|
|
|||
|
|||
|
|
Closing a Chapter of History in Iraq Charles R. Smith Tet-like Offensive in U.S. Media Spin American election politics and the media spinners are responsible for recent increased U.S. casualties in Iraq. The insurgent forces, taking note of U.S. opposition to the war and their own increased losses against Iraqi army troops, have concentrated their attacks against Americans. This trend is not a new thing. The famed Tet offensive during the Vietnam War was an election offensive. Democracies have elections, and the free exchange of ideas often results in the deadly game of killing for votes. The recent Iraq attacks have had results similar to the Vietnam Tet offensive. The U.S. spin media at home is pushing its liberal agenda by reported even the most minor incidents while ignoring the overwhelming evidence of a peaceful Iraq. Today's media spin is a fractured Iraq plunging into civil war, with U.S. troops between the warring factions. The reality is that to have a civil war one must have two evenly matched sides. This is simply not the case in Iraq. The Kurds and the Shia make up 80 percent of the Iraqi population. The Sunni faction, former Saddam supporters, makes up the minority. The ex-Saddam gang is getting beaten. The losses have had consequences. It is no secret that over a million Sunni Muslims have left Iraq. The numbers show that this game won't last long. The insurgent and foreign terror brigades are losing so badly against Kurd and Shia forces that they have resorted to attacking U.S. troops in an effort to influence the American elections. The problem with this tactic is that the insurgents are likely to lose more soldiers against the heavily armed Americans, further thinning their ranks. Story Continues Below
Kurds' Success The key point here is the success of the Kurds. You won't hear about the Kurds in the press because good news has little economic benefit to attention-hungry media machines. The Kurdish region north of Baghdad is now a popular vacation spot and very successful economically. The Iraqi Kurds are proud that they can make money and live without throwing bombs or having daily shootouts. The reason for the success in Kurd territory has its roots in Allied assistance. The U.S. and U.K. flew numerous air cover missions over northern Iraq as part of a peacekeeping effort during the 1990s. The Kurds were able to take advantage of the time without Saddam's thugs and worked their way through local tribal differences to form a free and peaceful Iraq. The similarity to Tet 1968 is astounding. The Americans are winning battle after battle but are portrayed at home as losing the war. The insurgents are taking serious hits that cannot be sustained, but they are winning the information warfare in the U.S. press. The twisted spin in the U.S. press is a simple economic statement of fact. The ratings are driven by bodies, not quiet streets. View From PLA HQ The view inside Iraq is very different from Beijing, for example. Recent Chinese military articles are not filled with glee about an overwhelmed U.S. military battling insurgents. Instead, the People's Liberation Army is concerned that Iraq is creating a battle-hardened core of American troops. Beijing is also upset that Iraq is a proving ground for advanced U.S. weaponry. More importantly, the Chinese military is painfully aware that the U.S. Navy and Air Force have shifted the bulk of their advanced weaponry away from the Middle East and toward the Pacific. There is no need for 500 combat fighters and three carrier battle groups to hang around Iraq. However, there is a need for them to be stationed near Korea, Taiwan and Japan. What is missing in the debate over the war in Iraq is where we would be if we had not acted in 2003. The recent developments in North Korea are a clue to what course Saddam would have taken. First, the U.S. and our allies had nearly a quarter-million troops in the region before 2003. Three U.S. carrier battle groups and 500 front-line combat aircraft operated from bases in at least five nations all around Iraq. This much firepower tied up in one area does not come cheap. The U.S. was spending billions of dollars maintaining bases, ships, aircraft, tanks, and infantry. Many of our troops were attacked and killed during this watch effort. Iraq History The 1996 Khobar Towers attack in Saudi Arabia and the bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in 2000 stand out as shining examples of what a prolonged stay in the region cost. The reaction by the Democrat administration, classifying both attacks as crimes to be dealt with by law enforcement, is also a shining example of how not to wage a war. The Clinton years also brought with them death and destruction upon the Iraqi people. Clinton launched several attacks using airpower and cruise missiles to thwart the growing threat. Those attacks are forgotten today, with the exception of the "Monica Storm" cruise missile strikes during the height of Clinton's sex scandals. Finally, today we have overwhelming evidence of what Saddam would have done without sanctions. The fact is that WMDs have been found inside Iraq. Not one but hundreds of warheads containing nerve gas and mustard gas have been found inside Iraq. It is worth noting that these weapons should have been declared and destroyed by U.N. mandate. We also have overwhelming evidence that our diplomatic stall before 2003 gave Saddam ample opportunity to transfer most of his weapons out of Iraq. The real question is what kind of Middle East would we have today if we had not invaded? Saddam, armed with long-range missiles and chemical warheads, striving for a nuclear weapon. Oil at $100 a barrel. Over one-third of U.S. armed forces tied up surrounding Iraq, working from nations where they are not exactly welcome nor safe. If we wish, we can cut and run, but why waste the opportunity to close a chapter of global history? The vote this fall will determine the outcome. The choice is ours to make because the future rests in our hands, not in Saddam's.
Editor's note: Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Print Page 
Forward Page 
|
| All Rights Reserved © 2008 NewsMax.Com |