War Could Last Years, Commander Says

[MessengerX]

The new American operational commander in Iraq said Sunday that even with the additional American troops likely to be deployed in Baghdad under President Bush’s new war strategy it might take another “two or three years” for American and Iraqi forces to gain the upper hand in the war.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/08/world/middleeast/08iraq.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Upon hearing this assessment, defense contractors are doing their happy dance right about now.

At least we won't see Ogami back anytime soon.

 

[Cranky Bastard]

There is no upper hand. It's civil war.

We have no business being in a civil war.

 

[Techman]

There is no upper hand. It's civil war.

We have no business being in a civil war.

Nope.

And I question whether we caused it. Those two factions have been at each other's throats for centuries.

 

[Tyrant]

There wasn't one under Saddam.

 

[Techman]

There wasn't one under Saddam.

Under totalitarian dictators, there rarely is.

The US can't just wade in and kill people.

 

[Cranky Bastard]

There wasn't one under Saddam.

He not only kiled those who fomented suxh, but murdered their families as well.

America has not the stomach for such brutality - the only thing these savages understand.

 

[Techman]

He not only kiled those who fomented suxh, but murdered their families as well.

America has not the stomach for such brutality - the only thing these savages understand.

I ...resist...the term "hasn't the stomach."

 

[Cranky Bastard]

Okay, lemme clarify. The American political structure and the media do not have the stomach for the necessary brutality.

Not until a democrat gets elected, anyway. Which speaks of other political ills in American society.

Pick any average American Joe off the street and he'll make Saddam look like a elementary school principal.

 

[Mentalist]

I ...resist...the term "hasn't the stomach."

What do you mean exactly? That your patriotism runs to such levels that you think brutalizing people and being 'arder thun everyfink else is somehow a positive trait?

 

[Techman]

What do you mean exactly? That your patriotism runs to such levels that you think brutalizing people and being 'arder thun everyfink else is somehow a positive trait?

Brutalizing, no...being the baddest motherfuckers on the planet...oh yes.

But the term "hasn't the stomach" has cowardly undertones.

Cowards we ain't.

 

[Mentalist]

Nope.

And I question whether we caused it. Those two factions have been at each other's throats for centuries.

Whether we caused it?

We can call a bad situation a bad situation and attempt to wash our hands of it as much as you like but the REALITY remains that we did not plan or execute this campaign with the slightest finesse or aptitude.

The Sunni, Shiite and Kurd dynamic was well know. As you said, the separate factions in Iraq (Oh, and there are more than TWO factions in Iraq) had no love lost between them. This was always going to be a major issue when removing Saddam from power and in effect lifting the gates on the dog track and letting them run at it while we tried to not get blown up and shot by insane insurgents that despite what we were told still didn't like us after Saddam was removed from the seat of power.

Well shucks!


The Green Zone in Iraq was a managed about as effectively as a blind badger on LSD trying to paint the Vitruvian Man. We sent a kid of 24 years old that had never worked in the Financial District before to re-open the stock exchange in Iraq. We sent a 20 year old kid who had not even graduated from college to join the team rebuilding Iraq's Interior Ministry. We sent three guys to head up the job of rebuilding specific infrastructure in Iraq; the same job in East Germany was accomplished by throwing 800 experts at the job.

Over and over again we have FAILED to deal with the magnitude of the task that we took on. Instead of sending, oh, I dunno, Arabic speakers, people with experience in the Middle East in post conflict reconstruction we sent the loyal and the willing, when we should of been sending the best and the brightest. And that's without mentioning the lack of troops we sent to begin with.

It's fair to say that we fucked it up. Anyone else saying different at this point must be beyond delusional. And I think it's also fair to say that incompetence is a blamable offence.

The mismanagement and sheer ineptitude of this 'war' is what leaves us in this situation today. And now when all those things like the rise of civil war and insurgency against our own occurred we were left without a fucking clue what to do.


So yes, I think we have to take a tiny bit of the blame.

 

[Tyrant]

Under totalitarian dictators, there rarely is.

The US can't just wade in and kill people.

How about providing them with the water and electricity they enjoyed under the totalitarian dictator?

 

[Cranky Bastard]

Rebuilding Iraq rates about as high with me as draining the oceans to provide more living space.

Or, in other words, stupid idea that WE have no chance of implementing.