IT is true in politics too. When Dick Morris was hired by Jesse Helms and Trent Lott he did what it took to re-elect Jesse and Trent. When he was hired by Clinton he did all he could to elect and re-elect Clinton. He is a player not an ideologue.
There were undoubtedly many players in the Saddam army. They will play for the insurgents if that is their only choice, but they will play for our military if they are given a chance.
We, on the other hand, are like baseball fans. If we are an Indian fan we can't imagine rooting for the Yankees. Players don't think like us.
There is not much new in this. When Patton took over Germany at the end of WWII he used many officers from the NAZI army to run the US portion west Germany. It was no problem. When Hitler was in power the officers played for him. When we were in power the same officers played for us.
Some of the NAZIs and some of the Iraqis are ideologues.. but many are not.
But if we get players who want to play for us, they can blow a so called holy Mosque to bits with all the insurgents inside. They can do it and never raise an eyebrow.
When the hard core insurgents know that other Iraqis will kill them no matter where they are, they tend to surrender.
The typical Iraqi terrorist is about as tough as Saddam. When they know all is lost they will be as docile as Saddam was upon his capture.
An therein lies the true test of the theory....
WILL the Iraqi police/military fight to the death --- the militant Islamists -- or will they see Islam as their common link to the Islamists, and a stronger link than to the new Iraqi "democracy"??
At present, there is more evidence that the New Iraqi "Police/Miliary", will shrink from the task......without MASSIVE support from Coalition forces..
Semper Fi
>>>"They will play for the insurgents if that is their only choice, but they will play for our military if they are given a chance. "
Great observations in your post and great analogy to Germany.
I was against this, but it may actually work out. We still don't have Sadr, many powerful weapons, many of his followers, or many of the foreign fighters. But things have certainly calmed down in the city. You may be right.
Hoppy
Exactly right. Moreover, the Marines know a thing or two about house-to-house fighting, and they don't like it at all. Oh, they can do it, but they have studied extensively the Russian experience in Grozny as to how NOT to defeat an "urban" enemy.
Or military appears to have little if any control over them. And I think it will diminish with time.