← Autodidact Archive · Original Dissent · JoseyWales
Thread ID: 20416 | Posts: 2 | Started: 2005-09-26
2005-09-26 19:07 | User Profile
[url]http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/25/AR2005092501298.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns[/url]
2005-09-26 19:22 | User Profile
Funny, I was hearing stuff (the underlined comment) like this a year ago. It appears that the muzzle on some of the people "in country" is being loosened. All to the good.
I see also a carbon copy of the "air support to local forces" that served so well (uh oh, did it???) in Viet Nam. Different situation, different sort of war in detail, if not in general kind, so maybe it will work.
Maybe not.
Let the draw down begin. Today.
AE
[QUOTE] President Bush and other administration officials continue to speak about Iraqi democracy in glowing terms, but you don't hear similar language from the military. After watching Iraqi political infighting for more than two years, they're more cautious. [u]"I think we'd be foolish to try to build this into an American democracy," says one general. "It's going to take a very different form and character."[/u] The military commanders have concluded that because Iraqis have such strong cultural antibodies to the American presence, the World War II model of occupation isn't relevant. They've sharply lowered expectations for what America can accomplish. [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=JoseyWales][url="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/25/AR2005092501298.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns"]http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/25/AR2005092501298.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns[/url][/QUOTE]