by Frank James
An example of just how much the conversation about Iraq has changed in the past year was on display today at a Defense Department briefing by Lieut. Col. David Kennedy who, by teleconference from Iraq, talked with stateside bloggers interested in military issues.
Kennedy, commander of the 2-3 Brigade Troops Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, didn't talk much about attacks, ambushes or improvised explosive devices.
Indeed, Kennedy said since his unit arrived in June, he hasn't been shot at once, a sign of how much violence has fallen which Bush Administration and U.S. military officials attribute to the military surge that started earlier this year. .
Instead, Kennedy talked so much about local-business creation that he sounded more like he could be a city-hall development official in just about any American city.
Kennedy said:
We're also seeing strong results with our economic development program. What we've found is just a small injection of capital into many of the small businesses in our AO (area of operations) has yielded immediate results in many of the shops and merchants. We're also beginning to see progress with some of our local councils well in the governance front, and they're forming subcommittees, attending training sessions and getting representation within the official GOI structure.
This is my second tour in this same AO; a previous tour I was a brigade transition team chief with the national police, and I'm amazed at the progress I've seen in this predominantly Sunni area that we work in.
As an illustration of the kind of microeconomic progress Kennedy is seeing in his area of responsibility, he cited the story of an Iraqi butcher who President Bush mentioned in a speech he gave in South Carolina last month.
The president had said the Iraqi butcher in the former insurgent stronghold of Arab Jabour had gone from selling one to two sheep a week to that many a day, a sure sign of progress as life attempted to return to normal.
Kennedy said things are going so well for that butcher that he's expanding his ambitions.
Here's an exchange Kennedy had with one of the bloggers:
COL. KENNEDY: I don't know if you're familiar with the butcher of Arab Jabour. He's the guy that President Bush mentioned in a speech a few, I guess, about a month ago down in South Carolina. And this guy -- I see him every week, and we gave him just a small microgrant, I think, $2,000. And he's completely rebuilt an entirely new shop next to his existing one. He's got a new butcher table, which we actually purchased for him over in a neighboring town -- (inaudible) -- trying to stimulate his shop as well, brought it over to him. So now, you know, his old rusty, filthy table, which he used to slaughter sheep and cows on -- he's got a brand new one.
But this guy also has a vision. I spent about a half hour with him on Wednesday, and his vision is to build a restaurant, and he wants to hire about 15 locals from there in Arab Jabour. So myself and the PRT team leader, we've made it one of our goals to eat dinner there before we go home this summer, so hopefully we can make that a reality.
Q If you could get us some pictures of that, Colonel, that would be spectacular, that circulation of money, and get the people liking the coalition. That would be tremendous.
COL. KENNEDY: Yeah, I'm sure we can follow up with that.
More talk about the positive changes led one of the bloggers to make this comment:
Q A quick follow-up on the one point that it's almost kind of amazing that we didn't spend much time even talking about the security situation when literally a year ago we would have only been focused on that...
He's right. A year ago, the discussion would have almost entirely been about the toll on U.S. troops and how Iraq appeared to be spiraling out of control.
One blogger wanted to see just how much violence directed at U.S. troops had fallen. Was it safe enough for U.S. troops to walk around like the Iraqis do, without helmets and flak jackets?
Q Colonel, Andrew Lubin again. Are you -- is your area pacified enough where you can go out without a flak and a helmet?
COL. KENNEDY: You probably could, but we don't. It's just, you know, who we are. We're -- shoot, we wear this stuff back in the rear at home station when we're training. It's just part of good military discipline. But -- you know, I have not been shot at while I've been here. So I would personally feel comfortable doing it, but we -- it's just not something that we do. You know, it is still -- a lethal enemy is still out there, and they still, you know, want to thwart our efforts to help the good people in Iraq. So we always have to maintain our vigilance and be on our guard.
Back to the butcher of Arab Jabour. According to Kennedy, he's not only selling more sheep now than he was when Bush talked about him last month, but business has improved so much he's moved up to selling cows as well.
Q Sir, the butcher you're talking about, is that the one President Bush said that in June he only sold one or two a month and now he's selling one or two a day? Sheep?
COL. KENNEDY: That's exactly right. As a matter of fact, I was -- talked with him, and he's now up to slaughtering cows, too.
Q Wow. Wow.
COL. KENNEDY: So he does sheep, he averages about five sheep a day, and then he does cows on Wednesdays and Fridays, also. So.
Q And you think that restaurant by this summer is a realistic goal?
COL. KENNEDY: Well, I think if we give him some assistance on the monetary side. I mean, this is a serious guy. He's a natural leader. He's older. You know, he's probably in his late 40s. He's a respected member within his tribe and within the community. And my sense with him is if -- you know, the money that we provide to him he's going to use wisely. So. Of course, we'll make him provide us a business model and make sure he gets the appropriate training, but yeah, I think that would be in the realm of the possible.
Q And what type of restaurant would it be? What would he make? What would he cook? I haven't eaten there. What's a popular dish?
COL. KENNEDY: His vision is to -- you know, to have 15 employees, where he has a grill, and he is slaughtering, you know, whether it be a sheep, a goat or a cow, and that's what's on the menu for that day.
Q Gotcha.
COL. KENNEDY: What's kind of funny is, right before he told me that, I was talking to another shopkeeper and he said, "You know what we really need in this area now that things are kind of settled down is a restaurant, a place for people to come together, for families to come together and just kind of relax and, you know, smoke and talk and be normal people." He's in tune with the citizens there in his AO.
No matter how one feels about the war, it really is a stunning turn of events that the butchery we're now talking about in Iraq is no longer of the sort which the dead terrrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi helped unleash.
Rather, it's the kind that a lot of Americans can relate too, the kind that involves grilled meats and that signals rising living standards. And hope.
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Comments
"SIX YEARS, YES SIX YEARS, LATER THE FIRST BARBECUE IN IRAQ SCHEDULED NEXT WEEK"
NOW THAT'S SUCCESS, THAT'S PROGRESS, THAT'S WORK IN PROGRESS. THAT'S WHAT THE STRATEGY WAS, THAT'S VICTORY, THAT'S HOW YOU DEAL WITH THOSE EVIL DOERS. SUCCESS ON THE GROUND, HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED.
IT'S NOT THE 125 IRAQI COMBAT BATTALLIONS WE PROMISED. OR WATER, ELECTRICITY, OR LIGHTS THROUGHOUT THE DAY. NO THE IRAQI LEADERSHIP KNOW THEY HAVE A GREAT DEAL OF WORK AHEAD OF THEM, OF COURSE THEY ARE A NATION OF SECULAR LAWS BECAUSE IRAQ IS THE CENTRAL FRONT ON THIS WAR ON TERRORISM.
SO WITH THAT IN MIND AMERICA. PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT I WILL CONTINUE TO CIRCUMVENT THE LAW, UNTIL HALLIBURTON CAN EXPLAIN WHY THEY ARE NOW RENDERING, HOLDING HOSTAGE, RAPING AND PILFERING AMERICANS.
SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET BACK TO YOU AFTER THE CONGRESSIONAL BREAK.
HEY WHERE IS DAVID SAFAVIAN - AND HOW IS PROCUREMENT GOING IN IRAQ?
PROCUREMENT, SLOW DOWN, BIG WORD, PRO CURE MENT.
MISSION ACCOMPLISH SANTA!
Posted by: Roger Morris | December 14, 2007 4:25 PM
"SIX YEARS, YES SIX YEARS, LATER THE FIRST BARBECUE IN IRAQ SCHEDULED NEXT WEEK"
NOW THAT'S SUCCESS, THAT'S PROGRESS, THAT'S WORK IN PROGRESS. THAT'S WHAT THE STRATEGY WAS, THAT'S VICTORY, THAT'S HOW YOU DEAL WITH THOSE EVIL DOERS. SUCCESS ON THE GROUND, HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED.
IT'S NOT THE 125 IRAQI COMBAT BATTALLIONS WE PROMISED. OR WATER, ELECTRICITY, OR LIGHTS THROUGHOUT THE DAY. NO THE IRAQI LEADERSHIP KNOW THEY HAVE A GREAT DEAL OF WORK AHEAD OF THEM, OF COURSE THEY ARE A NATION OF SECULAR LAWS BECAUSE IRAQ IS THE CENTRAL FRONT ON THIS WAR ON TERRORISM.
SO WITH THAT IN MIND AMERICA. PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT I WILL CONTINUE TO CIRCUMVENT THE LAW, UNTIL HALLIBURTON CAN EXPLAIN WHY THEY ARE NOW RENDERING, HOLDING HOSTAGE, RAPING AND PILFERING AMERICANS.
SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET BACK TO YOU AFTER THE CONGRESSIONAL BREAK.
HEY WHERE IS DAVID SAFAVIAN - AND HOW IS PROCUREMENT GOING IN IRAQ?
PROCUREMENT, SLOW DOWN, BIG WORD, PRO CURE MENT.
MISSION ACCOMPLISH SANTA!
Posted by: Roger Morris | December 14, 2007 4:28 PM
Unless the Maliki government steps up and does something immediately this progress won't mean anything. Power is increasingly in the hands of local warlords and militias. Iraq will go the way of Somalia, a failed state in a nearly constant state of low level warfare for decades.
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fg-splinter10dec10,1,5190318.story?coll=la-headlines-frontpage&track=crosspromo
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article3218042.ece
Posted by: AJF | December 14, 2007 4:48 PM
This should bring out all of the rightwing lunitic fringe "mission accomplished" members again.
We're stuck in Iraq with 160,000 troops and countless Blackwater hired killers...I mean personal security guards...who are doing 15 month tours, meanwhile Iraq has no military or no government to speak of 5 years after the Republicans pre-emptivly invaded.
The military is broken and will have to start withdrawing in the coming months because they've been over-extended by the Republican Draftdodger in Chief and this will put us right back to where we started from in 2003...and round and round we go, "mission accomplished" is no more "accomplished" than when the dumbass Republicans in the White House started this stupid war in 2003.. but they have "accomplished" getting tens of thousands of Americans and Iraqi's killed and wasting billions upon billions of our money.
Posted by: John E | December 14, 2007 5:19 PM
Kennedy said, [not teddy] 'since his unit arrived in June, he hasn't been shot at once!'
Looks like you defeatist libs went fishing in the wrong pond.
Thank-you President Bush for your resolve and leadership during these times of terrorism and liberal melt downs.
If B.J. Clinton had your stones, there would never have been 9/11.
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | December 14, 2007 5:51 PM
We are there for a long long long time thanks to GWB. Now is the time for Iraq to 'stand up'!
Thing is, when they stand up and we leave, will we like what 'stands up'?
BTW, America has become a financial zombie due to this ill-begotten effort on the part of GWB.
Look out, the 'hard rain' is coming. Then we will understand what common Americans sacrificed for the 'effort'.
Some words from our very own bard, like it or not;
Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son?
Oh, where have you been, my darling young one?
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains,
I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways,
I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests,
I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans,
I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard,
And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard,
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
Posted by: C.Morris | December 14, 2007 7:33 PM
Great news from Iraq means the left goes into meltdown mode, as noticed above from posts made by Roger Morris, AJF and, of course, general JohnE.
Just spewing out more talking points from The Dailykids and Moveon.suicide watch.
When America wins, the lefty loons crave defeat.
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | December 14, 2007 8:03 PM
Somehow I think Frank had to shower after writing a few good words about the reality taking place in Iraq -- and that is things are going well and that Harry "Las Vegas Land Baron" Reid was a traitor when he said the war is lost, we have been defeated.
Posted by: John D | December 14, 2007 8:31 PM
Come on guys, accept good news when it occurs. It's not the end but it may be the beginning of the end. And for those opposed to the war, good news means all the sooner that the troops will come home. And that, of course, is good news also for those who have supported the troops in their mission. For the naysayers, surely you would not prefer that America loses. As Confucius said, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." It's nice to see those steps taking place. Bravo Colonel Kennedy.
Posted by: goodfield | December 14, 2007 9:42 PM
Neither John D nor Paulo have a response to the legitimate concerns about the failure of the Iraqi government and the long term implications for anything approaching success in Iraq, so they fall back on their ignorant attacks that those who disagree with them are are "traitors". They themselves don't believe in any ideals that define America, they only believe in partisanship, fear and hate. They stand for torture, killing, and the rule of a man over the rule of law. They aren't Americans. They are Republicans only. They daily betray the very foundations of this nation.
Posted by: AJF | December 14, 2007 9:56 PM
God Bless Our Troops for staying strong and fighting the good fight in Iraq these past 4-1/2 years. And God Bless the President for staying strong in the face of domestic and international adversary.
I think at this point that criticizing the Democrats for the various "defeatist" statements they've made over the past few years would be pointless. The voters will remember. Let's just hope that with the tide turning in this war that all Americans can stand by our troops and our President in support on the road to Victory over the enemy.
Posted by: Ben R. | December 14, 2007 10:10 PM
This should bring out all of the rightwing lunitic fringe "mission accomplished" members again.
Posted by: John E | December 14, 2007 5:19 PM
Great news from Iraq means the left goes into meltdown mode, as noticed above from posts made by Roger Morris, AJF and, of course, general JohnE.
When America wins, the lefty loons crave defeat.
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | December 14, 2007 8:03 PM
Somehow I think Frank had to shower after writing a few good words about the reality taking place in Iraq -- and that is things are going well.
Posted by: John D | December 14, 2007 8:31 PM
-------------------------
Yep, just as I predicted.
Paulo gets the bozo botton award for being the first rightwing lunitic fringer to raise his hand and claim "mission accomplished" in Iraq this time, followed closely by Little Johnny TradeRag Cobyboy.
I guess that means we can bring our troops home from Iraq now that we've "won", huh?
You two stooges always manage to make me laugh, thanks.
Posted by: John E | December 14, 2007 10:40 PM
JohnE
Thanks for your on going service in Iraq, say hello to Dale Peter's son for us and keep the basement clean for your mommy.
Paulo
Posted by: Paulo | December 14, 2007 11:13 PM
Oh Demented Johnny E., there is no greater stooge than perpetually unemployed you. Why does the Left hate it when good news comes from Iraq?
Goodfield, the Left does want defeat for the U.S. They hate the U.S., they hate Bush and Cheney and they hate the troops. That's why Hollywood gives us movies like Redacted, which bombed by the way. Funny, all the Hollywood anti-Iraq, anti-U.S. movies bombed.
AJF, yes, the government situation in Iraq has a ways to go yet, perhaps even a long ways to go. But different factions are beginning to work together and they have been working with us. The political solutions always take the longest. But the country is stabilizing.
Here are some questions for you Loons:
1. Do you want the U.S. to succeed in Iraq?
2. Do you want the Iraqi people and government leaders to come together?
3. Will you be grateful if Iraq succeeds?
4. Will you be angry and in denial if Iraq succeeds?
5. Will you recognize good news if the U.S. succeeds in Iraq?
Posted by: John D | December 15, 2007 10:14 AM
Oh Demented Johnny E., there is no greater stooge than perpetually unemployed you. Why does the Left hate it when good news comes from Iraq?
Goodfield, the Left does want defeat for the U.S. They hate the U.S., they hate Bush and Cheney and they hate the troops. That's why Hollywood gives us movies like Redacted, which bombed by the way. Funny, all the Hollywood anti-Iraq, anti-U.S. movies bombed.
AJF, yes, the government situation in Iraq has a ways to go yet, perhaps even a long ways to go. But different factions are beginning to work together and they have been working with us. The political solutions always take the longest. But the country is stabilizing.
Here are some questions for you Loons:
1. Do you want the U.S. to succeed in Iraq?
2. Do you want the Iraqi people and government leaders to come together?
3. Will you be grateful if Iraq succeeds?
4. Will you be angry and in denial if Iraq succeeds?
5. Will you recognize good news if the U.S. succeeds in Iraq?
Posted by: John D | December 15, 2007 11:07 AM
The "Mission" was fully accomplished in Iraq, the very day we captured Saddam Hussein. Admittedly, it looked dicey there for a few months when Saddam was on the run. But Bush got his man.
By definition we won the War in Iraq, that very day.
Killing Zarcawi, Uday and Qusay were icing on the cake.
The "mop-up" for the last couple years since, has been no different than the reconstruction of Post-War Germany, and just as problematic.
Amazingly, people seem to forget that Nazi Wolfgangs were picking off American GIs for years after the end of the War in May of 1945. The situation there was far more precarious for US Soldiers than Iraq has been for since 2003.
Posted by: Eric Dondero | December 15, 2007 11:21 AM
"I see him every week, and we gave him just a small microgrant, I think, $2,000."
Gee, maybe one day W will actually help small businesses in America. When will W start using American money for the Iraqi's health insurance coverage? Can't be far behind. But I forget, he and is Reich-Wing partner in crime don't have oil interests in America.
One right-wing planted story in a country that still doesn't have anything close to political stability.
What bunch of hog-wash.
And even if it does "improve", the ends will never justify the means.
Posted by: David J | December 15, 2007 12:20 PM
Kennedy said, "since his unit arrived in June, he hasn't been shot at once!"
Maybe if he left the Green Zone and went out into the hinterlands he'd be saying something else. But then, since most of the ethnic cleansing in Bagdad and its surrounding countryside is complete, there's little reason for the Shiittes and Sunnis to be shooting at each other since they're no longer around each other.
Posted by: BC | December 15, 2007 3:08 PM
GALLUP POLL = Iraq still sucks:
Well, in spite of what the Wingnut (Fox, Rush etc) punditocracy would have you believe, American opinions on almost all aspects of the Iraq situation have remained largely unchanged. There has been some moderating improvement in attitudes, but the shifts are very small, and nowhere near what has been advertised. And, interestingly, most shifts appear to be in the Republican-leaning independents, who have a natural tendency to cluelessness.
-Who will do a better job with Iraq?
"Thinking now about the political parties: Do you think the Republican Party or the Democratic Party would do a better job of dealing with each of the following issues and problems? How about the situation in Iraq?"
11/30-12/2 Results:
Republicans - 38%
Democrats - 48%
-Was the war a mistake?
"In view of the developments since we first sent our troops to Iraq, do you think the United States made a mistake in sending troops to Iraq, or not?"
War a mistake - 58%
War not a mistake - 39%
-Is "the surge" working?
"Based on what you have heard or read about the surge of U.S. troops in Iraq that began earlier this year, do you think the increase in the number of U.S. troops in Iraq is making the situation there better, not making much difference, or is it making the situation there worse?"
Better - 40%
Not Much Difference - 39%
Worse - 20%
-How is the US doing in Iraq?
"In general, how would you say things are going for the U.S. in Iraq: very well, moderately well, moderately badly, or very badly?"
Very Well - 8%
Moderately Well - 35%
Moderately Badly - 43%
Very Badly - 21%
-Will the US "win" in Iraq? (whatever that means).
"Which comes closer to your view about the war in Iraq? You think the U.S. will definitely win the war in Iraq. You think the U.S. will probably win the war in Iraq. You think the U.S. can win the war in Iraq, but you don't think it will win. OR, You do not think the U.S. can win the war in Iraq."
Definitely Win - 15%
Probably Win - 22%
Can Win,But Won't - 20%
Cannot Win - 37%
-How long do we stay in Iraq?
"If you had to choose, which do you think is better for the U.S.: to keep a significant number of troops in Iraq until the situation there gets better, even if that takes many years, or to set a timetable for removing troops from Iraq and to stick to that timetable regardless of what is going on in Iraq at the time?"
Stay Until Situation Gets Better: 38%
Stick to a Withdrawal Timetable: 59%
- How much confidence do you have in the current Iraqi government?
"How much confidence do you have in the Iraqi government to meet the goals the United States has laid out for Iraq: a great deal, a fair amount, not much, or none at all"
A Great Deal - 2%
A Fair Amount - 30%
Not Much - 42%
None at All - 24%
There it is, despite recent rightwing spin most Americans realize that Iraq is and has been a great big clusterfreak, thanks again Republicans!
Posted by: Jimmy Venom | December 15, 2007 3:30 PM
* * * * *
"Amazingly, people seem to forget that Nazi Wolfgangs were picking off American GIs for years after the end of the War in May of 1945. The situation there was far more precarious for US Soldiers than Iraq has been for since 2003."
Posted by: Eric Dondero | December 15, 2007 11:21 AM
Bulls**t!!!!!
According to one History professor, a Pentagon report stated that 42 American soldiers were "killed as a result of enemy action" between June and December 1945, and that three more were killed in 1946. Those numbers include all intentional killings and accidental deaths. Various sources supply slightly different numbers, but all agree the post-war fatalities in Germany as a result of "Werewolves" were minor in comparison to the thousands of soldiers we have lost since "mission accomplished" was declared in Iraq. [There might have been a couple guys named Wolfgang involved too, but that was their first name, not the name of the insurgent group.]
We had more problems in post-war Germany with fraternization than violence. The Germans were all too eager to start putting their country back together, and so they cooperated with us until it hurt. Unlike the Iraqis, the Germans realized that surviving hunger and freezing weather in their bombed-out country depended upon cooperating with us. I shouldn't have to tell you how different that is from what is going on in Iraq. Iraqis have been more eager to shoot at us and each other than they ever have been willing to do the same to Saddam or his lieutenants. Their government went on vacation while our young men and women suffer. Even now, they can’t bring themselves to come to some peaceful, political solution to the strife.
There is simply no valid comparison between post-war Germany and post-war Iraq (if, indeed, Iraq is in a post-war phase). You've been listening to the pathetically false and misleading rhetoric of the neo-con talking heads in government (whose initials are C.R. and D.R.). Do yourself a favor and start thinking for yourself.
Posted by: John W. | December 16, 2007 1:52 AM
Iraq is the same as today, as yesterday;and, sadly, as in the foreseable future. People can spin it all they want. . .nothing has changed. Nothing will change until Political reconciliation.
The bombers will still come in by bikes and donkeys. The Sunni and Shiite will still continue their cleansing. And the Iraqi Govt. will still be the same: doing absolutely nothing!
Posted by: Lou | December 16, 2007 10:00 AM