More good and bad news from Iraq.
First the good news: Our military continues to perform with great success! They have accomplished each assigned task with incredible bravery, skill and professionalism. Thanks to everyone who serves.
Now the bad news: The American civilian continues to "under perform." No political progress in sight and Sunnis in some areas may still have links to Al Qaeda in Iraq:
Soldiers from the 4-64th said that the Sunni volunteers rarely offer tips on al Qaida and that they also have doubts about their loyalties.
"I think most of them are al Qaida or at least linked," said 1st Lt. Brendon McGann, 24, of Bethesda, Md. "They only give us Shiite JAM targets," he added, using the acronym for the Mahdi Army's Arabic name.
It's unclear how much the Americans know about their new partners. One volunteer, Maj. Mohammed Khalid, led the Americans to a roadside bomb that was carefully hidden under a blast wall that separates Saidiyah from the Sunni-dominated neighborhood of Dora. Asked how he knew it was there, he responded, "I have my sources."
How will a weak, Shia dominated parliament settle differences with the Sunni parliament members who have no control over Sunni militias run by former Baathist Officers? The former Baathists have zero incentive to do anything. They have not been defeated. Period. Local militias, with the blessing of US military commanders, have routed out most of the AQI elements, but they have not defeated the militias run by former Baathist generals. Therein lies the rub.
Why would these Sunni militias lay down the weapons that have served them so well?
Until the Jordanians, Saudis, and Syrians are brought in to pressure the Sunni militias, and the Iranians pressures its Shia constituency we have zero hope of ever leaving Iraq. Period.
If indeed we get all these parties involved, the US still has no guarantee that the shit won’t hit the fan when we leave.
And … the Kurds. What about our “allies” in Northern Iraq? They exponentially complicate the calculus. Which is unfortunate, because the people currently running the Executive Branch can’t even do simple arithmetic.
I have little faith in the Diplomatic skills of the Former Cheerleader and his Gang of War Criminals. Condi Rice poked her head up from her foxhole recently, but she’s still out gunned by the Twelve Sandwich Eating War Criminal with a Pacemaker. She is no match for him and David Addington. (New England Patriots versus Miami Dolphins,as it were.)
Jesus Babbling Christ! Will somebody please tell these deadenders the military options can go on until Sisyphus pushes that fucking boulder up the hill and we won’t straighten out the Iraq Abortion until we get some competent goddamn diplomats in the mix!
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