Iraqis eye reconciliation -- after U.S. withdrawal
When it comes to U.S. policy in Iraq, we’ve thankfully seen some progress on the security front, but the administration’s so-called “surge” has fallen far short of its goals. The White House and the Maliki government established a series of benchmarks earlier this year, nearly all of which have gone unmet. Political reconciliation, ostensibly the purpose of the surge, remains non-existent.
If you ask Iraqis about how best to achieve political progress, they’ll offer a helpful perspective.
Iraqis of all sectarian and ethnic groups believe that the U.S. military invasion is the primary root of the violent differences among them, and see the departure of “occupying forces” as the key to national reconciliation, according to focus groups conducted for the U.S. military last month. […]
Dated December 2007, the report notes that “the Iraqi government has still made no significant progress toward its fundamental goal of national reconciliation.” Asked to describe “the current situation in Iraq to a foreign visitor,” some groups focused on positive aspects of the recent security improvements. But “most would describe the negative elements of life in Iraq beginning with the ‘U.S. occupation’ in March 2003,” the report says.
To be sure, Gen. Petraeus & Co. are putting their most encouraging spin on the focus-group results. The WaPo noted, “At the very least, analysts optimistically concluded, the findings indicate that Iraqis hold some ’shared beliefs’ that may eventually allow them to surmount the divisions that have led to a civil war.”
Yes, I suppose that’s true. But if those “shared beliefs” include the notion that we’re an “occupying force” responsible for ruining Iraqis’ lives, isn’t it a little difficult to be “optimistic”?
"..If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign troop was landed in my country, I never would lay down my arms--never--never--never". Lord Chatham 1777
So they will stand up together after we leave.
OT - did anyone see this article about the Lakota people?
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Descendants_of_Sitting_Bull_Crazy_Horse_12...
How ungrateful! We came all that ways to blow them up and now they wants us to just leave.
Don't the Iraqi people know they are only emboldening the enemy?!?
Good night and good luck.
I guess the Iraqis are SOL, then, because Bush and company plan never to leave. Iraq is intended to serve as a landlocked supper carrier battle group to be used to conquer all Middle Eastern countries that have oil. Their plan is not to leave until America has stolen every last natural resource in the region.
Well, the Iraqis can look forward to a political resolution as soon as their oils reserves are depleted, and Israel is vanquished or no longer considers them a threat or annoyance, and the resulting US withdrawal of it's invading, occupying army is completed.
Perhaps within this millenium?
Explain what "victory" means in Iraq. Is it Blackwater, Haliburton, and KBR continuing to frighten and pillage the Iraqis while financially prospering off no-bid contracts. Is it our military complex continuing to strengthen while losing respect from the global community, albeit England's Gordan Brown and former Tony Blair? Ask the average Iraqi how their lives have turned out for the better after the Sadaam overthrow. I'm sure now that many of the Iraqis have either fled to take refuge in Iraq's neighboring countries, lost loved ones, or continue to hole up in their homes, fearing their safety every day, they'll tell us the story all the war supporters don't want us to hear.
bush: We got their oil, now find a way to WIN the war before the end of my term. POP...then he sobered up.....
Looks like the Iraqis will have the something in common with the Lakota Nation. Their land will be stolen for its natural resources and the Iraqis will be living in "reservations".
I know how the Iraq's feel, they live in fear every night for thier life. Having a gun to protect yourself only invites the mercenaries to label you as an insurgent. So the fight continus till people who are doing the invading learn to use their head for reasoning.
troops out!
Neocons and the GOP to Iraq: "Who cares what you think!!"
Somehow, I think that republicans-conservatives will be relieved if a democrat gets the white house, then whatever happens in Iraq, staying or leaving, can be blamed on democrats.
or, I am waiting for a claim of victory from the white house before the November elections in 2008.
hello.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0930/p17s02-cogn.html
no ones going anywhere
How arrogant and dicwaddy can these nuts be? You are damn right steve.
repugs "shared-belief" means "shared-responsibility."
I think repugs are getting ready for another bumper-sticker moment.
repugs are gearing up to eventually blame the Iraqis for chimpy's invasion and occupation.
No shit.
they should live so long!!!!!!!!!!!!
Betray Us loves to carry water for AWOL and 5 deferments
First they didn't want us there. Now they want us to leave. I wish they'd make up their minds!
Coffins draped in flags @ 2:
are they going to foce us to send in the horse calvary and murder thier women children and braves once again????
wisedup @ 9:
Good one!
The Idiot Life of Monkeys
idiot baby chimpy to idiot pappy monkey: Daddy I wanna play cowboy! Daddddddyyyyy. Wahhhhh, wahhhhh!
idiot baby jeb to idiot pappy monkey: Daddy I wanna play outside! Daddddddyyyyy. Wahhhh, wahhhh!
Now we know how they got to those states.
CafeenMan @ 19:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
tyree @ 20:
Thanks, Tyree.
I can't believe the story of the Lakota Nation independence isn't getting more blog coverage.
Bush is an uniter.
Two points come to mind. Point 1:
A shared belief that they want the Coalition of the Willing(tm) out-the-hell of their country is what's going to unite them? Ummmmm...Seems the only thing that will unite them to do will be to go after us until we're out-the-hell of their country. Or is there some other possible outcome?
Point 2:
Did he just say "civil war"?
This site is a joke. Before you were all saying the surge was a failure. General betrayus my ass. He was right. You were wrong, and you still are wrong.
How many different ways do they need to tell us to get out of their fuckin country?
"The White House and the Maliki government established a series of benchmarks earlier this year, nearly all of which have gone unmet. "
I don't know why you keep picking on that sadsack Maliki because he hasn't met any of his benchmarks. Didn't the 109th Congress establish a series of benchmarks for HOMELAND SECURITY FIVE years ago, nearly all of which have gone unmet? (Well, you can't say the 109th congress is TOTALLY useless. They allocated funds to spend on homeland security. They SPENT the funds, but didn't get any security. One out of two ain't bad.)
Coffins draped in flags @ 23:
I did a little post about it over at Mark of the Beast. If I didn't have too much crap to fit in a teepee I'd be on my way to the Dakotas. :-)
Terrible @ 29:
Build a LongHouse then :-)
they might as well face it. and we better too. We didn't build the biggest military base in the world if we didn't intend on staying for awhile. we're stuck. we should have stood up and done something when the mess started but Bush pushed through.
I heard today on NPR, I think, about the giant walls that are built surrounding that city of Falujah. And now it's safer :).
miss_kitty @ 30:
I'm in New England and have actually thought a lot about doing that some day! All I need is a little piece of that land my ancestors stole. ;-)
EP3 @ 31:
We aren't leaving until the oil under Iraq is pumped through our lives and into the atmosphere. By then the ice won't be getting in the way of further extraction from the arctic. Boots on the crude BooYah.
the US just needs to get the fuck out!
.
So,
Since we're there permanently, anyone care to guess when that reconciliation will be?
.
I just have to say this to get it out of my system and this was the only thread related to the topic of my disgust.
1. Only Congress can declare war.
2. Congress approves a resolution of "preemptive strike" on Iraq having WMD's-none found.
3. The current administration tries to connect Saddam and Al Qaeda-but fails.
4. The "preemptive strike" now has the reference this administration wanted thanks to the MSM-'Al Qaeda in Iraq'and 'The War in Iraq'-and all without Congress issuing a declaration of war against Iraq.
Someone PLEASE tell me how this happened?
We went to war in Afghanistan, yet more focus is on Iraq. With that, the poppy crop has increased tremendously. Could this be a reason this administration 'wants' to keep our direct attention on Iraq? "We" look the other way on your crop if you allow us to run that pipeline?
You know what is the most scary thing about all of this? Our brave men, women and others of a different persuasion are in danger 24/7 including holidays. Yet, our government cannot miss a holiday break to get all this straightened out-and by no means are they in harms' way.
While they look forward to holidays with family and break from the daily grind of governing (sic) ,our brave soldiers still fight on. I think they should be putting in over over overtime with all the problems our country is facing. Our brave soldiers are on a schedule of 15months in theater/12 months off. A grueling schedule if they make it through. But our government is working 2 maybe 3,4 days a week with weekends and holidays off!!! SOMETHING IS VERY VERY VERY WRONG WITH THIS SCENARIO.
And as for the Iraqi people, I cannot fathom trying to walk the streets or sleep at night- praying and hoping with all my might that I survive the Bush Administrations' bringing of 'democracy' and 'freedom' to Iraq and yet slowly diminishing it in his own country. Violence is down, huh? It seems a majority of the population has sought refuge in a neighboring country, living scared 'chitless' or unfortunately dead.
Nuff said and thanks for allowing me to vent.
After reading more of the posts, there is another thing I have been watching.
Everyone should look at a map of the Middle East.
We have Iran surrounded. We are in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Now Turkey, just above is getting in on the action--Saudia Arabia has already been in on the fighting.
Now if you were Iran, how would you react to the U.S. threatening you without any provocation ?? The U.S. is already at war with countries on your borders???
Seems like the more I look at that map, Iraq shrinks some more.
This administration is working much more harder trying to dominate the oil rich Middle East than he is finding alternative fuels.
We had the plans and had invented the hybrid years and years ago, but it was sold to China and the technology was suppressed here-all as another way to keep control of the populace. note: Jimmy Carter tried to tell us, but he was shunned for even suggesting we cut back or get gas saving vehicles because we wanted our gas guzzlers.
EP3 @ 31:
A building doesn't mean it's permanent. Can somebody say Jericho?
Somebody @ 26:
The Iraqis thought we would leave once we defeated Saddam's forces, then they thought we would leave when we rigged the voting, once again they thought we would leave once we captured kangaroo-tried and executed Saddam (before he could spill the beans) and yet we still haven't left, then they cooperated with the surge and like a bad houseguest we still haven't left. I thought the goal was Iraqi self-determination. Well they showed it and yet we just don't get it. We never belonged there in the first place. All we have managed to do is stack the pile of bodies higher. Change the deck chairs all you want, we are the iceberg to their Titanic.
I sure hope Joseph Heller write the book, and does the screen play, of the Iraq War.
No one else could do it justice.
Maybe Ken Kesey.
Somebody @ 26:
Listen, NoBody. If you want 'Law and Order', and 'Stability', one approach is to bomb the hell out of a place, napalm and blast a major city to the ground, adopt a policy of unannounced 'door-to-door searches', consisting of breaking down front doors with battering rams and 'lighting up' all occupants, including kids, then building walls around each block, putting roadblocks at each intersection, all of this done by an invading, occupying army that attacked for no good reason.
By the time you get done with all this, you have millions who flee the country, hundreds of thousands who are dead, millions who have been wounded, a whole nation that has witnessed senseless slayings of their families and neighbors and friends, and are afraid to leave their homes except when driven by hunger or thirst.
Then you achieve the 'Law and Order', the 'Stability', that Petraeus and the idiot Bush are so proud of.
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