MR.P: HELLO. Being an INDEPENDENT with no 'dog' in this hunt, party wise, here's this old man's thoughts on the 'surge':
FIRST, what MOST 'call' the 'surge' HAS worked. However, one must look to see just EXACTLY what the 'surge' WAS.
If you watched the C-Span hearings of ALL the MAJOR GENERALS the past year like this old man has, you would have seen a number of things stated by them. Among them --
(1) We DID INCREASE troop numbers by about 30,000.
(2) There was MASSIVE 'ethnic' cleansing within Iraq by Iraqis of ALL types for a few YEARS. Over such time, this basically left NEIGHBORHOODS of LIKE minded folks. As is SHIITES together and SUNNIS together in various areas and cities. SEGREGATION to stay ALIVE. Like ANY human would do.
(3) AL-SADR told HIS militia followers to 'stand down' for the last year or so.
(4) The PEOPLE of Iraq and their 'local' leaders FINALLY got MORE tired of AL-Qaeda killing their citizens than of US being IN THEIR country. Priorities.
(5) WE got 'smart' and decided to PAY OFF with HUGE amounts of MONEY, the LEADERS of ALL types of Iraqi 'sects'. To NOT kill OUR troops and in RETURN, WE would do the DIRTY WORK of KILLING Al-Aqaeda FOR them if THEY would just TELL US where they were.
(6) PARTS of Baghdad are LITERALLY blocked off and apart. With HIGH, CONCRETE walls that run the LENGTH and BREADTH of the city. At each OPEN END of said walls, are EITHER U.S. Checkpoints OR Iraqi checkpoints. Thus, NO one gets IN or gets OUT of said 'segregated' and WALLED OFF areas without this first happening.
(7) During the first few YEARS of this war, about 4-5 MILLION folks FLED from Iraq. MOST were the BEST and BRIGHTEST and EDUCATED who RAN the day to day OPERATIONS of Iraq before they fled for their very lives.
(8) LASTLY & MOST IMPORTANTLY: After OUR president, Mr. Bush, FINALLY figured out after a FEW YEARS of doing the same old same old, General Patreus came up with HIS plan.
NOTE: It was a NEW 'STRATEGY'. He and OTHER Generals on C-span publicly stated that it was NOT the 30,000 troops that DID the trick, per se. They HELPED but what REALLY worked was they CHANGED TACTICS.
Simply put, INSTEAD of OUR BELOVED troops making 'rounds' in the cities and returning to BASES outside of the inner cities later, General Patreus KEPT certain numbers of U.S. Troops WITH the Iraqi troops in cities 24/7!! THIS, as the GENERALS I watched on C-Span REPEATED, made the BIG difference!
For NOW, those IRAQIS who fought during the DAY WITH US BEFORE, but then later on at NIGHT KILLED us were now FORCED to HAVE AMERICAN soldiers WITH THEM 24/7! BYE BYE the OPPORTUNITY to KILL U.S. Soldiers! NEW TACTICS!! SMART tactics! YEARS too LATE but better LATE than NEVER, right? SIGH.
ALSO, and the GENERALS stressed THIS over and over again, once the Iraqi CITIZENS in these cities and areas, SAW the the U.S. troops were WITH their Iraqi troops 24/7, they then were ABLE TO 'squeal' on WHO the 'terrorists' were because they NOW KNEW that THEY would have OUR troops WITH THEM 24/7!
BEFORE this NEW tactical change, the Iraqi citizens dared NOT to speak up or THEY or their FAMILY would be soon DEAD by said terrorists.
So, the conclude, the GENERALS on C-SPAN of OUR military said it was TACTICAL CHANGES MADE by General Patreus that REALLY made the so called 'surge' WORK!!
AMEN that it did, I say! I ONLY WISH that it had NOT taken OUR president and OUR Secretary Of Defense, YEARS to figure out they needed to TRY something NEW after ALL the DEAD and MAIMED soldiers and HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars spent! GRRR. SIGH.
I leave you with this, kind soul - I say to EACH their own in America .... It's a FREE country .... I guess this old DUMB man only wishes that EACH 'side' of the debate would NOT be SO entrenched in THEIR views that it 'colorizes' ALL issues with ONLY regard to THEIR POLITICAL PARTIES.
EACH side, to THIS DUMB old geezer, has NO MONOPOLY on EITHER "GENIUS" or "STUPIDITY", my friend.
My BEST to you and yours and many blessings always,
ADDENDUM: To THIS old man, the WAY this war was 'managed' is comparable to MY car MECHANIC if I had taken it to him to see what was WRONG with it.
And, after the TENTH time said mechanic had WORKED on it and it STILL did NOT run correctly, he FINALLY tried a NEW thing and it WORKED!
Then, to have said mechanic CROW to me about how "GOOD" my car was NOW running would NOT be a RINGING ENDORSEMENT of HIS credentials and abilities in THIS old man's views.
MR.P: HELLO again, and THANKS for your PM/Private Message. MUCH appreciated.
This old man always 'wonders' why folks on the LEFT OR on the RIGHT side of politics, seem to almost always take whatever THEIR side puts out for thoughts, words, comments, ideas, etc.?
When I speak in DETAIL and LENGTH with DEMS and or REPUBS like I posted above, I am TRULY AMAZED at how BOTH sides of folks RARELY, if ever, KNOW ALL the above DETAILS.
Yet, they go around talking the 'talking points' each side says on T.V. en masse.
No one seems to LOOK INTO the TRUTH and the DETAILS and the FACTS about much of anything anymore. I HUMBLY ask BOTH sides, WHY NOT? SIGH. GRRR.
I don't want ANY political party speaking for ME. NEITHER party. For, to ME, there is BRILLIANCE AND STUPIDITY on BOTH sides.
I can't, for the LIFE of me KIND SOUL, understand how EACH side can just BELIEVE without FACT or LOOKING INTO FACTS, what THEIR side leaders put out?
I watch Obama and McCain FLIP FLOP more often than MY PANCAKES I make in my kitchen!! SIGH. GRRR.
BOTH sides LIE to get ELECTED. And PEOPLE on BOTH sides BELIEVE it ALL in LOCK STEP. WHY? WHY, I MOST humbly and honestly ask??? SIGH.
We've STOPPED being INDIVIDUALS, which is what OUR AMERICA was first FOUNDED on!
WE've become "GROUPS". TWO of them. RED vs. BLUE. SO sad. SUCH a WASTE of TRUE INDIVIDUALISM.
HECK, my friend, WATCH the FOX news (REPUBS) or MSNBC new (DEMS) and you can't find folks who ALL AGREE on much of anything! I watch the fox business channel and the 'experts'? on their all YELL at each other about WHICH STOCK to buy???? UNbelievable!
HALF the REPUBS I know in MY area do NOT agree with each other! OTHER REUPBS!
Yet, BOTH the DEMS AND the REPUBS all get on t.v. and AGREE. For the 'party'? GIVE ME A BREAK!
NEITHER side will ADMIT that folks on THEIR side of the debate are NOT the BEST thing we can get. It's all about BLAMING the OTHER side.
It just makes this INDEPENDENT old man wanna' ALMOST give up .... SIGH.
BLESSINGS to you and yours, KIND SOUL, on this SUNDAY of days.
Many Blogstream members are there
already! Quotes from members: "It's like blog lite!" -- "I like the instant
gratification!" -- "Stop spectating, get in the game!"
If you have not joined in, you are really missing out!
FIRST, what MOST 'call' the 'surge' HAS worked. However, one must look to see just EXACTLY what the 'surge' WAS.
If you watched the C-Span hearings of ALL the MAJOR GENERALS the past year like this old man has, you would have seen a number of things stated by them. Among them --
(1) We DID INCREASE troop numbers by about 30,000.
(2) There was MASSIVE 'ethnic' cleansing within Iraq by Iraqis of ALL types for a few YEARS. Over such time, this basically left NEIGHBORHOODS of LIKE minded folks. As is SHIITES together and SUNNIS together in various areas and cities. SEGREGATION to stay ALIVE. Like ANY human would do.
(3) AL-SADR told HIS militia followers to 'stand down' for the last year or so.
(4) The PEOPLE of Iraq and their 'local' leaders FINALLY got MORE tired of AL-Qaeda killing their citizens than of US being IN THEIR country. Priorities.
(5) WE got 'smart' and decided to PAY OFF with HUGE amounts of MONEY, the LEADERS of ALL types of Iraqi 'sects'. To NOT kill OUR troops and in RETURN, WE would do the DIRTY WORK of KILLING Al-Aqaeda FOR them if THEY would just TELL US where they were.
(6) PARTS of Baghdad are LITERALLY blocked off and apart. With HIGH, CONCRETE walls that run the LENGTH and BREADTH of the city. At each OPEN END of said walls, are EITHER U.S. Checkpoints OR Iraqi checkpoints. Thus, NO one gets IN or gets OUT of said 'segregated' and WALLED OFF areas without this first happening.
(7) During the first few YEARS of this war, about 4-5 MILLION folks FLED from Iraq. MOST were the BEST and BRIGHTEST and EDUCATED who RAN the day to day OPERATIONS of Iraq before they fled for their very lives.
(8) LASTLY & MOST IMPORTANTLY: After OUR president, Mr. Bush, FINALLY figured out after a FEW YEARS of doing the same old same old, General Patreus came up with HIS plan.
NOTE: It was a NEW 'STRATEGY'. He and OTHER Generals on C-span publicly stated that it was NOT the 30,000 troops that DID the trick, per se. They HELPED but what REALLY worked was they CHANGED TACTICS.
Simply put, INSTEAD of OUR BELOVED troops making 'rounds' in the cities and returning to BASES outside of the inner cities later, General Patreus KEPT certain numbers of U.S. Troops WITH the Iraqi troops in cities 24/7!! THIS, as the GENERALS I watched on C-Span REPEATED, made the BIG difference!
For NOW, those IRAQIS who fought during the DAY WITH US BEFORE, but then later on at NIGHT KILLED us were now FORCED to HAVE AMERICAN soldiers WITH THEM 24/7! BYE BYE the OPPORTUNITY to KILL U.S. Soldiers! NEW TACTICS!! SMART tactics! YEARS too LATE but better LATE than NEVER, right? SIGH.
ALSO, and the GENERALS stressed THIS over and over again, once the Iraqi CITIZENS in these cities and areas, SAW the the U.S. troops were WITH their Iraqi troops 24/7, they then were ABLE TO 'squeal' on WHO the 'terrorists' were because they NOW KNEW that THEY would have OUR troops WITH THEM 24/7!
BEFORE this NEW tactical change, the Iraqi citizens dared NOT to speak up or THEY or their FAMILY would be soon DEAD by said terrorists.
So, the conclude, the GENERALS on C-SPAN of OUR military said it was TACTICAL CHANGES MADE by General Patreus that REALLY made the so called 'surge' WORK!!
AMEN that it did, I say! I ONLY WISH that it had NOT taken OUR president and OUR Secretary Of Defense, YEARS to figure out they needed to TRY something NEW after ALL the DEAD and MAIMED soldiers and HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars spent! GRRR. SIGH.
I leave you with this, kind soul - I say to EACH their own in America .... It's a FREE country .... I guess this old DUMB man only wishes that EACH 'side' of the debate would NOT be SO entrenched in THEIR views that it 'colorizes' ALL issues with ONLY regard to THEIR POLITICAL PARTIES.
EACH side, to THIS DUMB old geezer, has NO MONOPOLY on EITHER "GENIUS" or "STUPIDITY", my friend.
My BEST to you and yours and many blessings always,
INDEPENDENTLY yours, TallPockets.
And, after the TENTH time said mechanic had WORKED on it and it STILL did NOT run correctly, he FINALLY tried a NEW thing and it WORKED!
Then, to have said mechanic CROW to me about how "GOOD" my car was NOW running would NOT be a RINGING ENDORSEMENT of HIS credentials and abilities in THIS old man's views.
Make some sense?
My BEST again,
TallPockets.
This old man always 'wonders' why folks on the LEFT OR on the RIGHT side of politics, seem to almost always take whatever THEIR side puts out for thoughts, words, comments, ideas, etc.?
When I speak in DETAIL and LENGTH with DEMS and or REPUBS like I posted above, I am TRULY AMAZED at how BOTH sides of folks RARELY, if ever, KNOW ALL the above DETAILS.
Yet, they go around talking the 'talking points' each side says on T.V. en masse.
No one seems to LOOK INTO the TRUTH and the DETAILS and the FACTS about much of anything anymore. I HUMBLY ask BOTH sides, WHY NOT? SIGH. GRRR.
I don't want ANY political party speaking for ME. NEITHER party. For, to ME, there is BRILLIANCE AND STUPIDITY on BOTH sides.
I can't, for the LIFE of me KIND SOUL, understand how EACH side can just BELIEVE without FACT or LOOKING INTO FACTS, what THEIR side leaders put out?
I watch Obama and McCain FLIP FLOP more often than MY PANCAKES I make in my kitchen!! SIGH. GRRR.
BOTH sides LIE to get ELECTED. And PEOPLE on BOTH sides BELIEVE it ALL in LOCK STEP. WHY? WHY, I MOST humbly and honestly ask??? SIGH.
We've STOPPED being INDIVIDUALS, which is what OUR AMERICA was first FOUNDED on!
WE've become "GROUPS". TWO of them. RED vs. BLUE. SO sad. SUCH a WASTE of TRUE INDIVIDUALISM.
HECK, my friend, WATCH the FOX news (REPUBS) or MSNBC new (DEMS) and you can't find folks who ALL AGREE on much of anything! I watch the fox business channel and the 'experts'? on their all YELL at each other about WHICH STOCK to buy???? UNbelievable!
HALF the REPUBS I know in MY area do NOT agree with each other! OTHER REUPBS!
Yet, BOTH the DEMS AND the REPUBS all get on t.v. and AGREE. For the 'party'? GIVE ME A BREAK!
NEITHER side will ADMIT that folks on THEIR side of the debate are NOT the BEST thing we can get. It's all about BLAMING the OTHER side.
It just makes this INDEPENDENT old man wanna' ALMOST give up .... SIGH.
BLESSINGS to you and yours, KIND SOUL, on this SUNDAY of days.
My BEST,
TallPockets.