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Bush has not repeated the mistake of VN, in that he lets the military commanders make the military decisions.

Yes and no. The first time the US wanted to go into Fallujah, we stopped. Was that a military decision? What about when Muqtada Al-Sadr was firing from mosques and we weren't firing back. Al-Sadr still has a pulse and still causes problems. That reason is probably not due to a military decision.

Military leaders can make mistakes, too.

All I know is that every General who has actually had responsibility in Iraq has said that the administration listens to them and is not micromanaging the fighting itself.

We are facing an enemy that is capable of coordinated psyops in concert with the international media. I believe that there are times when the various commands realize that they are treading a mine field of potential propaganda. The first attempt at pacifying Fallujah was just such a SNAFU. IMO

Another aspect of VN that can't be repeated today is the outright lies we were fed on the evening news and the long time it took back then for physical letters to be exchanged. Our soldiers are blogging, as well as emailing and phoning home. Celebrities like Col. North go to Iraq and interview troops who are then on camera talking as freely as possible, considering operational security concerns. Like most of us, I have friends who are officers and customers/clients who are enlisted. They have been over and back, would return, some have returned, some are now instructors at our nearby base. Mostly, they love GWB and think they are doing a good job. Everyone is aware that we support them and it is important to them. Morale is 180 from what it was in VN, both at home and in country.

I have no idea about al-Sadr, but I think we have made a conscious decision to let the Iraqis take care of their own problems, like the militias. It is all so tied up in the clan/tribe politics, which is so much a part of the religion. We are there to establish security in which democracy can take root. Al-Sadr is heir, from his father, to leadership of a large segment of Shia, IIRC. I think we cannot be the ones to take him out. Again, JMO.

I am no military historian, but I can't recall a war or even a series of battles like these in our past. The Islamic ME is almost like another planet because the culture is just so alien to us.