AP News Alert:BAGHAD, Iraq (AP) Top U.S. general in Iraq says he believes Iraqi security forces can take over security with little coalition support within a year to 18 months.We've been hearing this sort of thing for awhile now...it isn't any clearer whether or not the Iraqis are stepping up or not. I give them all the credit in the world for signing on to do a difficult job under the most difficult of situations, but there has to be a time when the chips are on the table and the cards get turned over...
UPDATE: CENTCOM's Public Affairs guy, Spc. Patrick Ziegler, dropped in the comments to point out this piece from CDR Salamander that is well worth a looksee. The chart that CDR Salamander has over there tells the story of Iraqis stepping up much more than I could...a picture is worth a thousand words after all... Thanks to Specialist Ziegler for pointing it out to me.
Mark's Remarks
Wow, CENTCOM is reading us?! Too cool! Thank you Spc. Ziegler for helping us get the truth out about what is going on Iraq. No, it is not a cakewalk, but it is far, far from the quagmire the elected officials you are deigned to defend are making it. Thank you for you service and thank you for what you are doing not only for us, but for the future of the civilized world.
Yes, folks, the Iraqis are learning, the insurgency is isolated to a few provinces and cities, the electric and water are flowing, schools are being built. Is there danger? You betcha. However, the odds are better for you to get killed if you are in Philly or Cincinnati after dark than in Iraq.
Our brave men and women have been working hard for this process talked about in the article to begin. They have endured being called rapists, pillagers, terrorists, and Nazis, and these are what their own elected officials have to say. They have faced opposition not only from terrorists and baathists, but from an uncaring and mostly hostile media. They have performed above and beyond, and we are seeing progress.
However, what is dominating the news cycle? The fiasco known as Katrina and pinning it on George W. Bush. Remind me again, who is in charge of a city? The mayor. Who is in charge of a state? Oh yeah, the governor. IN our federal system, these people are the frontline first responders, and THEIR failure of leadership in the first days is what caused all the heartache and death. And, who ignored the levy reports in the 1990s? GWB was in Texas. Hmmm.....But, of course, these FACTS don't fit the template, so they are ignored, an substituted with shameless hyperbole and innuendo. The media in this country no longer cares about the truth, they only care for their own agenda.
Great work, to all our men and women working hard in Iraq and Afghanistan. Our thoughts and prayers are with you, and if you have true stories you want us to highlight, send them to wmdtvmatt@yahoo.com, and we will get the truth of the good in Iraq out!
