A Ray Of Hope?
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Trudy Rubin says that Iraqis feel a ray of hope about their future. I don’t doubt that they’re feeling more optimistic but saying that it’s only a ray of hope seems understated. Rubin says that whenever she wants to know how things are really going, he calls his friend Abbas. Here’s how she describes their latest conversation:
Yet, in three recent phone conversations, he sounded more hopeful about Iraq’s future than I’d heard him in a long time. Why hopeful? Because he finally sees some order returning to Baghdad. The Mahdi Army, the militia of the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, has been expelled from his neighborhood. “The Iraqi people are waking up from the Mahdi Army,” he told me. “Iraqis know now that they are criminals.”
I’m glad that Ms. Rubin recognizes the improvement in Iraq. According to Ms. Rubin’s bio, she’s travelled extensively to the Middle East, including 9 times to Iraq. This isn’t, as near as I can tell, some wet-behind-the-ears leftist ideologue. It sounds like she’s serious about her work.
My difficulties start when I try reconciling Ms. Rubin’s account with Col. Peters’ account, which I wrote about here:
I think it’s easy to get wrapped up with details but this isn’t one or two little things going right. for the last eighteen months, the positive trendlines have been overwhelmingly positive. The Iraqi military has been doing a remarkably good job. Even last year, the Iraqi parliament passed more pieces of major legislation than the U.S. Congress. Our troops can now focus on killing the remnants of al-Qaeda, killing the key Shia militia leaders and Iranian special groups. Every major city in Iraq is now in the hands of Iraqi security forces, backed by the U.S. forces. And on top of all this, Geraldo, al-Qaeda suffered a collosal strategic defeat by declaring Iraq their central front, then having Sunni Arabs turn on them by the millions. al-Qaeda is a broken organization, not defanged entirely, but broken. These are big stories and I can tell you, Geraldo, that at the New York Post, that we found that people do want to hear positive things about our troops. They do want the news from Iraq and the last thing I’ll say of this is that I’ll say of this is that if in the Year of Our Lord 2014, that if Iraq is a perfect, peaceful democracy, better than Iowa, the NY Times will run an article above the fold, shoplifter arrested in Sadr City, surge failed.
Ms. Rubin does note 2 major incidents that have changed Abbas’ perspective. Here’s the first change:
In Hay Salaam, Mahdi Army thugs from outside the neighborhood killed 19 Sunnis and two Shiite women who protested the slayings. Abbas was furious and looking for a way to fight back. His opportunity came when Gen. David H. Petraeus shifted the U.S. strategy for securing Baghdad and Iraq. As Sunni attacks on Shiites lessened, the Shiites felt less need for protection from the Mahdi Army and began to chafe at its shakedowns.
Abbas and his neighbors began tipping off U.S. soldiers to the location of Mahdi Army killers. That’s when Abbas started getting threats. He never leaves home without being surrounded by armed relatives.
This is a street-level evaluation of the surge. This doesn’t come from a commander’s PowerPoint presentation (Not that PowerPoint presentations aren’t credible). It’s just verified proof from someone who’s been in the thick of things.
Here’s another change that I thought noteworthy:
Another turning point came in April. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki sent the Iraqi army to attack Shiite militias who controlled Iraq’s second-largest city, Basra. Although the attack initially floundered, U.S. and British support enabled Maliki to recover, and Sadr’s forces faded away. “After the battle of Basra, everything is changed,” Abbas told me. “Now Iraqi citizens believe in the Iraqi army, not like before.”
Hearing an Iraqi say that “the Iraqi People believe in the Iraqi army” speaks volumes about the transformation in troop competence. They’re turning into a real fighting force. That’s a significant step forward because that makes militias one step closer to being unnecessary. Now that that’s changed, attitudes shifted.
The bottom line to all this is that a number of people are voicing the same message: that Iraq is getting better on a variety of fronts.
That’s sure to upset bloggers like this one. Here’s what this lefty wrote about conservatives in general and me in particular:
The latest example of the farce that is our debate on Iraq is the “The
Surge Is Working/No It Isn’t” argument of the last week. In case you missed it, the Kuwait News Agency (whatever that is) reported last week that U.S. troop deaths were down
by 60%. The Kuwait News Agency gave that story directly and exclusively to rightwing hack Matt Drudge; from there it has become the GOP talking point du jour, appearing
everywhere from The
Economist to a wide variety of stupid right wing blogs. They are arguing, in other words, that the surge is working because U.S. deaths in Iraq are supposedly down–and that Democrats should get in line behind the brilliant Commander-in-Chief.
It’s laughable reading, especially since this lefty thinks that my only argument about staying in Iraq is that US troop deaths are down. While it’s true that US troop casualties are down, that’s hardly the only criteria for supporting the surge. It’s just that BDS-blinded lefties like that blogger can’t think beyond their ideologies. That’s their problem.
BTW, antime anyone wants to lump me in with Patrick Ruffini is fine with me.
Just for the record, here’s why my support for the surge is as staunch as ever:
- The US military is killing off AQI.
- The US military is wreaking havoc on the Shiite militias.
- The Iraqi security forces are controlling Iraq’s biggest cities.
- According to Col. Peters, “Sunni Arabs turn on [AQI] by the millions.
- The Iraqi Parliament is more productive than Pelosi’s pinheads in getting meaningful legislation passed.
- The Maliki government is showing a spine by treating Sadr’s militias as harshly as they treat AQI. (TRANSLATION: They’ve become a real government.)
Pinheads like this blogger haven’t figured that out because their BDS won’t allow them to admit that President Bush was wise in giving Gen. Petraeus’ plan an opportunity to succeed.
The good news is that Abbas see firsthand that things have changed for the better. I’ll trust Abbas’ word over a lunatic lefty blogger anytime.
Technorati Tags: Iraq Trudy Rubin, Abbas, Sunni, Shiite, David Petraeus, Nouri al-Maliki, Security Forces, Hay Salaam, Mahdi Army, Muqtada al-Sadr, Ralph Peters, Surge
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog