From the New York Times of 10 Jan 2007:
Quote:
U.S. and Iraqis Hit Insurgents in All-Day Fight
The fighting raged less than 1,000 yards from the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses both the American command and the Iraqi government. It was the latest episode for the troubled neighborhood around Haifa Street, where major campaigns have repeatedly been initiated to rid the area of insurgents, only to have them re-infiltrate.
Iraqi officials said that at least 50 militants were killed Tuesday, but the Americans said they could not provide a count.
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Complete with body counts, this reeks of Vietnam. US Military with a second surge this fall in Baghdad (troops removed from Anbar province execute this surge) still fight battles all day long - even with Apache helicopters and fighter bombers? This is a crowded city. Right outside the Green Zone. This is a victory?
Green zone - where Americans did not leave in 2004 due to security risks even in Baghdad – when the entire administration said we were winning hearts and minds? US troops and civilians could even walk the streets of Saigon during a losing war. A raging all day battle only right outside the green zone? This sounds more like the Tet Offensive.
Frank Miller was a 22 year veteran of the Pentagon; an analyst who viewed documents that most others only saw after being censored. Condi Rice, so frustrated for information in March 2004, sent Miller to Baghdad. Remember, this is when Iraq was secure – even according to many in The Cellar; reconstruction was rumored to be ongoing; the press was accused of being negative.
Quote:
Miller was struck by how the Coalition Provisional Authority had become a hermit city, ensconced in the Green Zone. He explained to one CPA official how he planned to fly around the country to visit with the US military division commanders ... "Wow," the CPA official said. "I wish we could to that. I wish we could see the country." ...
It was striking, Miller thought, that the Iraqis he saw seemed generally friendly, or at least not antagonistic. Little kids came running out, smiling, saying hello, and giving the thumbs-up sign as they moved through.
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And that is what many even in the Cellar posted.
Quote:
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It wasn't the middle finger, he noted, not realizing that in Iraq the thumbs-up sign traditionally was the equivalent of the American middle-finger salute.
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Reality in Iraq even in 2004 was quite different from what our Rush Limbaugh and Fox News liars promoted.
It was that bad then. It’s many times worse now - an all day battle fought even right outside the Green Zone. What does that say (and obviously say to all Iraqis)? The insurgents are winning just like the Vietcong 30+ years ago. The president is lying to save his legacy as Nixon did (knowning full well that Vietnam could not be won). George Jr will send more (and too few) troops as if securing Baghdad will somehow win “Mission Accomplished”. He does this why? Read those posts on and after Sept 2003.