tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post111963623304906104..comments2024-03-06T03:15:58.539-05:00Comments on <b>THE NEW REFORM CLUB</b>: Pressing Ahead in IraqHunter Bakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14961831404331998743noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119888800651229102005-06-27T12:13:00.000-04:002005-06-27T12:13:00.000-04:00You're right. We should all be united in our oppos...You're right. We should all be united in our opposition to this unjust war. It makes us look bad for half of Americans to support it. That's what you meant, right? Oh, you want us all united on <I>your</I> side? Fancy that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119719462031321392005-06-25T13:11:00.000-04:002005-06-25T13:11:00.000-04:00What I mean, Mr. Elliott, is that our internal dis...What I mean, Mr. Elliott, is that our internal dissension gives hope to foreign insurgents and others that we will not be capable of summoning the will to follow through on our threats. If the United States is unified on foreign policy, then we are essentially capable of doing whatever we deem appropriate. But if we are defeated from within (see Vietnam), then we are doomed to failure and disgrace.Hunter Bakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14961831404331998743noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119644429859751992005-06-24T16:20:00.000-04:002005-06-24T16:20:00.000-04:00I may be a pinko commie liberal Democrat, but I di...I may be a pinko commie liberal Democrat, but I did devote four years of study to war, counter-terrorism, nation building, and ethnic conflict resolution (admittedly, I focused my studies on the Balkans, but the lessons are broad enough to encompass other areas). I am not a "cut our losses and run" Democrat. I believe that we falsely and unnecessarily went to war, but, since we can't turn back the clock, we owe it to the Iraqis to be in there for the duration.<BR/><BR/>This is a subject near and dear to my heart, so I'm bound to be rather vocal.James F. Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16747033407956667363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119640775296631802005-06-24T15:19:00.000-04:002005-06-24T15:19:00.000-04:00Mr. Elliott, I like your analysis of the current m...Mr. Elliott, I like your analysis of the current military situation on the ground, and I think it provides additional evidence that an aggressive strategy is urgently needed. Seeing the present situation as a Baathist insurgency, almost certainly pre-planned during the Saddam Hussein era, appears to me to be a fruitful line of investigation. Thanks for the comment.S. T. Karnickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05971214612730402709noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119637820055474702005-06-24T14:30:00.000-04:002005-06-24T14:30:00.000-04:00"Reading this just makes me consider how much stro..."Reading this just makes me consider how much stronger our hand would be in the Middle East if our own press and left-leaning elites were not constantly driving up the cost of maintaining support in the U.S. If we were united, a threat of force to Syria would be far more credible."<BR/><BR/>Explain this in a way that makes actual sense. How are you in any way able to support this statement on a factual basis?James F. Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16747033407956667363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119637750881951892005-06-24T14:29:00.000-04:002005-06-24T14:29:00.000-04:00I don't get the insistence of focus on "foreign ji...I don't get the insistence of focus on "foreign jihadists." Who can possibly look at the coordinated and effective nature of the insurgency and say with a straight face that it wasn't planned well before the war began? Saddam Hussein and the Baathists had to have seen way back in 1993 that if the U.S. wanted to take Baghdad, they were going to take Baghdad.<BR/><BR/>I submit as exhibit A the recent ammo dump and bunker complex find. A massive stockpile of weapons and faciltiies, just conveniently lending itself perfectly to the needs of an insurgency? No. The insurgency is planned and highly coordinated. Ms. Lerner is a tad off-the-mark when she focuses on suicide bombings. Improvised explosive devices are the most common cause of fatalities to coalition forces (over 20 American soldiers this week alone). IEDs are textbook guerilla warfare. I am also rather astonished that she doesn't make a fairly obvious connection: Syria is run by the Baath party. The focus on jihadists (terrorists) ignores Syria's support as further evidence of a highly coordinated insurgency.<BR/><BR/>Are there terrorists, the "jihadists" in Iraq? Most certainly. But let's not ignore the broader nature of the insurgency.<BR/><BR/>I do agree with Ms. Lerner's "shock and awe" evaluation, though. There is not a force in this world that can withstand American military dominance of the battlespace. It is not suicide bombers we should be focusing on, however. Suicide bombing is a tactic of nationalistic insurgencies, which require both fanatical devotion and terror tactics to succeed. The Iraqi insurgency is based around a coordinated, experienced military core. They don't need suicide bombers to continue, but they do need men and materiel, which Syria <BR/>is providing, either willfully or by turning a blind eye.James F. Elliotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16747033407956667363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8776899.post-1119636621532342812005-06-24T14:10:00.000-04:002005-06-24T14:10:00.000-04:00Reading this just makes me consider how much stron...Reading this just makes me consider how much stronger our hand would be in the Middle East if our own press and left-leaning elites were not constantly driving up the cost of maintaining support in the U.S. If we were united, a threat of force to Syria would be far more credible.Hunter Bakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14961831404331998743noreply@blogger.com