Thursday, September 21, 2006

Determination






These are real victories. They were won through the combination of persistence and skill. We have the men and women of our military to thank for them.

It wasn’t a “cut and run strategy” that enabled us to achieve these accomplishments. We committed to our plans and carried each one out.

For a long time the Democrats have been saying that our leadership has no Exit Strategy from Iraq. Here are a couple of quotes:

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (January 31, 2005)
“Most of all we need an exit strategy so we know what victory is and how we can get there…”

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean (October 31, 2003)
“Still, the President has no plan and no exit strategy. And still he hasn’t answered the question, what are we doing in Iraq and when can our troops come home?”

Congressman John Murtha (November 21, 2005)
“There is no exit strategy. The path to victory—victory is not a strategy.”

“Victory is not a strategy”? As you can see this is a problem of communication, we are talking about two different things. Our country is fighting to succeed in its mission to prevent the Baath Party and Al Qaeda from controlling Iraq. The Democrats are fighting for control of the US government. They do not consider a victory in Iraq to be in their best interests.

Today marked the transfer of the second Iraqi province to Iraqi security forces. The southern province of Dhi Qar follows the province of Muthanna as another model of how the Bush Administration has planned its Exit Strategy (and from the beginning I might add).

After US troops crushed the Iraqi army and moved north we positioned our coalition allies in the Shiite provinces of the south. This allowed us to concentrate our firepower in the Sunni provinces where the remnants of the Baathist regime were concentrated.

The overall U.S. strategy calls for coalition forces to work with Iraqi community leaders to help them reestablish services for their people and foster the democratic process. Meanwhile we are continuing to build up Iraqi security forces that will eventually assume control of the field. Coalition commanders can then slowly reduce the size of coalition forces as battlefield conditions allow them to.

I’m sorry if I am boring you, but military strategy does not make for good headlines. That’s why Democrats could say there is no Exit Strategy because the press prefers to focus on sensational events like suicide bombings and scandals. Unfortunately that means that there is scant coverage of hard news items.

If you prefer livelier subjects then by all means browse any major news website. Stories of attacks on defenseless civilians and President Bush’s “lack of an Exit Strategy” are like weeds all over the Internet. When visiting these sites...

  • You won’t find any stories of large-scale battles like last year’s Fallujah campaign. Nope, the insurgents can’t hold on to any territory or organize in large formations anymore.
  • You won’t find any stories about how Iraqi soldiers are ineffective against the insurgents anymore.
  • You won’t be reading about skepticism concerning the success of upcoming elections anymore.
  • You won’t be reading about the difficulty that the Iraqis are having to form their first truly democratic government anymore.
  • You won’t be reading any examination of the situation in Iraq that will appeal to your intellect.

    …But you will be feeding on terrorist propaganda…

12 comments:

In Russet Shadows said...

Good wrap-up! Did you see the Done with Mirrors piece? There's a lot of good that goes unreported. Check it out.

Anonymous said...

Well here we go again. Do these far left types want timelines on the war on poverty or social engineering programs. Maybe this is why the Duck and far left types spend so much time on film. They live in fantasies and real problems take time to fix.

Freedomnow said...

RS,

What a fantastic link, thanks. I will read that article when as I eat lunch. Its a long read.

Beak,

The Left's insistence on focusing on this issue gives us a chance to reflect on the many successes of our Iraqi policy.

That is sure to piss off the rabid-Left. US casualties have been dramatically lighter than any other longterm war the US has been engaged in.

The only success insurgents have had is attacking defenseless civilians.

Lets press for a larger debate on the issue. The facts are on our side.

Anonymous said...

I am building a new forum for mayhem. Beakerkin.logspot.com

Freedomnow said...

We need to put http:// before that URL otherwise it brings up an Armageddon theme park

http://beakerkin.blogspot.com/

nanc said...

you forgot to say, "bush will lose in '08".

i think leakerkin.hogspot.com takes you to the jimmy dean sausage factory.

American Crusader said...

Like fast food, America wants fast results. Muslims are much more patient. Like the Chinese, they are willing to look past their own individual lifetimes for the accomplishment of their goals.

We need to learn patience.

Freedomnow said...

AC,

Thats only true because the radicals among them realize that they are not powerful enough to achieve their goals immediately.

They dont have any choice. As I mentioned in my Fourth of July post, having too many options can be bad.

Freedomnow said...

Why that is very kind of you. I will mosey on down there and check it out...

nanc said...

go for it, cowboy!

American Crusader said...

I don't know. Long-term results require long-term strategy. Is that the question of power or options?
Winning the peace on our terms requires patience.

Freedomnow said...

Well we have the long-term strategy, but the opposition and the media are trying to sabatoge it.

This is just like a confrontation with a schoolyard bully. The thug tries to intimidate you and make you do something stupid. If you are patient and hold your ground the bully can be beaten.

In the short-term there is one thing we can do. We can turn things around and say, hey what the hell has the insurgency accomplished?

Lets point to the failures of the insurgency. There's plenty...