Comments on: Bush, McCain & Iraq: They Still Don’t Get It

By: GreenDreams

GreenDreams — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 05:56:48 +0000

or maybe they've cooled it a bit in hopes that we'll think the surge is working and elect McCain so they can continue their recruitment spree unimpeded by the specter of peace.

By: DLS

DLS — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 00:46:01 +0000

“Are the [terrorists and Iranians] just waiting for us to draw down our presence before they begin more full scale violence?”

Probably. More to the point here and now, they're probably also waiting for the November election and to see if we hold fast or take a stronger or a weaker position against them.

By: GreenDreams

GreenDreams — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 22:44:26 +0000

The “surge” is not successful. The Mahdi army truce is. When it briefly ended, violence skyrocketed. They've backed off again, under orders from THEIR leader NOT ours. They proved that they can turn up the violence at will, and neither Bush nor McCain, nor you Manchester2, get it.

By: ChrisWWW

ChrisWWW — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:42:16 +0000

You can't measure the success of the war by casualties alone. If that were the case, we could "win" the war by leaving right now.

Also, in asymmetric warfare we can't know the operational strength of the enemy. Are the insurgents just waiting for us to draw down our presence before they begin more full scale violence? We don't know.

In terms of geopolitical and economic considerations, this war has been and continues to be an unmitigated disaster. Iran is stronger than ever. We are pouring billions into maintaining the status quo in Iraq (which is pretty sh***y). Regional instability has helped gas prices soar... etc.

By: shaun

shaun — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:28:24 +0000

Manchester2:

The first half of the Surge (tamping down sectarian violence) has been a success. The second half (reconciliation) is stillborn.

Obama will visit Iraq.

By: Manchester2

Manchester2 — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 16:11:56 +0000

Was the surge a success? I recently read that levels of U.S. military personnel killed is at its lowest since 2004. Also, the number of Iraqi soldiers killed is also declining. So, by that metric, McCain is right. But it is an election year, so good news out of Iraq will probably not be picked-up by most news outlets, who – like MSNBC's Chris Matthews – seem under Senator Obama's spell. Will Obama visit Iraq, since he hasn't been there in two years? He can pick his own time and own consort, but do it he must if he doesn't want to be vulnerable on this issue.