More on the lessons of Anbar:

"Afstan: Current US methods and general problems ahead"

Mark
Ottawa

"As though the only difference between shit and sunshine is the speed at which they travel."

Exactly Kate !!

aka; There are none so blind as those that will not see.

aka; Whistling by the graveyard.

aka; Dumbing-Down the news.

no shit!?

Thanks Mark, I've updated.

Metaphor of the century!

HAHAHA..... !
Well done.

Several things.

One, the military must stay for more years, both in Iraq and Afghanistan. To protect the citizens who live there against the radical Islamic jihadists - who are not interested in legitimate governance but only in criminal control of the economy.

These jihadists are not even interested in Islamic ideology; they are only focused on economic power.

Two - the local citizens want a normal life; they don't want the violence of both ideology and repressiveness of Islamic fascism. They'll work with the West to achieve this.

The left in the West? They, like the jihadists, don't give a damn about the local people. It's all about power to them as well.

But this is Canada, where "Weather is the new News" (providing negotiations over a sports program theme song doesn't bump it down the lineup).

You forgot boobgate.

'shit and sunshine...and the speed at which they travel"..

oh dear me...how surpassingly acute and astute and right on the money...and memorable.....i'll use THAT myself and as usual not give any credit to the creator...

oh mebbe i'll mention SDA..

I don't kno about sonshine, butt when I gots to go, I go real fast

Sonshine has messed his drawers a few times!!

Another good article in today's National Post, "The Jihadist Revolt Against Bin Laden" -- recapitulates many points about the weaknesses inherent in totalitarian terrorist movements and al-Quaeda in particular. Quotable quote: 'My brother Osama, how much blood has been spilt? How many innocent people, children, elderly and women have been killed . . . in the name of al-Quaeda?'

As I have said here many times before, the enemy is here, not over there , where ever there is at the time. Until we shut the Hanoi Janes up that were responsible for prolonging the Viet Nam War and the killing of thousands of kids we will sucked into this new quagmire of their making. Anyone, media or individual, that gives hope to the enemy and endangers our guys is a traitor. The time for discussion is before and after, not during.

Why would the Afghans trust the Americans, or us for that matter, given the Americans history of quitting? We are seen in their eyes as one force, American, and the enemy knows from past experience that they can lose at home but still win. The enemy within is the real enemy. Think about it, if you were over there being shot at and your friends killed wouldn’t you be upset at verbal support given the enemy in your own Country.

This is now a political war, the same as Nam, with no touch areas that support the enemy for political reasons. Allowing Syria, Iran and northern Pakistan to supply and support our enemy insures failure. It also aids and abets the needless killing of our young men and women.

I support why we are there, but not the support given.

Ready, about turn, aim, fire.

It is absolutely disgusting that some Canadian politicians, women's groups and especially the media, continue to denounce our troops. Why ? So there can be more Amena horrors ?

["Witness Number Two," as she was known at the Iraqi High Tribunal, trembled from behind the beige curtain that kept her identity a secret from the Baghdad courtroom. With Saddam and his henchmen on trial for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity relating to the regime's eight-stage campaign of gas attacks, massacres and mass imprisonment against the Kurds, she spoke of the horrors she had endured. But Amena went a step further than other women who recounted their stories. Although the witness who had testified before her had strongly hinted that she had been sexually assaulted by prison guards during that campaign, Amena was the only woman to rebel against cultural stigma by stating outright to the stunned courtroom that she had been raped and beaten at age 14, in the Baathist regime's most infamous desert prison.] Macleans

http://www.macleans.ca/world/global/article.jsp?content=20080604_119407_119407

"One of the biggest problems with the Iraq War is that politics has frequently triumphed over truth". Michael Yon

If you wish to read and learn more about what's happening in Iraq with regards to the "Awakening" and its growing success throughout Iraq, pick up Michael Yon's book "Moment of Truth in Iraq". He's the ex-Green Beret journalist who's been embedded with US troops for several years in Iraq and has been in the midst of many combat operations and talked with many local Iraqi's all over Iraq.

The fact is Iraqi's are fed up with al Qaeda and their violence and are taking ownership over their communities and running these jihadist scum out. AlQaeda in Iraq is now finding fewer places to hide and operate out and as more and more Iraqi's shun them and expose them, al Qaeda's days are numbered.

Check out Micael's website too:

http://www.michaelyon-online.com/

Just think - this week in windowless home offices across the country, bloggers are IMing with each other to hash out yet another MSM conspiracy....

POsted by Michael Yon on his website:

An Open Offer to U.S. Senators

One of the biggest problems with the Iraq War is that politics has frequently triumphed over truth. For instance, we went into Iraq with shoddy intelligence (at best), no reconstruction plan, and perhaps half as many troops as were required. We refused to admit that an insurgency was growing, until the country collapsed into anarchy and civil war. Now the truth is that Iraq is showing real progress on many fronts: Al Qaeda is being defeated and violence is down and continuing to decrease. As a result, the militias have lost their reason for existence and are getting beaten back or co-opted. Shia, Sunni and Kurds are coming together -- although with various stresses -- under the national government. If progress continues at this rate, it is very possible that before 2008 is out, we can finally say "the war has ended." Yes, likely there still will be some American casualties, but if the violence continues to drop and the Iraqi government consolidates its gains, we will be able, in good conscience, to begin bringing more of our people home. I will be paying very close attention to the words of Lieutenant General Raymond Odierno, who is replacing General Petraeus as the overall commander in Iraq.

Whatever we do in Iraq from here forward, we must strive to make better decisions than those made between 2003 and 2006. And one way to achieve that is by making certain that our civilian leaders are fully informed. All three candidates for President are extremely intelligent, but that doesn't mean that all three are tracking the truth on the ground in Iraq. Anyone who wants to be President of the United States needs to see Iraq without the distorting lenses of the media or partisan politics. I would be honored to visit Iraq with Senator Obama, Senator Clinton, Senator McCain or any of their Senate colleagues.

I hereby offer to accompany any Senator to Iraq, whether they are pro-or anti-war, Democrat or Republican. I will make this offer personally to a few select Senators as well. Our conversations during the visit would be on- or off-record, as they wish. Touring Iraq with me, as well as briefings by U.S. officers and meetings with Iraqis, would provide an accurate and nuanced account of the progress and challenges ahead, so that the Senators might have a highly informed perspective on this most critical issue. Our civilian leaders need to make decisions based on the best information available. The only way to learn what is really going on in Iraq is to go there and listen to our ground commanders, who know what they are doing. Generals Petraeus and Odierno have years of experience in Iraq, and vast knowledge of our efforts there. But the young soldiers who have done multiple tours in Iraq also have unique and invaluable perspectives as well. These young soldiers have personally witnessed the trajectory of the war shift dramatically, and can articulate those changes in concrete and specific terms. It doesn’t matter if a soldier is only twenty-something. If he or she spent two or three years in the war, that person is likely to have valuable insights. The best way to understand what is really going on is to listen closely to a wide range of service members who have done multiple tours in Iraq. Some will be negative, some will be positive, but overall I am certain that the vast majority of multi-tour Iraq veterans will testify that there has been great progress, and now there is hope. Combat veterans don’t tolerate happy talk or wishful thinking. They’ll tell you the raw truth as they see it.

Whether any Senators take advantage of my offer, I do hope that the presidential candidates visit Iraq, not just for a photo opportunity, but to spend time with our commanders and combat veterans, who know the truth and are not afraid to speak it.