An Active Duty Soldiers View On Today's Iraq
From a medic in Iraq.
Following the email I sent about Bush's national address and troop increase, I thought it was a good idea to let you all know what the perspective is over here. I'm tired of hearing the media's skewed version, the politicians squabbling over what they read in a report, and the average ill-informed American ranting about things he knows NOTHING about.
I've been over here a couple of months now, and I've learned more about this country than a year's worth of watching CNN. I've sat in mission briefs with Colonels, talked with village elders, had tea with Sheiks, played with the kids. And I agree with the President. We need more troops and we need to take greater action.
There are 3 major factions here. The Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds. The Shiites are in the majority, but Saddam was a Sunni, so he kept the Shiites in check. Everyone hates the Kurds, who are Christian and in the vast minority. The Kurds received the brunt of Saddam's murderous tyranny. Now that Saddam is gone, the Shiites have taken control of Baghdad. The largely peaceful Sunnis are now the victims of radical Shiite terrorism. So the young Sunni men, who can no longer go to work and support their families, do what all young men would do. They join the Sunni militia and battle the Shiites. And thus the country sits on the brink of civil war.
But this war is between them. They largely do not concern themselves with the U.S. troops. The insurgents who battle the Coalition Forces are from outside the country. And the biggest problem down here isn't the insurgents. Its the politicians. The local politicians. Even though the country is controlled by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, downtown Baghdad is controlled by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The Shiites follow al-Sadr and thus the Prime Minister does what al-Sadr says. Think of it as if a warlord controlled New York and blackmailed the President into diplomatic immunity.
When 1st Cav (mainly 2/5 Cav) came here in 2004, they took downtown Baghdad (known as Sadr City) by force. It cost many lives, but after a year, we held an iron grip on the largest insurgent breeding ground in Iraq. The insurgents were afraid of the Horse People, and rightfully so. But when 1st Cav left, al-Sadr influenced the Prime Minister to kick out the Coalition forces from that area of Baghdad. He said the Iraqi military forces could hold the city. But all that happened was al-Sadr regained control of his cty, and it is now a heavily guarded fortress. A place where insurgents and terrorists can train and stockpile arms. And we cannot go back in because the Prime Minister won't let us. Our hands are tied.
So where does al-Sadr get his backing? From Iran and Syria. Iran supplies him with money and Syria supplies the terrorists. The insurgents that battle the Coalition Forces are from Syria, Somalia and dozens of other places outside of Iraq. Iraq is literally a terrorist breeding ground. They have terrorist and sniper schools here. Why not? They train by teaching them to attack the military forces here. And they have an endless supply of these training tools. They have factories in Sadr City to build bombs. Both Iran and Syria have openly proclaimed their number one goal in life is to destroy the great Western Devil and the little Western Devil (America and Britain). Iran wants to control Iraq to further this purpose. Al-Sadr will get to "run" the country and live like a king, but in reality Iran will pull the puppet strings. Iran will have access to thousands of radical Shiites who will do whatever al-Sadr tells them to. And Iraq will be used as a breeding ground for terrorism. Terrorism that will be targeted directly at America and Britain. The Iraq Study Group advised we should let Iran and Syria help with rebuilding? Bravo to President Bush for striking that idea down and vowing to keep those two countries out of Iraq.
So how do the Iraqi people feel about everything? Of course they don't want the Americans here. But they would far rather have us here than the Iranians. My team visited an average Sunni village on a patrol a few days ago. Their only source of income was to farm, as they could not go to the city to work for fear of violence. Many of the young men had already run off to join the militia for no other reason than to feed their families. They had no school or hospital near them and the community was dying. The village elder's granddaughter was very sick and I was able to treat her. Afterwards he invited me and my team leader to sit in his house and have tea with him, and we talked about the situation.
The people want peace. The Shiites kill the Sunnis because al-Sadr tells them to do so. The Sunnis fight back because they have no choice. They are glad Saddam is dead (Sunni or not), but do not want to replace him with another dictator in a politician's clothes (which is what al-Sadr will become). And they especially don't want Iran in charge. Many innocent Iraqis will die if this happens. These are the words that came out of the elder's mouth:
"We do not want America here, and America does not want to be here. But you cannot leave because the militias will control the country. America must use the might of its giant army and sweep through, root out and destroy the militias. Then Iraq can be free and you can leave."
What appears to have happened within our diplomatic community, is that Prime Minister finally realizes that his days are numbered. If al-Sadr remains, he will be kicked to the curb. So hopefully he is about to allow us to reenter Sadr City, root out and destroy the enemy. A dramatic troop increase will allow us to do this. And the Horse People are back and ready to finish what they started over 2 years ago.
If we leave now, it will be a failure for democracy. Iran will control Iraq and the end result will be more terrorist attacks on America. The American people don't want soldiers dying over here, but its better than American civilians dying over there. Do NOT forget 9/11. They will do it again. The moment we loosen our grip on the noose, they will do it again. And the only way to root out the evil here is to stop beating around the bush, increase troops and destroy the insurgents once and for all. The Iraqi government cannot do this on their own. The Iraqi security forces are inadequate for this task. We are the only ones who can stop al-Sadr.
Following the email I sent about Bush's national address and troop increase, I thought it was a good idea to let you all know what the perspective is over here. I'm tired of hearing the media's skewed version, the politicians squabbling over what they read in a report, and the average ill-informed American ranting about things he knows NOTHING about.
I've been over here a couple of months now, and I've learned more about this country than a year's worth of watching CNN. I've sat in mission briefs with Colonels, talked with village elders, had tea with Sheiks, played with the kids. And I agree with the President. We need more troops and we need to take greater action.
There are 3 major factions here. The Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds. The Shiites are in the majority, but Saddam was a Sunni, so he kept the Shiites in check. Everyone hates the Kurds, who are Christian and in the vast minority. The Kurds received the brunt of Saddam's murderous tyranny. Now that Saddam is gone, the Shiites have taken control of Baghdad. The largely peaceful Sunnis are now the victims of radical Shiite terrorism. So the young Sunni men, who can no longer go to work and support their families, do what all young men would do. They join the Sunni militia and battle the Shiites. And thus the country sits on the brink of civil war.
But this war is between them. They largely do not concern themselves with the U.S. troops. The insurgents who battle the Coalition Forces are from outside the country. And the biggest problem down here isn't the insurgents. Its the politicians. The local politicians. Even though the country is controlled by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, downtown Baghdad is controlled by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The Shiites follow al-Sadr and thus the Prime Minister does what al-Sadr says. Think of it as if a warlord controlled New York and blackmailed the President into diplomatic immunity.
When 1st Cav (mainly 2/5 Cav) came here in 2004, they took downtown Baghdad (known as Sadr City) by force. It cost many lives, but after a year, we held an iron grip on the largest insurgent breeding ground in Iraq. The insurgents were afraid of the Horse People, and rightfully so. But when 1st Cav left, al-Sadr influenced the Prime Minister to kick out the Coalition forces from that area of Baghdad. He said the Iraqi military forces could hold the city. But all that happened was al-Sadr regained control of his cty, and it is now a heavily guarded fortress. A place where insurgents and terrorists can train and stockpile arms. And we cannot go back in because the Prime Minister won't let us. Our hands are tied.
So where does al-Sadr get his backing? From Iran and Syria. Iran supplies him with money and Syria supplies the terrorists. The insurgents that battle the Coalition Forces are from Syria, Somalia and dozens of other places outside of Iraq. Iraq is literally a terrorist breeding ground. They have terrorist and sniper schools here. Why not? They train by teaching them to attack the military forces here. And they have an endless supply of these training tools. They have factories in Sadr City to build bombs. Both Iran and Syria have openly proclaimed their number one goal in life is to destroy the great Western Devil and the little Western Devil (America and Britain). Iran wants to control Iraq to further this purpose. Al-Sadr will get to "run" the country and live like a king, but in reality Iran will pull the puppet strings. Iran will have access to thousands of radical Shiites who will do whatever al-Sadr tells them to. And Iraq will be used as a breeding ground for terrorism. Terrorism that will be targeted directly at America and Britain. The Iraq Study Group advised we should let Iran and Syria help with rebuilding? Bravo to President Bush for striking that idea down and vowing to keep those two countries out of Iraq.
So how do the Iraqi people feel about everything? Of course they don't want the Americans here. But they would far rather have us here than the Iranians. My team visited an average Sunni village on a patrol a few days ago. Their only source of income was to farm, as they could not go to the city to work for fear of violence. Many of the young men had already run off to join the militia for no other reason than to feed their families. They had no school or hospital near them and the community was dying. The village elder's granddaughter was very sick and I was able to treat her. Afterwards he invited me and my team leader to sit in his house and have tea with him, and we talked about the situation.
The people want peace. The Shiites kill the Sunnis because al-Sadr tells them to do so. The Sunnis fight back because they have no choice. They are glad Saddam is dead (Sunni or not), but do not want to replace him with another dictator in a politician's clothes (which is what al-Sadr will become). And they especially don't want Iran in charge. Many innocent Iraqis will die if this happens. These are the words that came out of the elder's mouth:
"We do not want America here, and America does not want to be here. But you cannot leave because the militias will control the country. America must use the might of its giant army and sweep through, root out and destroy the militias. Then Iraq can be free and you can leave."
What appears to have happened within our diplomatic community, is that Prime Minister finally realizes that his days are numbered. If al-Sadr remains, he will be kicked to the curb. So hopefully he is about to allow us to reenter Sadr City, root out and destroy the enemy. A dramatic troop increase will allow us to do this. And the Horse People are back and ready to finish what they started over 2 years ago.
If we leave now, it will be a failure for democracy. Iran will control Iraq and the end result will be more terrorist attacks on America. The American people don't want soldiers dying over here, but its better than American civilians dying over there. Do NOT forget 9/11. They will do it again. The moment we loosen our grip on the noose, they will do it again. And the only way to root out the evil here is to stop beating around the bush, increase troops and destroy the insurgents once and for all. The Iraqi government cannot do this on their own. The Iraqi security forces are inadequate for this task. We are the only ones who can stop al-Sadr.
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The defeat of the rebels by US force is not likely to happen because too many people in the US have swallowed the same hook, line & sinker that Hairy has. 0 -
By whatever means, Iraq will be secured to the point that the oil resource is controlled by a Government that cooperates with the major oil companies of the Western (U.S./U.K.) world. As a by product of this, the Iraqi people will end up in a much better situation than they have ever been. It's not over, and it'll be a few years before it is. We'll see what happens. 0 -
The Phillipines, Puerto Rico, Vietnam, Guam, Palau, Commonwealth of the Mariannas, Japan, Germany, never accepted American rule or it's beliefs.
Why do some tards think Iraq would be any different???0 -
By whatever means, Iraq will be secured to the point that the oil resource is controlled by a Government that cooperates with the major oil companies of the Western (U.S./U.K.) world.
This exact situation exists in Nigeria (an oil rich nation), yet the people there lead lives as miserable today than they did before oil was discoverd half a century ago. If we want a stable government in Iraq we will have to stay there for decades to keep our own stooges in power in order to keep them doing things exactly the way that we want them to. Left to their own devices the government will skim off oil revenues and little or no money will reach the average Iraqi unless we stick around to make sure that the cash gets passed around. How concerned the American people will be with this fair and equal distribution of oil wealth after about ten more years of this babysitting remains to be seen.0 -
Kristov, the Nigerians are WAY behind the Iraqis in every area of societal development. A simple way to put it is, "you can't fix stupid". The oil resource in Nigeria is under control, a situation that ceased to exist in Iraq and Iran in the 70s. The oil interests are not concerned with what the American people in general are concerned with, if it takes decades then that's what it takes. I see the possibility of the U.N. taking a role here ala the Balkans. Who really knows? We'll see what happens. 0 -
What is missing from Bush's plan is a new approach politically. There needs to be a political solution or the increase of 20,000 with not really account for much. 0 -
Solving Iraq is easy.
Sell it to Saudi Arabia.0 -
al-Sadr has to die.
Seriously, he has been a problem. His men have attacked and killed Americans. The new Iraqi government had offered him amnesty. He is more of a problem and threat to Iraqis than Americans now. In short, he is a thug. He has been offered a seat at the big boys table. He hasn't changed his ways. He is an enemy of Coalition Forces and the Iraqi government. He needs to be taken out.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Dak To 68
Kristov, the Nigerians are WAY behind the Iraqis in every area of societal development. A simple way to put it is, "you can't fix stupid". The oil resource in Nigeria is under control, a situation that ceased to exist in Iraq and Iran in the 70s. The oil interests are not concerned with what the American people in general are concerned with, if it takes decades then that's what it takes. I see the possibility of the U.N. taking a role here ala the Balkans. Who really knows? We'll see what happens.
Actually the situation in Nigeria is far from under control. There is a rebel faction known as the MEND who's goal is to disrupt Nigerian oil production and break the government's back, as wll as influence the world oil market, in which they have had some success by disrupting oil production, attacking pipelines and even a few kidnappings tossed in for good measure. A single commodity economy like oil, which is Iraqs only real resource, will remain vulnerable to attack by rival factions who know that if the oil flow stops then the money flow stops and the government will fall (or at least tremble). Unless we are going to stay in Iraq for decades to ensure the uninterupted flow of Iraq oil I see no real chance that the puppet government we have placed in power can do anything besides sit back and watch as things fall apart in front of them while begging us for more help...Much like they are currently doing! The amount of money we have flushed down the Iraqi crapper is about equal to what would spend on ten years worth of Canadian oil imports (our largest supplier of crude), which our NAFTA partner to the north provides to us without any military assistance or the need for a US occupation force roaming the streets of Ottawa to keep order. Iraq is a losing proposition.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Captplaid
al-Sadr has to die.
Seriously, he has been a problem. His men have attacked and killed Americans. The new Iraqi government had offered him amnesty. He is more of a problem and threat to Iraqis than Americans now. In short, he is a thug. He has been offered a seat at the big boys table. He hasn't changed his ways. He is an enemy of Coalition Forces and the Iraqi government. He needs to be taken out.
I think that he and his militamen's days are numbered, and he knows it. Since his top aide was captured, he's said the US is out to get him. He'd better be a good skywatcher because someday there may be a B 52 with a bunch of nice presents coming by airmail for him & his buddies!0
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