Posted on 11/28/2007 10:33:27 AM PST by ButThreeLeftsDo
It does not have the drama of the Inchon landing or the sweep of the Union comeback in the summer of 1864. But the turnabout of American fortunes in Iraq over the last several months is of equal moment -- a war seemingly lost, now winnable. The violence in Iraq has been dramatically reduced. Political allegiances have been radically reversed. The revival of ordinary life in many cities is palpable. Something important is happening. And what is the reaction of the war critics? Nancy Pelosi stoutly maintains her state of denial, saying this about the war just two weeks ago: "This is not working. ... We must reverse it." A euphemism for "abandon the field," which is what every Democratic presidential candidate is promising, with variations only in how precipitous to make the retreat.
How do they avoid acknowledging the realities on the ground? By asserting that we have not achieved political benchmarks -- mostly legislative actions by the Baghdad government -- that were set months ago. And that these benchmarks are paramount. And that all the current progress is ultimately vitiated by the absence of centrally legislated national reconciliation.
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
Methinks you may be listening to the wrong news sources. You have the enemedia talking points down pat!
I’ve noticed the only leftie stupid enough to argue with Krauthammer face to face is Juan Williams. And he gets his head handed to him every time.
Great piece.
Here’s the thing about the central gov’t. in Iraq. The people who created it envisioned a strong central government like the US gov’t. has evolved into. What they really need is a weaker, more de-centralized national government, to begin with. That’s how the US started life and it’s the only way that makes sense when you’re stitching together a bunch of autonomous regions.
Sure, the 13 colonies weren’t composed of tribes, but they may as well have been. It all boils down to regional interests versus national interests, and the calculus hasn’t changed since our own revolution.
Oh, goody. So which lucky country shall we save next?
Really? I thought the Democrats wanted to pull out of Iraq immediately? I didn’t realize they thought we were going to be there for years.
Personally, I was against going in the first place, but now that we are there, we can’t pull out, so I figure we might as well make the most of it. Use our bases there to intimidate other middle east countries into helping us catch Jihadists. Honestly I don’t listen to the “enimedia” as you put it. Is that what they advocate too?
BTW; Be honest. How long do you think we will be there?
What makes Charles all the more endearing, IMHO, is his down-to-earth way of explaining things in plain English. That, and the fact that he was buds with Noam Chomsky before his enlightenment. Yeah, reformed commies exist. Does that mean there’s hope for Hitlery?
Of course they want to pull out of Iraq immediately. And they whine about us being there. They also say that if Iraq can’t get their act together (by some moveable goalposts yet to be decided and then moved when we get there) by some date that they wish to set in stone that we should be giving up on them and getting out. We may be there a while - but we should be glad for it - not whining about how much it’s costing us. Staying there ensures a better chance of a stable Iraq and hopefully, a good ally.
because they certainly can’t take care of themselves.
There are plenty of indicators (and posters here at FR even) that say otherwise. It's not such a pessimistic outlook as you seem to believe.
Good grief. Where are you getting THAT?? I don't see how that prediction could possibly be true, since there has been forward progress all along. It is only because successes are obvious to conceal now that the media finally has to admit it. They've been burying the good news out of Iraq for years now and have twisted and distorted the bad to make it seem even worse.
For better or worse we will be babysitting Iraqi’s for the foreseeable future, because they certainly can’t take care of themselves.
They most certainly can. They are a big part of this turnaround. They are actively engaged in reporting terrorist activity all over the country. The Iraqi Army has made amazing strides toward complete independence and the police are now starting to show great signs of progress.
There had to be an entire culture change. These things do not happen overnight and this one certainly didn't. No country has ever gone from a brutal dictatorship to a peaceful democracy overnight.
The changes from where I sit are amazing and awe-inspiring.
She will never be called on her lies to the American people.
Liberals prefer government to tell its subjects what to do.
Yes, Mr. Krauthammer is also a genius for his uncanny insight and solutions to difficult problems..and good post Showpromid...
As for the problems you pose about a central govt in Iraq, it is true that regional interests for now will be powerful but i think it will take a strong central govt to help bring the regional rulers together especially in order to secure their borders to a menacing Iran and Iran’s shadow state-Syria..Unfortunately, modern times do not give us the luxury of slow but steady political progress in helping a country develop into a strong nation..We and other countries have already developed the blueprint for Democracy that works—all they have to do is try and follow that model, using their own political resources and laws with a tiered Justice System to balance out the Executive and Legislative or Parliamentary) branches of their government..It worked in India- a Hindu nation with many Moslems and Christians, and in Japan, which follows Shintoism, and Pakistan, Moslem with a democratic govt, as examples; nothing is impossible where the people are willing to work together..
As for what to do with their oil revenues- Bush is right in a sense that Iraq cannot say we took their oil money..But if we can develop a modified Marshall Plan like the one that that put Germany and Europe back on it’s feet after WW II we would gain many friends and allies in the Arab world, maybe enough so that they would modify their Jihadist dreams of Muslim glory and settle on cooperating with the democracies and countries around them..They should realize that what worked in the days of swords and spears will not work in this day of the nuclear age and instant death and retaliation...
Thanks Allegra — I figured you could add some more specific information!
Unlike Europe after World War II, overall the Middle East is still relatively intact and awash in potential oil revenue. The US, with its current national debt, cannot afford to bail out another region. And we sure do not want the Middle East to eventually develop a Union similar to the European Union. Perhaps we can limit the Marshall Plans to Mini-Marshall Plans that address the Middle Eastern nation the US just liberated from tyranny.
We should tell these gloomers that Baghdad has 7-11s, Pizza Huts and hair salons going up on every intersection. But it still won't be a normal life for these gloomers until there are dirty bars, bums, hookers, and gangs selling drugs there open looped.
Since you sit in Baghdad, we can defer to you. Who you going to believe, your eyes or some poster in CT? Thanks for whatever you do for our Troops.
Pray for W and Our Victorious Troops
I hope you are right, however, experience has shown that Muslims don’t change, overnight, or otherwise. They appear to change, when it is to their advantage, but expecting them to fundamentally change their entire culture is unrealistic. It would be like them expecting the entire population of the US to convert to Islam. It simply isn’t going to happen.
I am glad that there have been positive changes in Iraq, but when you read about Muslim protesters in Sudan demanding that a woman who allowed her class to name a Teddy Bear Mohamed be executed by firing squad, you realize just how far Muslim's have to go before they, as a culture, become civilized.
I agree, except for the winning part. I expect lots of people are going to be winning when inflation reaches double digits and we have a recession during the next few years because of over spending by the US government. Thats going to suck.
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