Posted on 06/13/2006 4:44:17 AM PDT by unionblue83
Last week, American bombs nailed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. That’s great. And the pig lived just long enough to know the Americans got him.
That’s even better.
A butcher with a taste for innocent blood, Zarqawi had become the leering face of fanaticism in Iraq. We ripped that face right off. It took a while. But now Zarqawi’s undeniably dead.
It’s a bigger victory than you’ve been told.
Oh, the Jackal from Jordan’s death was big news. Briefly. It even bumped the alleged “massacre” at Haditha off the front page for a couple of days. But the America-is-all-bad-all-the-time media recovered quickly. By the weekend, we were being assured that Zarqawi’s death wouldn’t really make a difference.
Bull.
It was a devastating blow to his followers. And his death sends a global message to terrorists: We will find you and kill you. We are stronger than you. You will lose.
Zarqawi’s death won’t end terrorism. But it will severely hinder al-Qaeda in Iraq. The mass of intelligence we gained in dozens of related raids will further cripple the organization. Our troops won’t get credit for a job well done, of course. But penetrating his organization and killing Zarqawi was more important than capturing Saddam.
(Excerpt) Read more at frontpagemag.com ...
Ping!
If we want to destroy terrorist symbols, I nominate the moon rock.
bump
The day Zarq's death was announced, I predicted we'd have a spike in violence here (retaliatory, "face-saving" stuff) followed by a period of calm.
For two days after Zarq's death, there was a spike in the violence.
Now, it's waning. The attack level in Baghdad has dropped pretty drastically the last couple of days. I heard three explosions this morning and later found out that they were controlled detonations. Haven't heard much of anything else out there.
So, we'll wait and see if al Qaeda finally figures out they're simply not going to be successful in screwing up Iraq.
Or to put it a different way:
Memo from US to terrorists: We're coming down down on you like stink on an old hog and then commence to hurt you! BAM!
I hope you're right, Allegra. The problem with guerrilla insurgencies is that they attract all kinds of wannabe's, amateurs, and whack-jobs who think they're just continuing the fight. There will probably be some attempts to imitate his style of kidnap/beheadings, but they will be one-offs and poorly organized.
The only thing better would be all those white robes splayed out like the trees after Mt. St. Helen burped!
But the tougher you make it and the surer the consequences the less attractive it is to recruits.
6/13 WSJ editorial sited interesting angle. The best news is that we found Z. Killing him made everyone happy; Al Queda and US of A. They point out Z's record of killing muslims and Jordanians made him a pariah in his own community. They would rather have him a dead-martyr than a loose cannon.
What is so critical is the continuing "roll-up" of Al Queda in IRAQ and on.
"As far as the media is concerned, if your suffering isn’t caused by an American, it doesn’t count."
That was a nice line.
Amen. Which is why I had to laugh when the Dems started yelling "Mission Accomplished! Let's bring the troops home!". This is the time to press in and consolidate our gains.
Oh, we expect some of that. We're certainly not declaring the war over yet. LOL
But al Qaeda wasn't succeeding at their agenda here even with Zarqi-Boy alive. He was desperately trying to get a civil war started, and even with our media as a willing accomplice, it just wasn't happening.
He and his thugs tried to stop the elections by issuing ominous threats. "Vote and Die" was painted on walls all over Iraq prior to the first election in January 2005 and the message was getting out through mass-media methods as well.
The people voted anyway. In droves.
The only thing Zarq succeeded in was shattering lives with his nasty terror attacks. Now that he's gone, we're hoping that they'll become disorganized and eventually scatter to the four winds.
However, the Mehdi militia and its offshoots still remain a big problem. They need to be cut off at the head as well.
Fingers remain crossed for continued progress on this end.
Find 'em and blow 'em up.... Two 500 pound bombs sent with love and kisses!
I like to think that as D-Day was to WWII on June 6th, June 7th will eventually be recognized as 'Z-Day' and be seen as the turning point in Iraq. The President is meeting with council today and they are sure to follow up on their best opportunity to capitalize on this success. The news media is reporting 70,000 troops moving into Baghdad today, lead primarily by Iraqis. We are parying that the calm is returning and that the remainder of these thugs are either rolled up or scattered and that the light goes on over any potential 'recruits' to seek a real future elsewhere.
My guess is that a lot of good intel was discovered at Zarq's safe house and is being utilized.
We fervently hope to see peace come to this place soon. These people here have been through so much and they just want to live normal lives in freedom and prosperity like the rest of us.
This will work eventually. Our troops are committed as are the Iraqis. The Iraqis have impressed me with the resolve, sense of humor and optimism they have applied to all of this.
Thank you for the bird's-eye view. It's nice to actually get the real story from eyes "on the ground". I would think that now is the perfect time to really hammer them hard while there is still some confusion in the ranks. I am sure we garnered plenty of juicy info from the round-ups that followed the re-decorating of the Zarqawi home (and internal organs). God Bless and take care.
Do you think they have learned to be vigilant and do what it takes to preserve freedom?
The majority - yes.
The media conceals so much of the truth. These people desperately want freedom. They risked their very lives to vote - and some gave up their lives doing so. I could rattle off several heartwarming and moving stories from that first Election Day in January '05. It was one of the mnost fascinating experiences of my life and I was just a spectator.
The Iraqi armed forces are also beocming more and more capable and are enthusiastic about taking charge of their nation's security. Believe me, they hate the terrorists as much as we do.
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