I have never seen such a collection of naysayers and defeatists as I have in the last few hours.

[JasonC]

For the love of all that is reason, would all of you tired old pig faters kindly give it a rest? There isn't a person on earth who hasn't already heard it a thousand times, and it was stupid the first time. This is not kindergarten. Shouting "nyah nyah" won't help either.

[saquin]

Zeyad lives in a Sunni area of Baghdad, Adhimiya, where there have been heavy firefights between US troops and Fedayeen recently. Zeyad's younger brother, Nabil, has a blog too and talks about the same thing. That may be coloring their view and making the situation look more chaotic than it is.

Nabil's blog:
http://nabilsblog.blogspot.com/

[kabar]

The Chicken Little syndrome. We have seen it before from the media. They predicted doom and gloom from the very first day of the invasion. It has not even been one year since the end of major combat operations, and the media Cassandras are still predicting defeat ignoring the positive.

[EGPWS]

Thanks for the ping!

Well, it isn't as if the administration conveyed a rosy picture of "post battle" operations, after all it has been stated time and time again by members of the administration that placing a democratic government in Iraq would be a difficult feat to undertake and opposition to it would be seen.

This being conveyed to the pint of realization that the closer we get to the government turnover the more the opposition to Democracy would show their "ugly heads".

[gilliam]

He has an update:

UPDATE: Sorry for the depressing note. It seems like everything is back under control, at least from what I can see in my neighbourhood. There is an eerie silence outside, only dogs barking. Until about an hour ago, it sounded like a battlefield, and we had flashbacks of last April. I don't know what happened, but there were large plumes of smoke from the direction of Adhamiya and Kadhimiya. I wanted to take some pictures but my father and uncle both said they would shoot me on the spot if I tried, they were afraid the Apaches would mistake us for troublemakers and fire at us. I'm dreading tomorrow.

[Hoosier-Daddy]

I wasn't aware anything I said smacked of kindergarten, thank you. They defile our peoples' bodies, use their religion against them and let their psyches see their terrorists defiled. If I were you I wouldn't engage in knee-jerk insults. Your brain is there for a reason. Use it.

[gilliam]

sorry the update was from the 5th

[NutCrackerBoy]

The death toll is 500 Iraqis until now with over a thousand injured, a huge price to pay for 'pacification'. The insurgents in Fallujah who are using mosques and house roofs to wage their war against the Marines are equally to blame for the blood of the civilians who have been caught in the crossfire. -Iraqi blogger

Equally?

[68skylark]

I don't know if our Iraqi friends know that there were many dark periods in our road to liberty -- many times when things seemed to be "spiralling out of control," or worse.

It took us years, but things worked out well in the end.

Here's a short flashback to one of the darkest times. I think there's a message here for good people in Iraq:

"THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated."

Thomas Paine, "The Crisis," December 23, 1776.

http://www.ushistory.org/paine/crisis/c-01.htm

[PGalt]

Thanks for the link. Interesting links within.