Think Progress

‘Not worth another soldier’s life.’

By Faiz Shakir on Oct 27th, 2007 at 12:45 pm

‘Not worth another soldier’s life.’

Carpetbagger notes another “phony soldier” speaks out about Iraq:

Asked if the American endeavor here was worth their sacrifice — 20 soldiers from the battalion have been killed in Baghdad — [Sgt. Victor Alarcon] said no: “I don’t think this place is worth another soldier’s life.

UPDATE: Newshounds catches Fox and Friends’ Brian Kilmeade claiming that there was not a single U.S. military casualty in Iraq this week. While casualty rates are certainly down, Kilmeade’s claim is false. Iraq Casualty Count provides the details. Watch it:




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146 Responses to “‘Not worth another soldier’s life.’”

  1. Exley Says:

    ThinkProgress is correct. While U.S. casualties and overall violence in Iraq are down dramatically since the completion of the troop surge, there were sadly still some casualties in Iraq last week.

    What Kilmeade was apparently (and confusedly) trying to report is the remarkable fact that there was no U.S. casualties in the Anbar Province.

    More information on the dramatic decrease in the violence in Iraq -- This week's Pentago briefing by Director of Operational Planning, Joint Chiefs of Staff Maj. Gen. Richard Sherlock:

    GEN. SHERLOCK: “In Iraq, since the final surge forces arrived in June, our operations against terrorists and extremist groups have had a sustained positive effect.

    “Overall violence is down in many areas of Iraq. For example, in and around Baghdad, terrorist operations are down by 59 percent; operations targeting Iraqi security forces are down over 60 percent; car bombs are down by 65 percent; fatalities due to car combs have decreased by 81 percent; casualties due to enemy attacks are down by 77 percent; and the violence during this last Ramadan period was the lowest in three years.

    “Another example: in Al Anbar province, last week we had no casualties, killed or wounded in action. And that's the first time in recent memory that I can be able to say that.

    “Overall casualties in Iraq have continued to decrease, even though coalition forces have conducted a variety of operations throughout the country.”

    (It should also be noted that not a single American has been killed by an IED in Anbar province since September 10.)


  2. toasterhead Says:

    It's that damn liberal-biased reality again, always getting in the way of Fox's reporting!


  3. Zooey Says:

    (It should also be noted that not a single American has been killed by an IED in Anbar province since September 10.)
    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:01 pm

    That's the bottom line with you, isn't it Exley? You make me sick.


  4. toasterhead Says:

    Also - the fact that "No Casualties In Iraq" is the headline instead of the status quo shows how bad the situation really is.


  5. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    You make me sick.

    Comment by Zooey — October 27, 2007 @ 1:03 pm

    It doesn't do any good to point anything out to maroons like Exley, Z. He's got both hands locked tightly on his... and that's all that matters to him. White knuckles and all...


  6. VerbalKint Says:

    Exley is the proverbial good German.


  7. Fan of Man Says:

    not worth another life? come on soldier boy, you signed up for bush's oil war, how can not dying for bushco be worth it?

    SARCASM ON.


  8. Fan of Man Says:

    Hey Exley,

    how can anyone die if they are not there? no people = no deaths... duh!

    i really do understand, in your flat world 1 + 2 = chair.


  9. Exley Says:

    Zooey,

    It saddens me to read that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar Province in since early September.


  10. Oval12345678 aka James K. Sayre Says:

    Bush-CHeney fascist imperial corporate occupation of Iraq is certainly not worth a single soldier's life; however, it has been worth billions of American taxpayers' dollars transferred into the pockets of Halliburton Corporation, Blackwater Corporation and other USA/Dubai corporations...


  11. Badmoodman Says:

    An advantage to being a "Phony Soldier" is that when your military career is over, it looks good on a resume when applying for a position as a member of the Fake FEMA Press.


  12. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    Exlax is another Pentagon PSYOPS.

    They are PAID to cause confusion and bring people off the TRUTH.

    These people are NOT "trolls".

    Read, especially the DOD Information Operations Roadmap.

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/

    It is their JOB to disseminate misinformation and obfuscate the TRUTH on websites that tell the TRUTH about their EVIL.

    Sincerely,

    NRA Gunnutes


  13. Fan of Man Says:

    #12 - NAILED IT!


  14. gummitch Says:

    I think the mistake is that TP linked to a blog article rather than to the Washington Post piece.

    In contrast to the sunny picture Exley's trying to palm off:

    While top U.S. commanders say the statistics of violence have registered a steep drop in Baghdad and elsewhere, the soldiers' experience in Sadiyah shows that numbers alone do not describe the sense of aborted normalcy -- the fear, the disrupted lives -- that still hangs over the city.

    Before the war, Sadiyah was a bustling middle-class district, popular with Sunni officers in Saddam Hussein's military. It has become strategically important because it represents a fault line between militia power bases in al-Amil to the west and the Sunni insurgent stronghold of Dora to the east. U.S. commanders say the militias have made a strong push for the neighborhood in part because it lies along the main road that Shiite pilgrims travel to the southern holy cities of Najaf and Karbala.

    American soldiers estimate that since violence intensified this year, half of the families in Sadiyah have fled, leaving approximately 100,000 people. After they left, insurgents and militiamen used their abandoned homes to hold meetings and store weapons. The neighborhood deteriorated so quickly that many residents came to believe neither U.S. nor Iraqi security forces could stop it happening.

    The American people don't fully realize what's going on, said Staff Sgt. Richard McClary, 27, a section leader from Buffalo.

    "They just know back there what the higher-ups here tell them. But the higher-ups don't go anywhere, and actually they only go to the safe places, places with a little bit of gunfire," he said. "They don't ever [expletive] see what we see on the ground."


  15. Zooey Says:

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:13 pm

    F_ck you, prick.


  16. gummitch Says:

    Sorry for the formatting in the quotation. There should be a gap before the last two paragraphs, which are the close of the article. In between, there are a couple of pages. The whole article is well worth reading.


  17. katy Says:

    ...Kilmeade claiming that there was not a single U.S. military casualty in Iraq this week.

    well, now we know where last evening's trooll picked up that
    bit of false information, and tried passing it off here...

    TRIED, i say...
    ...


  18. creasybear Says:

    Sounds like good news...
    Sounds like we've finally won the war...
    hurrah! ...right?
    So, what we waiting for...
    lets quickly get more troops down there...
    and move to WWIII
    And start killing children, women,
    and slaughter several families;
    and while the entire world watch
    Al-Jazeera and see mass burial everyday,
    our soldiers victory and accomplishment
    Fox keeps showing a loud mouthed Perino
    telling us about how fine we are doing.
    Right Exley?


  19. Exley Says:

    Zooey,

    If you do not want to be criticized for your hideous suggestion that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since September, then I suggest you refrain from making such morally repugnant comments.


  20. gummitch Says:

    It saddens me to read that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar Province in since early September.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:13 pm

    It saddens me that you resort to utter bullsh!t like this, Exley. From time to time, you have had some credibility but comments like this prove that those moments were just blind squirrel/nut moments.


  21. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    #20

    Nope. Pentagon PSYOPS:

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/


  22. Zooey Says:

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    Get bent, c_cksucker. You are a disgusting manipulator, and don't think for even a moment anyone believes you over me. F_ck off.


  23. gummitch Says:

    If you do not want to be criticized for your hideous suggestion that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since September, then I suggest you refrain from making such morally repugnant comments.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    This is a bald-faced lie, Exley. The only morally repugnant comments appearing are signed with your name.


  24. whiteyfresh Says:

    DOING ALRIGHT zoOEY.(SORRY FOR THE DELAY:)dang it!(caps)

    Another thrilling day at the clinic.

    somebody's makin a Chick-fil-A run, so that makes the day a little better.
    After all, that's Holy chicken I'll be eatin..


  25. Exley Says:

    #20

    Really, gummitch? And how else would you read the comment made by Zooey at 1:03? Don't lash out at me because Zooey wrote something that is truly sickening.


  26. Lefty Patriot Says:

    If you do not want to be criticized for your hideous suggestion that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since September, then I suggest you refrain from making such morally repugnant comments.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    Exley, you're just a liar. Zooey said no such thing, and your usual cheerleading the deaths of Aemrican troops is what makes people sick. You have been behind mass-murder and troop deaths from the beginning, while we have been against both. Nice try, but your sociopathic blathering is transparent, and your patriotism non-existent. Morally repugnant is a term reserved for coward wingnuts like you.


  27. whiteyfresh Says:

    If you do not want to be criticized for your hideous suggestion that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since September, then I suggest you refrain from making such morally repugnant comments.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    The second you stop making off base off topic lame strawmen excuses for the Bushhole-in-Cheeze, you can open your mouth(er, fingers???) again.
    Thank you, goodnight, and may god bless..


  28. whiteyfresh Says:

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    Get bent, c_cksucker. You are a disgusting manipulator, and don’t think for even a moment anyone believes you over me. F_ck off.

    Comment by Zooey — October 27, 2007 @ 1:26 pm

    ZING!!!!!


  29. whiteyfresh Says:

    ah, thaya's nuthin quite like uh good Troll bashin on a Saturday aftanoon...

    (sips mint julip)


  30. Lefty Patriot Says:

    All of your backpedaling isn't going to save you from this one, Exley. You've proven your immoral positions many times here, and the fact that no American soldiers have been killed in Anbar province since Sept. 10 is pretty meaningless when you add up all who were killed before that date. We know you hate the troops, it's your way. If you had any respect for them, with your war-mongering idiocy, you'd be there with them. You're just a wingnut coward.


  31. Zooey Says:

    Don’t lash out at me because Zooey wrote something that is truly sickening.
    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:27 pm

    Apparently you have to engage in mental and literal masturbation, since even the scurviest of crack whores have standards you don't meet.


  32. katy Says:

    ok... enough about exley... zooey handled it great, the best he deserves, and the others have made it right...

    so, from now on, FLAG HIS ASS.

    that particular bit of spin left even me dizzy...
    lyin' twistin' piece of shite is exley...

    be done with it. FLAG IT.
    .


  33. Exley Says:

    #22

    Calm yourself, Zooey. Your disgusting comment made at 1:03 is there for everyone to see. Don't try to blame me for the fact that you wrote something that is truly vile and sad.

    I have debated a good number of reasonable and intelligent progressives here -- none of which would ever express disappointment that no American had been killed by an IED in Anbar since early September, no matter how they felt about the war.

    Now, if you want to re-think your comment made at posting #3 and wish to apologize to our troops, you should do so.


  34. Zooey Says:

    After all, that’s Holy chicken I’ll be eatin..
    Comment by whiteyfresh — October 27, 2007 @ 1:27 pm

    Enjoy your fast and holy chicken, whitey! :D


  35. Del Capslock Says:

    While casualty rates are certainly down

    That is great news, but ever since Paetreus testified in Sep it seems like the news from Iraq is gone down to almost nothing. The American casualties are down, but what is actually going on in Iraq? Is there some political progress being made? Has the sectarian violence gone way down as well?
    If everything is going that well, it must be time to start talking about ending the occupation, right?


  36. whiteyfresh Says:

    ah, katy. Always the cool, collected one. Although I do enjoy it quite a bit when you cooly smacked down a collection of trolls

    :)


  37. whiteyfresh Says:

    Exley.

    Is.

    38.

    living.

    in.

    Mommy's

    basement.


  38. Zooey Says:

    Now, if you want to re-think your comment made at posting #3 and wish to apologize to our troops, you should do so.
    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:32 pm

    I set a match to your strawman, you might want to shut up now.

    Exley = 100% Pure Troll.


  39. gummitch Says:

    Really, gummitch? And how else would you read the comment made by Zooey at 1:03? Don’t lash out at me because Zooey wrote something that is truly sickening.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:27 pm

    Why not read the WaPo article and get back to us. Zooey's comment wasn't sickening at all, merely a criticism of your attempt to whitewash the occupation.

    She never said that the lack of US deaths saddened her, but that your comments sickened her because of your attempt to reduce everything to one measure.

    Tell us, Exley, how many American soldiers have been severely wounded by IEDs during that period, yet survived like the young Oregon soldier I was reading about this morning -- lost one leg, had the other leg shattered, both eardrums punctured, resuscitated twice during extraction? How many Iraqis have been driven from their homes, or murdered? Do none of them count?


  40. katy Says:

    "cool, collected"??? ha! ... but thanks...
    ...

    del - i remember hearing/reading a story about that particular thing -
    limiting the news and stories from the "war front"...

    probably here at TP...


  41. Exley Says:

    "If everything is going that well, it must be time to start talking about ending the occupation, right? -- Comment by Del Capslock"

    Absolutely, Del Capslock. The news out of Iraq since the completion of the surge in troop levels has been remarkably encouraging. The decrease in violence and the fact that much of the Iraqi population is turning against Al Qaeda in Iraq are significant developments. The key now is to continue to push forward with this latest strategy that is working so well, defeat AQI, and then we can indeed start to think about downsizing our military presence in Iraq.


  42. gummitch Says:

    All of your backpedaling isn’t going to save you from this one, Exley. You’ve proven your immoral positions many times here, and the fact that no American soldiers have been killed in Anbar province since Sept. 10 is pretty meaningless when you add up all who were killed before that date. We know you hate the troops, it’s your way. If you had any respect for them, with your war-mongering idiocy, you’d be there with them. You’re just a wingnut coward.

    Comment by Lefty Patriot — October 27, 2007 @ 1:31 pm

    That's not even the fact, LP. There's a qualifier "by IED" in that fact. Soldiers killed by gunfire must be ecstatic to know it wasn't by IED.


  43. creasybear Says:

    The major reason why we havent had more causualities on our side recently is because we have entirely agreed that we have lost the war. Read this:

    In December, the Army formally released its counterinsurgency manual, supervised by Gen. David Petraeus. The next month, Petraeus took control of American forces in Iraq -- and promptly threw large chunks of the manual out the window. (More on that, in next month's WIRED magazine.)

    Fred Kaplan has perhaps the most vivid example yet of this defenestration: The uptick in American airstrikes, since Petraeus slid into the commander's chair.

    Here's an recent one, from Karmah, Iraq...

    According to the manual, "an air strike can cause collateral damage that turns people against the host-nation government and provides insurgents with a major propaganda victory. Even when justified under the law of war, bombings that result in civilian casualties can bring media coverage that works to the insurgents' benefits… For these reasons, commanders should consider the use of air strikes carefully."

    But, as Kaplan notes, from January to September of this year, according to unclassified data, U.S. Air Force pilots in Iraq have flown 996 sorties that involved dropping munitions. By comparison, in all of 2006, they flew just 229 such sorties—one-quarter as many. In 2005, they flew 404; in 2004, they flew 285."

    In other words, in the first nine months of 2007, Air Force planes dropped munitions on targets in Iraq more often than in the previous three years combined...

    On Sunday, U.S. soldiers were searching for a leader of a kidnapping ring in Baghdad's Sadr City. The soldiers came under fire from a building. Rather than engage in dangerous door-to-door conflict, they called in air support. Army helicopters flew overhead and simply destroyed the building, killing several of the fighters but also at least six innocent civilians. (The bad guy got away.)

    In other words, though the shift means greater safety for our ground troops, it also generates more local hostility. Striking urban targets from the air inevitably means killing more innocent bystanders. This makes some of the bystanders' relatives yearn for vengeance. And it makes many Iraqis—relatives, neighbors, and others watching the news of the attack on television—less trusting of the American troops who are supposedly protecting them.

    Read more here: http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/10/in-december-the.html


  44. gummitch Says:

    Absolutely, Del Capslock. The news out of Iraq since the completion of the surge in troop levels has been remarkably encouraging. The decrease in violence and the fact that much of the Iraqi population is turning against Al Qaeda in Iraq are significant developments. The key now is to continue to push forward with this latest strategy that is working so well, defeat AQI, and then we can indeed start to think about downsizing our military presence in Iraq.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:38 pm

    You didn't bother to read the article, did you?

    Once AQI is defeated, there will be only the remaining 95% of the insurgency left. It's like having one of those San Diego fires 5% contained.

    "Yeah, well, then we can start thinking about doing something sometime about 'downsizing' our occupation of a foreign country."

    Idiot.


  45. MLNY Says:

    So, Exley:

    To put this "success" into perspective is to hate the troops?

    No one's buying that here. Period.


  46. Zooey Says:

    Tell us, Exley, how many American soldiers have been severely wounded by IEDs during that period, yet survived like the young Oregon soldier I was reading about this morning — lost one leg, had the other leg shattered, both eardrums punctured, resuscitated twice during extraction? How many Iraqis have been driven from their homes, or murdered? Do none of them count?
    Comment by gummitch — October 27, 2007 @ 1:37 pm

    Thank you for spelling out the point, gummitch.

    Exley is too embarrassed by his cold-blooded statement about no American DEATHS, only massive injuries and Iraqi deaths, so he has to try to throw his humiliation onto me. Poor thing.


  47. Exley Says:

    #39, "but that your comments sickened her because of your attempt to reduce everything to one measure."

    Ah, but that's where your argument falls apart, Gummitch.

    1) If you read all of Gen. Sherlock's comments, he speaks about numerous measures in the drop in violence in Iraq. So, to say I focused only on one measure is demonstrably false.

    2) Zooey -- not me -- was the one who focused on the one measure (See the italicized sentence in posting 3); specifically, the one that mentions that no US soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since Sept. 10.

    So, again, to say that I focused on only one measure is provably false.


  48. Lefty Patriot Says:

    The key now is to continue to push forward with this latest strategy that is working so well, defeat AQI, and then we can indeed start to think about downsizing our military presence in Iraq.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:38 pm

    So the key is to continue to lie to yourself and the American public? And you actually buy the Al Qaeda in Iraq bullshit? Your stupidity is truly staggering, Exley. Truly amazing that you can remember to breathe. AQI? What a joke! Bush is the #1 terrorist in the world, he's the one that needs to be defeated and run out of the USA. That's the "win" the USA needs. hang Bush ASAP!


  49. Lefty Patriot Says:

    So, again, to say that I focused on only one measure is provably false.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:46 pm

    You're not Sherlock, sherlock. Nice try at stealing someone else's words to support your clearly immoral measuring stick.

    You don't fool anyone, Exley. You're a coward and an antiAmerican fool.


  50. Exley Says:

    #46

    Ah, so Zooey is now backtracking and admitting that she did not read Gen. Sherlock's comments that talk about a reduction in all aspects of violence in Iraq, including violence against civilians.

    Thus, she is no admitting that my posting on #1 did not apply only to U.S. casualties.

    Well, let this be a lesson to you Zooey, read the ENTIRE posting before you comment. It will spare you much future embarrassment.

    I accept your apology.


  51. HadEnough? Says:

    Is it time yet to consider consider how to hold this administration accountable for it's crimes? Or are we going to just ignore the lies and manipulations used to go to war in Iraq?


  52. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Petraeus is almost as cowardly as Exley.


  53. Lefty Patriot Says:

    I accept your apology.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:50 pm

    nice try, Ex-lax. Nobody needs to apologize to you. You were wrong, and still are. Zooey read y8our words, you aren't Sherlock.

    You're still the lying fool we all have seen here time and again.


  54. Zooey Says:

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:50 pm

    No apology will EVER be offered to you, Exley, so you can shove it.

    I was responding to YOUR cold-blooded comment. Run along now, you've lost any respect you ever had on this blog.


  55. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Yeah, the news out of iraq is so encouraging that any gathering of troops says they want out immediately. More Exley lies.


  56. Exley Says:

    More encouraging developments out of Iraq today. As Richard Clarke said this week, "It's always good news when they are divided...It's reflective that U.S. tactics are having some success:"

    Iraqi insurgents' clash with Qaeda kills 16
    Sat Oct 27, 10:14 AM ET

    BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A battle between al Qaeda in Iraq and a major Sunni Arab insurgent group killed at least 16 militants on Friday near the ancient city of Samarra, a senior security officer told Reuters on Saturday.

    Al Qaeda in Iraq has faced growing pressure from the Sunni Arab community, especially tribal leaders and home-grown insurgent groups who reject its hardline interpretation of Islam and its indiscriminate violence.

    Signs of the group's weakening support were highlighted by an audiotape featuring Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda's overall leader, which aired on Monday.


  57. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Exley resorts to the 4th-grade schoolyard denial.
    He has no argument, he's been proven wrong again.

    Sucks to be Exley.


  58. Dave C Says:

    It sounds like it's almost safe enough in Anbar for Exley to show up.


  59. Zooey Says:

    Sucks to be Exley.
    Comment by Lefty Patriot — October 27, 2007 @ 1:55 pm

    Always has, and always will. :-D


  60. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Signs of the group’s weakening support were highlighted by an audiotape featuring Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda’s overall leader, which aired on Monday.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:55 pm

    Yeah, some weakness. Bin Laden still making republican campaign commercials. Good job, rightards. Why don't you just surrender?


  61. gummitch Says:

    So, again, to say that I focused on only one measure is provably false.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:46 pm

    Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnddddd. . . . you still haven't read the WaPo article, have you?


  62. Del Capslock Says:

    my point was that there seems to be a media blackout on Iraq right now, aside from barely-mentioned-in-passing that American casualties are down. If things are that much better, why isn't the right wing media trumpeting it from the rooftops?


  63. Badmoodman Says:

    Exley, Exley, Exley... all the guy has to do is show up and this board immediately becomes all about HIM. You people have no self control.


  64. Vanthomas Says:

    Maybe our enemies in Iraq have gotten word that as soon as the US attacks Iran,Iran will unleash hell inside of Iraq,so they are just regrouping at the moment and waiting.Then after the huge missile assault on the green zone,they can swoop back in and really give us a pounding.Until we stop kidding ourselves about who we are fighting there is no way in hell for success.


  65. Lefty Patriot Says:

    If things are that much better, why isn’t the right wing media trumpeting it from the rooftops?

    Comment by Del Capslock — October 27, 2007 @ 1:58 pm

    Because, we are losing. Case closed. Bush can't defend the country, never could, never did. The rightwing mass media isn't about to piss him off; he'll shut them down. DON'T FORGET, HE'D RATHER BE A DICTATOR.


  66. Exley Says:

    Here is an article that I posted earlier this week that Zooey apparently failed to read (or understand). Even the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is taking note of the drop in violence in Iraq:

    From the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)

    Date: 21 Oct 2007

    Iraq: Violence-related deaths drop ‘remarkably’, say authorities and UN

    BAGHDAD, 21 October 2007 (IRIN) - Iraqis are breathing a sigh of relief as violence in their war-torn country is ebbing and the number of violence-related victims has dropped sharply since the beginning of this year, according to statistics compiled by the country’s interior, defence and health ministries.

    “Violence-related deaths in September dropped remarkably to levels not seen in more than a year as the number [of violence-related deaths] stood at 290 while in September 2006 the number was about 1,400,” Adel Muhsin, the health ministry’s inspector-general, told IRIN in a phone interview.

    According to the ministry’s statistics, between January and the end of September 2007, the number of violent deaths involving civilian, police and military in all of Iraq was about 7,100, against 27,000 in the same period of 2006.

    According to Muhsin, the average number of dead bodies sent to Baghdad’s main morgue just over a year ago was between 100 and 150 a day. Now, it is no more than 10 bodies a day, and about 50 percent of them are dying in normal circumstances.

    There have been days this year when no dead bodies were sent to the morgue and this gave the morgue employees a chance to refurbish it, something they couldn’t do in the past.

    UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon recently said that September witnessed the lowest number of Iraqi casualties in any month this year.

    Comment by Exley — October 23, 2007 @ 10:22 am


  67. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Until we stop kidding ourselves about who we are fighting there is no way in hell for success.

    Comment by Vanthomas — October 27, 2007 @ 2:01 pm

    That was Saddam's plan at the outset, and it worked quite well. In death, he was victorious. Must really frak Cheney out to know that he's losing to a corpse. That's an old Repuke tradition, though.


  68. Zooey Says:

    Oh Exley, I hang on your every word....

    Please, leave a comment at the Zoo whenever you make a comment on TP, that way I'll be sure to read every single one.


  69. Lefty Patriot Says:

    UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon recently said that September witnessed the lowest number of Iraqi casualties in any month this year.

    Comment by Exley — October 23, 2007 @ 10:22 am

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 2:02 pm

    You know. Exley, Saddam stopped killing people when all of his enemies were dead, too. Your simplemindedness is hilarious.


  70. Lefty Patriot Says:

    It's even funnier when a rightard quotes the UN. Nothing like highlighting your hypocrisy and general moral weakness, Exley. Good job.


  71. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    The topic here is that the SOLDIERS think it is time to go...

    As for exlax, they post on MANY forums (such as Yahoo, when you could), so does Mr. P, Jake, etc.

    Get a CLUE, children!!

    You are "debating" with Pentagon PSYOPS, whose JOB it is to LIE and OBFUSCATE the TRUTH.

    Like Rummy, TRAITOR Bush, etc...

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/


  72. Exley Says:

    "Oh Exley, I hang on your every word…."

    You have made that abundantly clear, Zooey.

    Now, we all look forward to your comments about the article from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)...

    Will the article's information about the dramatic drop in civilian deaths also make Zooey "sick?" Let's find out!


  73. upside99 Says:

    Ex and the rest of the 23%ers will never let go of the CHickenhawk NeoCon Ego war and. of course, won't serve in it either. Just like the rusher, kristol, whorowitz, barnes and the rest of the scumbags still supporting Darth and his Merry Pranksters.


  74. Dave C Says:

    I say the war in Iraq IS worth another soldier's life. How quickly can you go through basic & get out there Exley?


  75. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    IGNORE the PSYOPS "trolls", kids.

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/

    Sincerely,

    NRA Gunnutes


  76. Zooey Says:

    Tooooooodles, all!

    Must do something more productive, like algebra, than exposing Exley as the complete wimp he's always been.


  77. upside99 Says:

    See ya, Zoo! Be Kool at SKool!


  78. Lefty Patriot Says:

    than exposing Exley as the complete wimp he’s always been.

    Comment by Zooey — October 27, 2007 @ 2:11 pm

    it's OK, Exley usually exposes himself...


  79. Exley Says:

    Bye Zooey...And again, I thank you for and accept your apology (Although I must admit I did not see your apology to the troops)

    And remember my advice -- Always read ALL the information before posting. That will spare you the kind of embarrassment you suffered here today.


  80. osage Says:

    Bush is deliberately prolonging the war in Iraq so he can hand it over to a Democratic president in order to blame Democrats for the results of his unconscionable failures. Bush knows Iraq will not evolve into a Democracy and that decades of revenge killings and power stuggles are unavoidable. His objective is solely a "political" one. He wants to blame Democrats when the seeds of his stupidities and incompetencies come to fruition in Iraq. He doesn't care about the lives of our soldiers or Iraqi citizens. He's a political whore whose only agenda is making Democrats look bad by blaming them for what he created while he was performing as the worst president in American history.


  81. Lefty Patriot Says:

    That will spare you the kind of embarrassment you suffered here today.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 2:15 pm

    Too bad that will never work for you. Embarrassment must be your usual state.


  82. gummitch Says:

    And remember my advice — Always read ALL the information before posting. That will spare you the kind of embarrassment you suffered here today.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 2:15 pm

    Just as you have now read the WaPo article? And are willing to apologize not only for lying about Zooey but for completely mis-stating the situation on the ground in Iraq?

    Exley, you're either utterly dishonest or completely delusional. Only you know for certain which it is, but either one of them means you need help.


  83. Exley Says:

    Del Capslock wrote:

    "my point was that there seems to be a media blackout on Iraq right now, aside from barely-mentioned-in-passing that American casualties are down."

    Because mentioning American successes in Iraq is anathema to the left-wing mainstream media (CNN, NBC, CBS, New York Times, etc.)

    They and their masters at DNC headquarters all have a vested interest in seeing the surge fail because they have so long reported and predicted that the war is lost and that the surge could not succeed.

    Now that they are being proven wrong, they are doing their best to quash the information coming out of Iraq. But fortunately in today's information-technology world, the left-wing mainstream media no longer has a stranglehold on the dissemination of information. The word is getting out about the remarkable drop in violence in Iraq and the success of the surge.


  84. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Sorry, Arn, as lame as the Pentagon is, I can't believe they would hire as big an idiot as Exley. I admit, their handling of Iraq and their imposition of betrayus on our poor, enslaved, underarmed, underpaid troops may lead you to believe that they would hire a practiced liar and known coward as Exley, but I really have to doubt that. Exley's just another sheep, a member of Georgie's ever-shrinking flock of fools, cowards and liars.


  85. upside99 Says:

    Exley, you’re either utterly dishonest or completely delusional. Only you know for certain which it is, but either one of them means you need help.

    Comment by gummitch — October 27, 2007 @ 2:24 pm

    I vote for delusional, if his posting at #83 is any indication of his "perception" of reality.


  86. alpuz3 Says:

    I've read the whole thread, Exley. You're a coward, and
    an extremely unconvincing one at that.

    Always have been, always will be...

    Go peddle your ice cream cones on some other corner, flunky.

    dangle.


  87. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Now that they are being proven wrong, they are doing their best to quash the information coming out of Iraq. But fortunately in today’s information-technology world, the left-wing mainstream media no longer has a stranglehold on the dissemination of information. The word is getting out about the remarkable drop in violence in Iraq and the success of the surge.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 2:27 pm

    Sorry, Ex, it's not 1965 any more, and the media is wholly owned and controlled by the traitors on the right, who have very little to report that is good news; thus the lack of same. Your fevered imaginings notwithstanding, rep[orters report, and if there were any good news coming out if the clusterf(ck that is iraq, we'd hear it. But there isn't any, except that which you make up, so, there you go. the rightwing media would be trumpeting it. Sorry, you just can't get anything right, can you?


  88. Lefty Patriot Says:

    I mean, really. FDR destroyed the Axis powers in three years, and Bushco is still losing to a dead Saddam 6 years later. keep spinning, Exley; the facts are liberal, as usual.


  89. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    Sorry, Arn, as lame as the Pentagon is, I can’t believe they would hire as big an idiot as Exley. I admit, their handling of Iraq and their imposition of betrayus on our poor, enslaved, underarmed, underpaid troops may lead you to believe that they would hire a practiced liar and known coward as Exley, but I really have to doubt that. Exley’s just another sheep, a member of Georgie’s ever-shrinking flock of fools, cowards and liars.

    Comment by Lefty Patriot — October 27, 2007 @ 2:28 pm

    Your choice...

    But ask yourself this:

    WHY would anyone spend their time posting absurd lies and distorting what others have said if NOT to obfuscate?

    Didn't Rummy say "I NEVER said that", when they were shown on VIDEO and AUDIO to have said such and were CLEARLY LYING?

    Don't you think that a person who is "not too bright" could be ACTING that way?

    READ the documents linked. They were FOIA declassified, and are OFFICIAL documents from the Pentagon and DoD.

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/

    Sincerely,

    NRA Gun Nutes...


  90. toasterhead Says:

    If you do not want to be criticized for your hideous suggestion that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar since September, then I suggest you refrain from making such morally repugnant comments.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:24 pm

    AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAA

    Holy crap. You people have a completely twisted sense of morality.

    Moving the goalposts is not the same as victory. Even an idiot like yourself should be able to understand this.


  91. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    From Pentagon PSYOP exlax:

    Now that they are being proven wrong, they are doing their best to quash the information coming out of Iraq. But fortunately in today’s information-technology world, the left-wing mainstream media no longer has a stranglehold on the dissemination of information.

    Now, look at that. Doesn't THAT describe TRAITOR Bush and his Rapeublican WAR CRIMINALS and the corporate-owned media?

    PSYOPS, clear and simple.

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/

    Sincerely,

    NRA Gun Nutes


  92. VerbalKint Says:

    I would like to believe that Exley is edgier than usual because my "good German" remark has gotten under his skin. Not that the word edgy does justice to his outrageously offensive straw man aimed at Zooey.

    And I compliment Fan of Man on his 1+2 = chair analogy to Exley's thinking.


  93. Witch1 Says:

    Good Job wacking the miserable black hearted troll, all....

    A bit off topic...Just got off the phone with my buddy in Montana.She has been checking the Gov. job site's for several year's and made a couple of job change's in doing that.....While checking yesterday she found (thousand's ) of new job's listed in clerical, military, air force so on...In checking all the qualification's and researching them she found in very small print hidden in the text, that the average job seeker would not read , the word's "May be deployed"......She told me about her find right after I said " If they put the draft back, bush's war will be over in hour's".....Her comment to the may be deployed was , this may be a new plot to try and shore up the military...

    Also heard from several old friend all over the country via email last week that there are as many as double the reported casualties since the beginning of bush's war and double on the actual injured....Don't know where they are getting their info but considering all the lie's it could be possible.....Any number is to many for me....Blessings


  94. upside99 Says:

    Comment by Witch1 — October 27, 2007 @ 2:58 pm

    More and more Air Force and Navy personnel are being used for Army/Marine jobs in Iraq now as there aren't enough of the Army/Marine troops available. This has been going on for about 9 months now and is not very well publicized, so anyone who has kids thinking about AF or Navy enlistments, better consider that little gem.


  95. VerbalKint Says:

    So tell me, Exley, how do you feel about the growing consensus that Bush is the worst President ever? I suspect that nearly half of Americans have already reached this conclusion, and by the end of his administration it will be two-thirds.


  96. Doc Rock Says:

    Bush-Cheney have sacrificed thousands of live and tens of thousands of young Americans limbs and mental health for oil. Oil was 22 dollars a barrel before we invaded and 90+ now. What a sad, insane waste.


  97. bilbobaggins Says:

    (It should also be noted that not a single American has been killed by an IED in Anbar province since September 10.)
    Comment by Exley

    You know Loon Exley, if you bothered to get your information any where except for Faux Noise, you would know the reason for that is because we have turned Anbar province over to the Sunnis. There are no Shias there any longer, so there is no reason for them to have a civil war. And since we are paying cash to the Sunni warlords to not kill us, well, they are not killing our guys. That is in no way an example of how Iraq is now safe and our being there is improving conditions. When we have to get to the point where we are bribing people not to kill us, I think we lost a long time ago.

    Things may be a bit less violent in Iraq today but that is meaningless as long as they don't have a functioning government and there is no plan to try to reconcile the country.

    Perhaps the insurgents are just taking a vacation like the Parliament took a vacation.

    The US has no more control in Iraq than they had last week, last month or last year. We are still the burr in the sides of the Iraqi citizens and until we remove the burr, things are not going to get better in Iraq.

    But, Exley, keep on drinking the kool-aid if it makes you feel better.


  98. bilbobaggins Says:

    Bush-Cheney have sacrificed thousands of live and tens of thousands of young Americans limbs and mental health for oil. Oil was 22 dollars a barrel before we invaded and 90+ now. What a sad, insane waste.
    Comment by Doc Rock

    And that is exactly how they planned it. The US oil company's profits are triple or quadruple what they were before we invaded Iraq.


  99. bilbobaggins Says:

    So Loon Exley, where is all the good news on Faux Noise? I went to their website and did a search on "Iraq" and didn't see a lot of good news coming out of Iraq. Are you saying that Faux Noise is now controlled by the left?

    What I do think is happening is that there is a blackout on news from Iraq and I wonder where that is coming from. I suspect that the MSM (controlled by the Right and NOT by the left) has decided to stop reporting on Iraq so that they can concentrate on Bush's ratcheting up of rhetoric on Iran.


  100. Gregor Samsa Says:

    Exley seems to believe "c_cksucker" is German for "I am sorry", and is more than happy to ignore all the death and destruction caused in Iraq before his pathetic little Sep 10 benchmark.

    Newsflash: Iraqi deaths haven't stopped since, and will not stop any time soon, as long as the occupation continues.

    Unsurprisingly, the cultists are lowering the bar once again in order to keep supporting Pres Bush's disastrous occupation of Iraq.


  101. bilbobaggins Says:

    So Exley, do the Lefties own the BBC? Go here and read all the good news about Iraq:

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/middle_east/2002/conflict_with_iraq/default.stm


  102. onoclea Says:

    One thing I've personally noticed about info from Iraq is that there is a dearth of anything on the ground about life in Basra since the British left. There was a Reuters UK report early in Oct that reported Iraqis saying things were calmer and another later in the month about the Mahdi army causing street fights and the Iraqi police saying they had the situation under control. I've suspected that a lot of the violence in Iraq is directly and indirectly a result of our presence and see Basra as test case of that theory. Should Basra maintain itself without occupation forces it could be a relevant argument for our own withdrawal.


  103. Exley Says:

    "So Exley, do the Lefties own the BBC?"

    Bilbo, you're joking, right? Read and learn...Even the BBC itself has had to admit it has a left-wing bias:

    June 17, 2007

    BBC report damns its ‘culture of bias’
    Richard Brooks and Dipesh Gadher
    Timesonline.co.uk

    THE BBC is institutionally biased, an official report will conclude this week. The year-long investigation, commissioned by the BBC, has found the corporation particularly partial in its treatment of single-issue politics such as climate change, poverty, race and religion.

    It concludes that the bias has extended across drama, comedy and entertainment, with the corporation pandering to politically motivated celebrities and trendy causes.

    The report points to the danger of BBC programmes being undermined by the liberal culture of its staff, who need to challenge their own assumptions more. “There is a tendency to ‘group think’ with too many staff inhabiting a shared space and comfort zone,” says the report.

    See also:

    BBC viewers angered by its 'innate liberal bias'
    By Nicole Martin

    Last Updated: 2:17am BST 21/06/2007
    Commentary: The BBC impartiality report
    Read the report in full (PDF)

    The BBC is operating in a "left-leaning comfort zone" and has an "innate liberal bias" according to a report commissioned by the corporation.

    The report, From Seesaw to Wagon Wheel, said that the BBC's drift towards a liberal-minded approach to programmes risked stifling originality and angering viewers.

    All this, he said in the report, "creates an innate liberal bias inside the BBC".

    Telegraph.co.uk


  104. Exley Says:

    "You know Loon Exley, if you bothered to get your information any where except for Faux Noise..."

    Actually, Bilbo, if you read carefully, you would see I cite several sources, including the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)...(See posting 66)

    Normally, I would give you a "nice try," but your lie was so easily refutable, I can't even give you that...If you are going to continue to lie, at least try and do a better job of it.


  105. Lefty Patriot Says:

    If you are going to continue to lie, at least try and do a better job of it.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 5:11 pm

    follow Exley's example, in other words. Exley is a professional liar.


  106. Lefty Patriot Says:

    All this, he said in the report, “creates an innate liberal bias inside the BBC”.

    Telegraph.co.uk

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 5:05 pm

    now we know why the BBC is trusted to get it right, unlike the rightwing American media.


  107. Lefty Patriot Says:

    You know, folks, a liberal bias is necessary if the truth is to be told. Just remember, FOX news went to court for its right to lie. Not only do they lie, they sue for the right. they are proud of lying, like the straussian neocons, whose whole phiosophy is based on lies. without the liberal bias towards the truth, fascism rears its head. As it is now, in America.


  108. Lefty Patriot Says:

    So, Bilbo, don't be bothering to characterize the BBC as neutral. Once they become neutral, they become "fair and balanced" just like FOX. The liberal bias is necessary for the survival of freedom and democracy. Don't forget, the USA was founded by liberals.


  109. EvilCornbread Says:

    Exley, don't even bother. I'm (on most topics) a liberal, but the forums on this site have taken such a dramatic downturn over the last year...it's just sad. We're approaching freep-level namecalling and kneejerking here. Pathetic.

    To actually address some of the points you've been making like an adult:

    I think what Zooey was saying back in #3 was that it's not just about US soldiers, and that it's crass to measure the success of the war just on those terms. The lack of IED deaths is an improvement, to be sure. But as others have said that's a pretty narrow view -- there are still injuries and that's only one province, and there's far still too much death and injury happening for very very questionable reasons.

    Not that she was saying that she was hoping for more US casualties. I think that's a willful misreading of "That’s the bottom line with you..".


  110. Arn Gunnutes Says:

    follow Exley’s example, in other words. Exley is a professional liar.

    Comment by Lefty Patriot — October 27, 2007 @ 5:14 pm

    Uh uh, professional PSYOPS from the TRAITORS in the Pentagon:

    http://www.iwar.org.uk/iwar/


  111. Gregor Samsa Says:

    To correct Exley's "correction":

    If you've read the newspapers, you may have got the impression that a BBC report on impartiality has concluded that the BBC is "institutionally biased". [...]
    The Daily Mail headline said "BBC comes under fire for institutional left-wing bias". [...]
    In fact, the report doesn't reach that conclusion - though it does quote people who hold those beliefs - and it also reflects concern over programmes associated with the Make Poverty History campaign, notably The Vicar of Dibley. [...]
    Richard Tait, the BBC Trust member who chaired the team overseeing the report, is a former editor of ITN.
    He said: "It doesn't say the BBC has a liberal bias - it says the BBC will have to work even harder to maintain the trust of the audience in future. "

    Does the BBC have a bias problem?

    Here is a link to the report itself.

    But the spinmeister will always grasp at straws to question the credibility of anyone who doesn't repeat their talking points mindlessly, regardless of what the facts actually are. Much like Limbaugh and his "phony soldiers" comment. Or FoxNews' contention that there were no America casualties this week in Iraq. Even if that were true, Iraqis continue to die. Apparently those deaths don't count for FoxNews.


  112. Gregor Samsa Says:

    I think that’s a willful misreading of “That’s the bottom line with you..”.
    Comment by EvilCornbread — October 27, 2007 @ 5:36 pm

    Of course it is. Exley hasn't found any fact yet that wasn't worth bending and distorting, in his quest to drum up support for his Dear (mis)Leader and the occupation of Iraq.


  113. army193 Says:

    Fact: The Surge is to give breathing space for political parties to come together.

    Fact: The Political parties have stated they have no plans to accomplish this task.

    How many more soldiers do you want to die?


  114. Lefty Patriot Says:

    How many more soldiers do you want to die?

    Comment by army193 — October 27, 2007 @ 6:30 pm

    If you're talking to me, then none. If you're talking to Bushco's koolaid swiggers like Exley, then it doesn't matter, as long as he doesn't have to go.


  115. Lefty Patriot Says:

    In conclusion, Exley was lying again, although it is not clear that any left-wing bias is a negative. Left-wing bias is in favor of truth, not cover-up. Truth, not spin. Facts, not bullshit. Left-wing bias is so hated by the right because it always exposes their lies and propaganda.


  116. alpuz3 Says:

    pffffft... what is "left-wing" to you der anyhows Exley?

    You were lying from the get go. Here let me remind you...

    Zooey,

    It saddens me to read that you are unhappy that no American soldier has been killed by an IED in Anbar Province in since early September.

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:13 pm
    Add Karma Recommend (1) | Report Abuse

    You is der mayer of crazyville, der scrumptious.

    dishonest, always w/ the dishonesty.

    deceitfulness shown in someone's character or behavior : the dismissal of thirty civil servants for dishonesty and misconduct. • a fraudulent or deceitful act.


  117. alpuz3 Says:

    Truth, not spin. Facts, not bullshit. Left-wing bias is so hated by the right because it always exposes their lies and propaganda.

    Comment by Lefty Patriot — October 27, 2007 @ 6:39 pm

    Bam! Spot on.


  118. Zooey Says:

    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 2:15 pm

    Just like you to wait until I'm gone to pull more passive/aggressive crap. Your chickenshit maneuver didn't pan out for you, did it Exley?

    Thanks for your support, everyone. Evil Cornbread cut right to the heart of the matter in #108:


    I think that’s a willful misreading of “That’s the bottom line with you..”.
    Comment by EvilCornbread


  119. bilbobaggins Says:

    Normally, I would give you a “nice try,” but your lie was so easily refutable, I can’t even give you that…If you are going to continue to lie, at least try and do a better job of it.
    Comment by Exley

    So where was the lie. I said that there was no "good news" from Iraq on Faux Noise. Do you care to prove otherwise?


  120. bilbobaggins Says:

    Left-wing bias is so hated by the right because it always exposes their lies and propaganda.
    Comment by Lefty Patriot

    That's why Media Matters ended up at the top of their "Most Feared List".


  121. katy Says:

    TIMES and TELEGRAPH - both murdoch properties…
    …

    i knew i’d read something somewhere… this is one story:

    The Iraq news blackout: how the press spent its summer vacation
    by Eric Boehlert
    […]
    The media’s coverage from Iraq has naturally ebbed and flowed over the four-and-a-half years since the invasion. And escalating security concerns in Iraq have made it both more difficult and more expensive for news organization to operate there.

    But the pullback we’ve seen this summer, the chronic dearth of on-the-ground reporting, likely marks a new low of the entire campaign. It’s gotten to the point where even monstrous acts of destruction cannot wake the press from its self-induced slumber.
    […]
    http://mediamatters.org/columns/200709050002

    .

    although, i wouldn’t hesitate to make a bet that it’s NOT “self-induced”…
    …


  122. Leftside Annie Says:

    "Facts are stupid things." - Ronald Reagan

    Nuff said.


  123. Exley Says:

    "Just like you to wait until I’m gone to pull more passive/aggressive crap."

    Actually, Zooey, it was you who ran away from this discussion after you realized that you had failed to read correctly. Your desire to ran from your embarrassment is understandable, however.


  124. Exley Says:

    "I think what Zooey was saying back in #3 was that it’s not just about US soldiers, and that it’s crass to measure the success of the war just on those terms."

    Evil Cornbread, I admire your effort to try and unravel Zooey's baffling comments in an effort to defend her reprehensible comment. I understand it is difficult trying to decipher her rather childish and crude way of expressing herself.

    However, your theory of what Zooey was attempting to say does not hold water, for as we can see from Gen. Sherlock's comments, he was not addressing only violence against U.S. troops in Iraq, but violence in that country generally.

    Zooey failed to comprehend that or (more likely) simply chose to ignore it.

    Moreover, as I pointed out repeatedly, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) also reported this week the dramatic decrease in violence in Iraq against Iraqi civilains.


  125. Exley Says:

    "How many more soldiers do you want to die? -- Comment by army193"

    Speaking for myself, none. That is why I was pleased to report the overall decrease in violence in Iraq, including the fact that no America soldier has been killed by an IED -- the deadliest weapon used against American troops in Iraq -- in Anbar since September 10.

    It was reporting that fact that Zooey "sick."


  126. Exley Says:

    "Exley, don’t even bother. I’m (on most topics) a liberal, but the forums on this site have taken such a dramatic downturn over the last year…it’s just sad. We’re approaching freep-level namecalling and kneejerking here. Pathetic."

    Evil Cornbread, I agree with you. This site used to be home to a much more elevated level of discourse between those with various opinions. I have had many interesting and challenging discussions with various liberals here. It has seriously degenerated over the past. Clearly, Zooey's comment at posting #3 is symptomatic of that degeneration. In response to my posting, which was a recap of this week's Pentagon briefing describing the recent dramatic drop in violence across Iraq, Zooey chose not to answer with facts or an article or a link in support of her point of view, but rather opted to write the childish taunt that I make her sick. That is not debate. That is not discourse. That is, as you said, pathetic.


  127. Lefty Patriot Says:

    That is, as you said, pathetic.

    Comment by Exley — October 28, 2007 @ 3:08 am

    Describing your lies perfectly. Pathetic. And your parsing of the destruction of your points; pathetic. and your support for the failures of your leadership: pathetic. And your general lowering of the discourse through lies and propaganda: pathetic. It's the perfect word to apply to you, Exley, and you wear it well, with your never-ending whining and schoolyard denial. You are pathetic, indeed. and your running away from the conversation when you were getting your ass handed to you is the culmination of your cowardice and chickenhawk behavior. Pathetic.


  128. Lefty Patriot Says:

    Leave it to a Repuplican coward like Exey to return in the dead of night like a sneak thief to drop more lies and steal more truth. What a pathetic chickenshit.


  129. dbadass Says:

    Sarcasm doesn't seem to be your strength. This attempt falls way flat.


  130. Zooey Says:

    Wrong again, Exley. Five hours in the Math Lab was preferable to watching you degenerate into a quivering pile of goo.

    My advice to you: Stop digging.


  131. Exley Says:

    Actually, Zooey, as pointed out, my posts were documented facts--facts which apparently upset you, such as the fact that:

    no American soldier was killed in Anbar last week and none killed thee by an IED since September 10; car bombs are down by 65 percent; fatalities due to car combs have decreased by 81 percent; casualties due to enemy attacks are down by 77 percent; and the violence during this last Ramadan period was the lowest in three years.

    Now I know these facts upset you because it shows that you are wrong about what is going on in Iraq.


  132. Zooey Says:

    (It should also be noted that not a single American has been killed by an IED in Anbar province since September 10.)
    Comment by Exley — October 27, 2007 @ 1:01 pm

    I was not talking about Iraq in my comment in #3, and you know it. The statement above, your statement, disgusted me. I called you out on it, and you attempted to turn it around on me. It didn't work. It will never work. We know what you're about here.

    People here also know what I'M about, and will never fall for your games. Except for O Bigass, but he's one of you anyway, and who gives a shit?

    Once again, you can never be wrong. I understand that it's one of your character flaws, but it can be overcome, if you ever decide to grow up and stop trying to manipulate people.

    Get a life, and try to understand that this country isn't the only country on the planet, nor are we better or more valuable than anyone else.

    You are disgusting.


  133. Exley Says:

    Once again, Zooey, you are embarrassing yourself by deliberately ignoring all the other statistics cited in my various postings -- statistics which you initially missed and were too ashamed to admit you missed.

    Again, here are the numbers (Hopefully your time in the Math Lab studying algebra will help you grasp these better):

    No American soldier was killed in Anbar last week and none killed thee by an IED since September 10; car bombs are down by 65 percent; fatalities due to car combs have decreased by 81 percent; casualties due to enemy attacks are down by 77 percent; and the violence during this last Ramadan period was the lowest in three years.

    You might also want to read the information from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN): "Iraq: Violence-related deaths drop ‘remarkably’, say authorities and UN"
    (See posting #66)

    Hopefully, Zooey, as you move ahead with your education, you will become a more effective debater and conversationalist. You never support any of your arguments with facts, articles, or links. You simply engage in childish taunts and name-calling.

    If you want to become an effective advocate, I suggest you starting reading newspapers, news magazines, books, and other materials thay you can cite to lend weight to your assertions.


  134. Zooey Says:

    Exley, you don't get to assigned emotions and feelings to me. Get it?

    This is not worth my valuable time, so you can stay here and try to grind me into the ground as long as you like. You'll only be talking to yourself.

    I pity you.


  135. Exley Says:

    Here is yet another article about the remarkable drop in violence in Iraq (Zooey missed this one too):

    Violence in Iraq drops sharply: Ministry
    Mon Oct 22, 2007 1:01pm EDT

    BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Violence in Iraq has dropped by 70 percent since the end of June, when U.S. forces completed their build-up of 30,000 extra troops to stabilize the war-torn country, the Interior Ministry said on Monday.

    Washington began dispatching reinforcements to Iraq in February to try to buy Iraq’s feuding political leaders time to reach a political accommodation to end violence between majority Shi’ites and minority Sunni Arabs that has killed tens of thousands and forced millions from their homes.

    While the leaders have failed to agree on key laws aimed at reconciling the country’s warring sects, the troop buildup has succeeded in quelling violence.

    Under the plan, U.S. troops left their large bases and set up combat outposts in neighborhoods while launching a series of summer offensives against Sunni Islamist al Qaeda, other Sunni Arab militants and Shi’ite militias in the Baghdad beltway.

    Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Abdul-Karim Khalaf told reporters that there had been a 70 percent decrease in violence countrywide in the three months from July to September over the previous quarter…

    In Anbar, a former insurgent hotbed where Sunni Arab tribes have joined U.S. forces against al Qaeda, there has been an 82 percent drop in violent deaths.


  136. Shayne Says:

    Laxative Boy and Bigfool keep moving the goal posts all over the field. This story is about soldiers in BAGHDAD not Anbar as Exlax was talking about. And they didn't say anything about less violence being satisfactory they said it wasn't worth "ANOTHER SOLDIER'S LIFE". That means not one more, not that they'd be happy with less deaths or injuries which in just as many cases also destroy the soldier's life. And Bigdufus, "phony soldiers" is a term started by your side referring to soldiers who spoke up against the war. Now we know you're very ignorant, that comes as no surprise to anybody here. But do you really expect us to believe you don't listen to Rush religiously? Please.


  137. Shayne Says:

    Oh and Exlax, you can beat a dead horse, but you can't make it run. You can spin like the whirling dervish you are but everybody here figured you out yesterday. And Bigfool you keep carrying that koolaid, it's made you effing brilliant.


  138. Shayne Says:

    And the laxative kid talking about somebody else being embarassed, that's priceless.


  139. Exley Says:

    Shayne, You seem to be suffering from the same reading comprehension problem as Zooey. Facts are facts. The surge and Gen. Petraeus' strategy have worked remarkably well. Even the UN acknowledges that (See posting #66). Facts are stubborn things. Face it, you were wrong and President Bush was correct.


  140. Shayne Says:

    Sorry Exley but I don't read most of your posts. The first sentence or so is enough to see the spin you're trying to perpetrate. You can type until your fingers bleed, it won't make what you wish so. And it doesn't relate to this thread about soldier's thinking it's not worth one more of their lives. Sorry.


  141. Exley Says:

    "Sorry Exley but I don’t read most of your posts..."

    Actually, Shayne given the vapidity and lack of substance of your postings, it is quite clear you, like Zooey, do not read much of anything.

    I will give you the same advice I gave Zooey -- If you want to become an effective advocate, I suggest you starting reading newspapers, news magazines, books, and other materials that you can cite to lend weight to your assertions.

    Note that my posts cite sources such as Reuters, Associated Press, Times of London, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), etc.

    That's called 'supporting one's argument.' Try it sometime.


  142. willyloman Says:

    Exley; you do know who Stephen Biddle is?

    " Biddle was an adviser to Petraeus last spring but believes the general's testimony was ''potentially misleading''

    " Petraeus came up with his ''over 45 percent'' decline by comparing December 2006 and this past August. The December number, in particular, stands out as questionable."

    "Col. Steven Boylan, Petraeus's spokesman, said of December's number: ''Do we have 100 percent confidence in it? No. But it is the best data we have available.'' The number may have included some double counting..."

    "A TOTAL of 1,654 Iraqi civilians were killed last month, according to a Times report that quoted an Interior Ministry official. Or the total was 1,280, according to the British group Iraq Body Count. Or 884 (Reuters), or 827 (The Washington Post, quoting the Health Ministry). "

    In the end, the numbers may be slightly down due to simply arming the Sunnis and allowing them to "cleanse" Anbar of Shia. Who knows. But the numbers are up since all of 2004. That is certain.

    If you wish to check my source, it is current (Oct. 7th 2007) and it is reputable (New York Times).

    The Good Generals numbers for Dec. are misleading.

    http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B00EFDD1638F934A35753C1A9619C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print


  143. EvilCornbread Says:

    "Face it, you were wrong and President Bush was correct."

    Well violence has certainly seemed to take a nice downturn, but let's not get carried away with ourselves. Assuming while we're at "surge" levels the violence continues to decline (a big assumption), and assuming the violence doesn't rise in response to our pulling out (another big assumption) and assuming the Iraqi public is capable and willing to establish a peaceful long-term government (the biggest assumption of all), then maybe, just maybe, this war will be worth the mind-boggling cost in dollars and lives.

    But we're a long, LONG way from that, and it's going to take a TON more than a monthly dip in violence to convince me that this war is anything other than a disaster for our country.


  144. Lefty Patriot Says:

    maybe, just maybe, this war will be worth the mind-boggling cost in dollars and lives.

    But we’re a long, LONG way from that, and it’s going to take a TON more than a monthly dip in violence to convince me that this war is anything other than a disaster for our country.

    Comment by EvilCornbread — October 28, 2007 @ 4:02 pm

    if by some miracle we were to "win", whatever that means, that war would still not be worth the money and lives spent on it. it was unnecessary, foolish, venal, illegal, immoral and waged for profit. No matter what the final outcome is, years from now, it will always be a loss for America. Just like Viet Nam.


  145. Exley Says:

    #145,

    Evil Cornbread,

    "But we’re a long, LONG way from that..."

    Agreed...The recent success of the surge is reason to be optimistic but it is not a reason to become complacent or think that this war is over. The key is for us to continue the military push...continue the Petraeus strategy...continue to encourage the Sunni tribesmen to turn against Al Qaeda in Iraq...and continue to put pressure on the Iraqi national government to devise a political reconciliation among all stakeholders in Iraq. The last point is the most important. Our military and our Iraqi allies are doing a magnificent job of quelling much of the violece in Iraq and routing Al Qaeda in Iraq. But all that will be for naught unless the Iraqi government gets its act together and forms a workable coalition.


  146. HadEnough? Says:

    Folks:

    It's been almost 1700 days since fly boy stood on the deck of the Lincoln with the "Mission Accomplished" banner waving in the back ground.

    No WMD's, no immediate threat, no links to Al-Qaeda....all of the reasons to go to war were WRONG! Even if the administration believed there were, they were WRONG! There would NOT have been any support to enter into Iraq had it not been for the above reasons...and they got it WRONG! Over 3000 dead soldiers because this administration got it WRONG!

    Why hasn't anyone asked "Mr President, why did you not fire your chief advisors when you foudn out they got it WRONG!" "And when will you, Mr President, submit your resignation to the American people for your collasal mistakes that have killed THOUSANDS?"

    As with Rome, we are doomed.



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