Comments on: Islamic State in Iraq Head Killed

By: G.A. Phillips

G.A. Phillips — Fri, 04 May 2007 03:36:58 +0000

Alex I have seen this hydra and it has many donkey heads on it too, the cancer keeps growing back, so we should stop trying to cure it? Triumph what in the great bloody blue hell are you talking about and why do you keep saying it over, and over, and over, and over again? Tlaloc only cowards bow down to intimidation, but I guess I can see why a liberal like you puts so much faith and has so much reverence in a tactic that uses fear to sway a noncomplying majority.

By: charles austin

charles austin — Fri, 04 May 2007 00:13:04 +0000

That's because they understand something about insurgencies you evidently don't: military force loses to it.

No, insurgencies generally aren't able to beat military forces, which is why they remain as ..., wait for it..., insurgencies. They are, however, on occasion able to win political battles even when losing on the battlefield virtually every frickin' time (see Vietnam and Iraq). Clausewitz was correct about war being an extension of politics by other means. Needless to say, my politics aren't yours.

By: Tlaloc

Tlaloc — Thu, 03 May 2007 19:48:13 +0000

Clearly, if I understand the arguments presented in the comments above correctly, they can be summarized as, heads the insurgents win, tails the forces of democracy lose. How indescribibly clever and irrefutably powerful these arguments appear to be.

That's because they understand something about insurgencies you evidently don't: military force loses to it. It is a tactic specifically designed to defeat a militarily superior opponent and when your opponent relies entirely on military force to defeat it then they will lose. All of this is laid out very nicely in General Petraeus Counterinsurgency manual if you'd like to read it.

By: charles austin

charles austin — Thu, 03 May 2007 19:33:00 +0000

Of course, while we may be angered, depressed, demoralized or otherwise inhibited by the death or maiming of our soldiers, our enemies are only strengthened whenever they suffer casualties. Clearly, if I understand the arguments presented in the comments above correctly, they can be summarized as, heads the insurgents win, tails the forces of democracy lose. How indescribibly clever and irrefutably powerful these arguments appear to be.

By: Wake up America-

Wake up America- — Thu, 03 May 2007 19:09:21 +0000

Democrats Back Down on Time Tables.... or DO They?...

Conflicting reports on this...

By: The Sandbox

The Sandbox — Thu, 03 May 2007 16:11:48 +0000

Al Qaeda Leaders Dropping Like Flies...

This is getting a bit confusing to me. Apparently, conflicting reports litter the internet and the news sites. First, al-Masri was supposed to be dead. Then, al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State in Iraq, was thought to be killed....

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 03 May 2007 15:36:34 +0000

It's not clear to me....is this the creep that was killed earlier in the week or was this the result of a different skirmish?.

No, different creep, and we're still not sure if the creep that was killed last week was actually killed.

By: Triumph

Triumph — Thu, 03 May 2007 15:27:38 +0000

Great news! Its comforting to see that we have accomplished the mission. This is clear evidence that the insurgency is in its last throes. Luckily we were able to make sure that the smoking gun did not appear as a mushroom cloud. Freedom is on the march!

By: markm

markm — Thu, 03 May 2007 14:53:36 +0000

It's not clear to me....is this the creep that was killed earlier in the week or was this the result of a different skirmish?.

By: Alex Knapp

Alex Knapp — Thu, 03 May 2007 14:52:52 +0000

In the short term, slaying a dragon and having it replaced by dozens of snakes could make the security picture even worse. In the longer run, though, it should be good new

It would be if that were actually the case--a better analogy would be that we're just chopping heads off of the hydra. Cut one off, two more take it's place.

By: memeorandum @ 3:35 PM ET, May 3, 2007

memeorandum @ 3:35 PM ET, May 3, 2007 — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 18:00:00 +0000

+ Discussion: Reuters, Captain's Quarters, Redstate, The Jawa Report, The Strata-Sphere, Outside The Beltway, Counterterrorism Blog and Don Surber

By: Maggie's Notebook | Conservative Blog

Maggie's Notebook | Conservative Blog — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 18:00:00 +0000

of premature withdrawal are, this has been good news from America AND Iraq today. More to come... Others discussing one or more of these issues: Captain's Quarters, Riehl World View, Sister Toldjah, The Jawa Report, Red State, Don Surber, Outside The Beltway, Gateway Pundit, Iraq The Model. .

By: Faultline USA

Faultline USA — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 18:00:00 +0000