Charting Progress
November 14th, 2003 - 12:47 am
Check out this chart from The New York Times op-ed page, and you’ll see that progress in Iraq is, well, progressing nicely overall.
The only bit of really bad news, is that our own troops losses are slowly mounting — and it doesn’t yet include results for November such as our downed helicopter.
Check back in six months. If that line isn’t trending downward by then, then we either have too few troops, or a new Lebanon on our hands.
The worrisome thing is the correlation between the reduction in troops and the increase in attacks. Which begs the question: would more troops result in fewer attacks?
I think so.
Or would more troops mean more targets to kill?
Think about it.
No, having more troops wouldn’t make more targets. The Baathists probably are already at their maximum capacity for terrorism. You think they aren’t attacking more because their aren’t enough targets? That’s crazy.
We need more troops in Iraq so we can actually get the country in order so we can get out of a functioning Iraq faster.
Troops, equipment, infrastructure, self-government and money will not secure Iraq.
Those elements can contribute to the one thing that will peacefully stabilize the country.
The incentive for Iraq’s people to suffer the effects of stopping the violence traditionally used to maintain power has not yet reached critical mass and remains uncoupled with the ability to do so.
Unless and until an overwhelming coherent incentive for a benevolent non-violent and peaceful society develops, Iraq will remain by the west
Some additional categories that need to be there:
Number of Iraqi women raped by Saddam’s sons: Zero
Number of Iraqis “disappeared” by the Baathists.
Et cetera.
Oh well, at least there is some indication in the Times that things are getting better.
What’s with these artificial deadlines? Why six months? Why should we think there will ever be an end to the necessary task of fighting evil? And if the evil-doers keep coming to our guns in Iraq, GOOD! The casualties we are taking are goddam trivial in the scheme of things. Cowboy-UP people! Let’s keep kicking ass over there, and let’s keep getting better at kicking said ass.
Sac-re-licious
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