"The Petraeus Curve"
By Pejman Yousefzadeh Posted in General Petraeus | Iraq | The Surge | War — Comments (11) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Don't look now, but things have improved significantly in Iraq. And the following passage is highly significant:
The current achievements, and they are achievements, are being treated as almost an embarrassment in certain quarters. The entire context of the contest for the Democratic nomination for president has been based on the conclusion that Iraq is an absolute disaster and the first task of the next president is to extricate the United States at maximum speed. Democrats who voted for the war have either repudiated their past support completely (John Edwards) or engaged in a convoluted partial retraction (Hillary Clinton). Congressional Democrats have spent most of this year trying (and failing) to impose a timetable for an outright exit. In Britain, in a somewhat more subtle fashion admittedly, Gordon Brown assumed on becoming the Prime Minister that he should send signals to the voters that Iraq had been "Blair's War", not one to which he or Britain were totally committed.
I don't for a moment think that we have run out of challenges to overcome in Iraq. But it is sheer folly not to admit that since the implementation of the surge and General Petraeus's counterinsurgency strategy, there have been significant improvements in the quality of life in the country. And I wonder--as the article does--why it is that more people don't celebrate those improvements.
Those people will have to be the ones who give the answer to that question. But for my part, I can only surmise that sometimes, the pain of being wrong can be so overwhelming that certain people can't bring themselves to celebrate what is so obviously celebratory. And given all of the comments that the surge was failing (many of which were delivered well before the surge was fully implemented), there may well be a lot of people who are gradually realizing that they were wrong about the surge and about the future of Iraq in general.
« How Do You Spell Defeat? — Comments (26)
"The Petraeus Curve" 11 Comments (0 topical, 11 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
because it is a defeat of epic proportions for them.
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"When you don't know where you are, but you don't care, you're not lost, you're exploring!"
a lot of Republicans have been indistinguishable from Harry Reid on the war. And not only RonPaul!RonPaul!RonPaul! And we should never let them forget it.
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
Especially with the Iraqi government offering to "help" against the Kurdish rebels.
Oz
Read my most recent story, "Immigration may be Hillary's undoing" on First Cut Politics
Listen, I am as thrilled as the next guy that we are seeing some military success in Iraq. To be hones, it further proves that the United States has the greatest fighting force in the world - when given the materials and sheer numbers needed to get the job done. But, and it is a big but, to what end? The goverment in Iraq still is severely lacking in terms of organization, honesty, structure, solidarity, etc. What are we doing there? Thank God our troops are giving their lives at a slower pace, but how long are we going to stay? Any why, if the surge is working, why are we now starting to pull down the troops?
I think back to the 2004 debates, when Kerry was pounding Bush on the number of troops, and I wonder if he was right? And not just Kerry, McCain is proven to have been right about troop levels. I am desperate to celebate these early victories, but I am less and less convinced as this thing goes forward that our national interest is best served by being there. Am I wrong?
It is monarchical and aristocratical government only that requires ignorance for its support.
Thomas Paine, Rights of Man, 1792
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
Here's the link to Will's piece:
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/09/by_bushs_own_standard_...
and here's the link to the recent GAO report:
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
If the trend continues, and I am cautiously optimistic, we need a means to drive home the point that Democrats wrote off the mission of our troops and almost lost the war.
Maybe a national day of celebration and remembrance. Maybe a monument to the defeat of al Qaeda in Iraq. A joint resolution thanking Petraeus, the troops, and all Americans who contributed to the fight. Something to crystallize in mind of the American people how we were almost sold down the river on this one.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
When it occurs because something good is happening.
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"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777