Posted on 06/29/2004 1:10:47 PM PDT by dennisw
BAGHDAD Sa'ad Saddam, a 35-year-old clothing merchant in the Iraqi capital's notorious thieves' market, normally has nothing polite to say about his country's rulers. . So he was surprised on Monday to find himself being optimistic about Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's new government - not because Saddam cared about the symbolic passing of sovereignty from the U.S.-led coalition to Iraqi leaders, but because he was thrilled to see Iraqi police officers pistol-whipping suspected carjackers near his clothing stand.
"Allawi is a strong, powerful guy," said Saddam, who added that the police crackdown on two carjacking and kidnapping rings here indicated that Iraq's new leaders were starting to impose order in the streets.
And on Sunday, his interior minister led a platoon of police commandos into the thieves' market, where they arrested dozens of suspected criminals, pointedly kicking them around in front of Iraqi reporters so the message would get out.
"The police have to show some force so that people develop a healthy fear and respect for the law," said Captain Abdullah Muhammad, 48, the traffic policeman in charge of Tahrir Square, the central roundabout in Bab al-Sharji, Baghdad's historic eastern gate that borders the thieves' market. "That's how we can terminate the bad elements."
(Excerpt) Read more at iht.com ...
bump to myself for later enjoyment
"And on Sunday, his interior minister led a platoon of police commandos into the thieves' market, where they arrested dozens of suspected criminals, pointedly kicking them around in front of Iraqi reporters so the message would get out."
Just in case anybody from the LAPD is looking for work: I hear that the Iraqi PD is hiring...
Better pray the scourge known as LAWYERS doesn't get the upper hand ...as they have here in our U S of A........
...or flashlights.
HA!That's the way to handle criminals and they are lucky because there are no lawsuits over there.
"God created the world in six days," said Adil Jabbar, a merchant who sells wheelchairs. "How can we expect Allawi to improve things in one?"
Maybe the journalists won't be able to spin the Iraqi's impatience with Allawi as they did with us! One can only hope (for miracles).
I think if they showed up, they would be welcomed about the same as a carjacker. ;~))
If this Allawi is the same man I saw on TV today talking about Saddam being brought to trial, he also seems to have a sense of humor. He said "If Saddam can't afford a lawyer, he will receive a court appointed lawyer" and smiled.
Considering that they've been cheering-on the insurgents terrorists, I'd say they're hiding and trying to figure out how to get out of a suddenly hostile territory without the merciful horse-whipping they justly deserve.
I think Allawi looks like Tony Soprano's older brother. I wonder if he will lead like Tony? LOL
It is the same. I caught that too. He's has a sense of humor like Dick Cheney. That's why I like him.
Disagree! Let them in and report them as car jackers. :~)
Exactly! A good beating is fine, but for God sakes don't HUMILIATE them!
Exactly! The Iraqis have to put down these criminals-our military would be resented if they tried this. Plus, the Iraqis know who the outsiders are-to our guys everyone looks the same. I saw a show where this Iraqi woman was driving down a Baghdad street with an American journalist. A car passed them with a bunch of young men yelling out the window. The woman told the reporter these men were not Iraqi-they were from Iran. She said they don't belong here. The Iraqis know who the bad guys are-let them start beating the crap out of them.
How about a few pupblic beheadings too?
Lets send them some LA Police flashlights.
notorious thieves' market<--Sound slike a helluva place to shop.
This is the most critical point - and for some reason, the liberal media chooses to ignore it.
What no one seems to have thought through, other than the Bush Administration, is that Iraq would would be free to pursue its own security measures as the legitimate (ie UN recognized) government of its people.
This means, among other things, hiring mercenaries (perhaps ex-US military personnel), establishing bounties and imposing limited martial law.
It doesn't take a vivid imagination to see state sanctioned take downs by hired guns in some of the terrorist hotbeds.
"So where is the U.S. press? When is the U.S. press (NYTs) going to cry about abuse and torture here? Hey Slime press where are you?"
The left will certainly weep about how the new Iraq is just as violent as the old (yawn), but I don't think the Iraqis are losing sleep over what our libs think. The media may not see the difference between people pounding the perps and perps pounding the people, but the Iraqis do.
Remember when the Romanian's executed Ceaucescu & his wife on Christmas morning, 1989? Sure, the network biggies were home celebrating Winter Solstice, but that story had no legs. I assume they dropped it because Ceaucescu proved to be exactly the type of ruler the commie-libs had always assured us didn't exist, and questioning his sentence would've opened doors they'd prefer stay closed.
I don't expect our media will report many specifics (or use any graphic pictures) on Saddam's trial & errors either. That might lead people to believe that Bush did the right thing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.