"...winning the hearts and minds of the local population,..."
You can't possibly be serious?
For every single faction of muslim/"iraqi" participants, "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" is in effect wrt the US. None of them are destined for or intend to have an eye-to-eye realtionship with the US after the shouting is over.....they will all revert to their homoestatic nature.
Then, what are we doing out there, and from all reports from troops on the ground in both the British and American sectors it is working.
You were in Vietnam, you cant tell me that when the local population start coming forward with information on the bad guys thats not winning their hearts and minds.