Reality of the Surge Options

[Hellfighter]

My view;
A smartly run military campaign.
.... however McCain and other neocons are perhaps patting 'themselves' too early for supporting it;
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23382421

Firstly - the current 'Surge' was supposed to have ended six months ago.
The Surge's main- MAIN- purpose was not directly about killing off al quaeda, but to get the Iraqi government to finally act as one solid front - that has not succeeded -> their may be improvements in that goal, but it hasn't been accomplished-still.

Secondly the Surge was supposed to mean a reduction in troop strength to reduce the stress on the soldiers involved in excessive rotations. The neo-cons tend to assume soldiers are wind-up toys with energizer batteries in them rather than dedicated hman beings. Is it no wonder thre are so many soldiers returning from Iraq feeling disenfranchised by society and 'preferring' to live out of the norms of society once they get back and as we see in shameful large numbers in homeless conditions ['support the troops' was the hollow neocon mantra for the longest while. Now they're surprised why their flag-waving antics no longer work].
Troop numbers in Iraq are still very high.
Of course the argument that tactically a troop withdrawal would lead to a disaster. But get real. The Surge Generals know all is not hunky-dory just because territory is gained and all seems quiet for now regarding the Sunnis in the north and south, and the still potent Shiite militias held-back by a ceasefire agreement. Iran is quite. People are waiting in the wings. We tend in the West to view progress from our perspective -enemy quiet= enemy defeated. They're being 'clever' for lack of a better word. You can bet they are using this quiet time to plan their own surge when the time is right - US troops whether McCain or a Dem is in charge WILL be reduced when thins seem quiet enough -and that's when the enem/enemies will strike and launch their civil war.
There's no doubt also that al quaeda's 'ground force's are on the run - but their suicide bombers can still lurk anywhere in Iraq. All they need to do / and are doing is to keep maintaining 2 or 3 horrid suicide attacks a month to keep things destabilized there.
Note how the media over here now rarely mentions the suicide attacks in Iraq. They're in'Surge is working' mode. Just like they ignored Afghanistan has been in worse shape.

Finally why did the Surge 'work'. 'Awakening Alliance'- the Sunni private armies that are contesting al quaeda. The Surge is only progressing in terms of territory due to the Awakening Alliance 'watching the six' of the the Surge's tail. The amount of US troops freed up by this comfort in not having to leave considerable troops back to solidify gained ground is an impressive reason for the successes - not to mention al Sadr's militias being quiet in Baghdad -temporarily. Then another reason things are calmed - the ethnic cleansing of neighbourhoods by gangs of demons succeeded to the point where there were no more 'undesirables' left to kill - so it appeared they had been stopped when in fact they had themselves no reason to continue their mayhem.
So that are measuring success in Iraq from a tunnel-minded vision need to look at the bigger picture, and the reality in total the mainstream media are failing to let you know about - and in fact are misleading you about. It's not too difficult to find out how everything is currently balanced on the edge of a blade over there.

[Blitz]

ps. Where did you see 30 year plan by terrorists ...... If we keep overindulging there, it could alternately be 30 years for nothing if the situation doesn't improve. I doubt anyone could layout plan A's and B's for Iraq with its ongoing fluid and volatile situation.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001454.html

My point on the 30 year plan is that the islamic terrorists have been taking swipes at us ( and anyone who does not follow their strict doctrine) for over 30 years and longer. They do not have a military "plan" so to speak but they are all working towards the same goal of creating an islamic world ruled under shira law.

Unless we all wake up and define the enemy for what it is and fight it with all our political and military might they will keep taking swipes at us forever. We must either destroy them or be detroyed. Their radical religous views cannot be bartred with for the long haul. They will take whatever we give, strike at you again and ask for more. (see the history of israel)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hur_vyU-LUw

[Hellfighter]

Unless we all wake up and define the enemy for what it is and fight it with all our political and military might they will keep taking swipes at us forever. We must either destroy them or be detroyed. Their radical religous views cannot be bartred with for the long haul. They will take whatever we give, strike at you again and ask for more. (see the history of israel)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hur_vyU-LUw

Militarily its impossible to wipe them out.
Politically it'll never happen -the extremists as you say ultimately want everything their way.
The only feasible solution in my mind and the general consensus I think is by changing the hearts of the upcoming younger generations to live in a world of mutual respect. Only that way will the cycle of bitter violence stop.
It seems 'choirs and angels' but that seems the only realistic choice as opposed the continuous 'tit for tat' revenge attack for revenge attack cycle. These types of acts only create father-less kids who seek to strike back with hatred and are easy recruit material for the extremists. Captured al aquada 'fighters' in Iraq have said the abu Ghareb prison pics were the biggest recruitment inspiration for avengers to swell their ranks. Extremists rely on their fear and message of vengeance - they have billions ofMuslims to seek out the small percentage extremist nutters willing to go all the way. Nope-in my books military means can plug a gap but won't drain the dam.



This post has been edited by Hellfighter: 03/02/08 9:18am