Ricks: Baghdad Only Seems ‘Peaceful’ Because 2006 Was ‘Pure Hell’
Ricks: Baghdad Only Seems ‘Peaceful’ Because 2006 Was ‘Pure Hell’
Discussing the one-year anniversary of President Bush’s call for the “surge” on MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann last night, Washington Post Pentagon reporter Thomas Ricks said that, “judged on the terms in which the president presented it, the surge has not worked.” “The purpose was to improve security, but to improve it to lead to a political breakthrough,” said Ricks. “And that political breakthrough has not happened.”
Asked about whether the Iraqis “think it has worked,” Ricks said they “recognize that large parts of Baghdad are more peaceful,” but only compared to the “pure hell” of 2006:
I think Iraqis recognize that large parts of Baghdad are more peaceful than they were, but violence is basically back to 2005 levels. And that was no picnic, 2005. It’s just 2006 was pure hell.
Watch it:
Ricks is correct that the “surge” has failed to bring the political progress Bush sought. He is also right that the security situation had already turned bad in 2005:
– “The numbers of car bombs, suicide car bombs and roadside bombs all doubled from 2004 to 2005.”
– In 2005, there were more U.S. casualties in Iraq (846) than there were in 2006 (821).
– On Feb. 27, 2005, Knight Ridder quoted then-Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman Sabah Kadhim warning about sectarian violence, “It’s the beginning, and we could go down the slippery slope very quickly. … Both sides are sharpening their knives.”
– On Sept. 26, 2005, CBS News reported that “there is an undeclared civil war already underway in Iraq, between the Sunni minority who ruled this country under Saddam and the Shiite majority.”
Ricks also criticizes Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) for their Wall Street Journal op-ed yesterday declaring that “the surge worked.” “From their perspective, perhaps, the surge is a success” because “Iraq is no longer on the front pages every day” and “that might be the exact definition of success they were looking for,” said Ricks.
As a matter of fact, McCain recently remarked on the “surge’s” effect on his political fortunes, saying “Thank God it’s off the front pages.”
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42 Responses to “Ricks: Baghdad Only Seems ‘Peaceful’ Because 2006 Was ‘Pure Hell’”
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OT: I'm just saying:
NH vote anomalies, this is the WHOPPER
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_bruce_o__080110_obama_clint...
Analysts at the Election Defense Alliance (EDA) have confirmed that based on the official results on the New Hampshire Secretary of state web site, there is a remarkable relationship between Obama and Clinton votes, when you compare votes tabulated by op-scan v. votes tabulated by hand:
The percentages are exactly opposite and match to within .0001%. Optical Scan Clinton 91,717 52.9507% Obama 81,495 47.0493% Total 173,212 Hand Counted Clinton 20,889 47.0494% Obama 23,509 52.9506% Total 44,398
January 11th, 2008 at 2:44 pmMcCain + Lieberman = WAR PIGS
January 11th, 2008 at 2:45 pmPray tell how did we get to the point where the Bush gangster regime has occupied Afghanistan and Iraq longer than the German Nazis occupied the Netherlands, Belgium and France in the 1940s? Stolen Eledtions, my friend. Elections stolen both electronically and manually in 2000, 2002 (the GOP Senate "majority" was based on electronically stolen Senate elections in Minnesota and Georgia) and 2004. Elections rigged by sore-loser Republicans, who can't seem to win in a honest election...
Further comments:
In another vein, do you believe In Diebold We Trust? Many "progressive" and "liberal" websites do not seem to want to talk about or investigate any possible electronic vote flipping in the recent New Hampshire Democratic Party. Check out http://www.bradblog.com, http://www.blackboxvoting.org or http://www.opednews.com for some detailed information on the monkeybusiness that went on there on the optical scanning vote counting equipment by Diebold on Tuesday. It would seem that the Obama votes were flipped for Clinton votes (exchanged), thus giving Clinton her "amazing" "come from behind" blah blah blah election "victory." I am not suggesting that this was done by Hillary operatives, no, it was more likely done by the Bush gangster regime, just to screw up Democratic primary politics… There seems to be no limit to which the Bush gangsters or Republicans or large corporations will stoop…. The coming "Super Tuesday" primaries may be "Super Diebold Tuesday" for all we know…
Progressives and liberals better get their heads out of the sand and start demanding 100% hand-counted paper ballots in all elections or we are going to see a repeat of the Bush electronic theft of the 2004 Presidential Election.
As long as we have Republican corporations, such as Diebold or ES&S, "counting" our votes in private with secret proprietary software, we are going to be ruled by Republican fascists…
Cheers.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:48 pmWAR PIGS
by Black Sabbath
1970
January 11th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
3 - Appropriate, DNFP. Very appropriate. Thanks for posting those lyrics.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:50 pmfrom a review of Ricks' book "Fiasco":
'Mr. Ricks argues that the invasion of Iraq “was based on perhaps the worst war plan in American history,†an incomplete plan that “confused removing Iraq’s regime with the far more difficult task of changing the entire country.†The result of going in with too few troops and no larger strategic plan, he says, was “that the U.S. effort resembled a banana republic coup d’état more than a full-scale war plan that reflected the ambition of a great power to alter the politics of a crucial region of the world.â€'
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/25/books/25kaku.html
January 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pmComment by Leftside Annie
Your post inspired me to dig those up. Heard it on XM last week, and had forgotten how fitting the lyrics are to our current situation.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:57 pmI think you are right, aka James,
The Democratic political machine here in Essex Co. New Jersey pushed through Sequoia DRE machines over our unanimous and vocal opposition in County Freeholder meetings. Now they can't make them work and they can't make them print a paper trail (all like we told them before the purchase).
If it seems the numbers don't make sense, there is a good reason. They've been fixed. We must insist that they prove themselves accurate, now.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:57 pmComment by DieNowForPeace — January 11, 2008 @ 2:49 pm
---
i like the CAKE cover better
>.>
January 11th, 2008 at 2:57 pmBut Bush is about to broker Peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis so it will all be better pretty soon.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:58 pm“Iraq is no longer on the front pages every dayâ€
and THAT is on purpose... corporate medai just following instrucitions...
January 11th, 2008 at 2:58 pmi like the CAKE cover better
>.>
Comment by deebaser
Hmm, never heard it. Met the singer once, such an incredibly arrogant, short, bald dick-head, I threw away the one album I had.
His bandmates hated him too.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:02 pmwow... my fingers and brain were not coodinating above...
January 11th, 2008 at 3:03 pmThe "surge" has been a success in that the Republicans define victory or success in terms of their own local politics. "Winning" or "Losing" has always been about their own domestic political status. This is why they can constantly use the terms, there is no intelligent and honest intellect that could grasp how we can win this kind of sloppy conflict, the definitions simply do not apply. But for Republicans they have "succeeded" because they have been able to get Baghdad out of the news which is all that matters to them. To believe that Lieberman and McCain give a rats ass about some brown people in the desert is pure idiocy.
This is the game that Republicans play - they conflate their own politics with America as a whole. Thus you get anyone disagreeing with them being "anti-American" and nonsense like that.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:04 pmI wonder how peaceful it'd be if the two million people who fled to other countries tried to return to their homes. And if the other two million people who fled to "safer" neighborhoods, likewise, tried to return home.
It'd be even more manageable if everyone left.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:05 pmAnd let's not forget that violence is bound to decline if regions have been ethnically cleansed so that there are no opposition forces around to fight.
Also, with tens of thousands of refugees have fled the country it leaves fewer targets to kill.
The surge stats promoted by the government and the media are worse than useless without this context - they are lies!
.....News Corpse
January 11th, 2008 at 3:06 pmThis is the game that Republicans play - they conflate their own politics with America as a whole. Thus you get anyone disagreeing with them being “anti-American†and nonsense like that.
Comment by lefty
well said....
January 11th, 2008 at 3:09 pm"If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you and may posterity forget that ye were once our countrymen."
- Samuel Adams apparently channeling the neo-cons of the 21st century
January 11th, 2008 at 3:10 pm"Better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear."
- Aesop
"That the said Constitution shall never be construed to authorize Congress to infringe the just liberty of the press or the rights of conscience; or to prevent the people of the United states who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms..."
- Samuel Adams
"We discovered that peace at any price is no peace at all."
January 11th, 2008 at 3:15 pm- Eve Denise Curie
McCain + Lieberman = WAR PIGS
Comment by Leftside Annie — January 11, 2008 @ 2:45 pm
Why do you think Cheney has no fear of Congress cutting off funding for the Crusade?
Arrest David Rockefeller - they all work for him.
It’s time to raise the level of discourse where the term “Conspiracy†is concerned:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/library/reports/2005/franklin_indictment_04aug2005.htm
We’ve all been conditioned to snicker and ridicule when non-professionals offer theories about conspiracies. It’s time to talk about all of these theories and unravel the whole thing.
The Abramoff, AIPAC and Libby Trials are ALL THE SAME CONSPIRACY:
http://plungerspeaks.blogspot.com/
Cheney sent Ledeen to meet with Ambassador Mel Sembler in Italy to plant the forged Niger document.
COINCIDENTALLY…
Mel sembler heads up Scooter Libby’s Legal defense fund
AND
Despite the fact he’s a lifelong Republican, Sembler held a fundraiser for Lieberman in Palm Beach - in coordination with Rove and the WH.
Connect ALL the dots…
Lieberman is now assigned the task of protecting Chertoff.
How does McCain factor in?
A New Jersey-based investment banker deeply involved in fund-raising efforts for the 2004 Republican convention, Lewis Eisenberg, is signing on with Mr. McCain. Mr. Eisenberg is a former Goldman Sachs partner who served as chairman of the Port Authority board at the time of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
WHAT A COINCIDENCE!
It was Eisenberg who passed the $15 billion Asbestos Liability represented by the Twin Towers onto Larry Silverstein, the man who confessed publicly to having Building 7 “PULLED†by explosives – despite the fact that no plane struck it:
Pull the entire thread and don’t stop pulling.
The Asbestos liability belonged to Halliburton, having acquired it along with his acquisition of Dresser.
GW included the issue in his State of the Union speech in 2005:
“To make our economy stronger and more competitive, America must reward, not punish, the efforts and dreams of entrepreneurs. Small business is the path of advancement, especially for women and minorities, so we must free small businesses from needless regulation and protect honest job-creators from junk lawsuits. (Applause.) Justice is distorted, and our economy is held back by irresponsible class-actions and frivolous asbestos claims — and I urge Congress to pass legal reforms this year.â€
January 11th, 2008 at 3:17 pmAs for it getting more "Peaceful" in Iraq...that tends to happen the more you depopulate a place.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:18 pmCake's best song was 'Comfort Eagle'...listen to it sometime; it sums up the Neoturds nicely. In fact, it even references Bigfeet's double-wide trailer!
January 11th, 2008 at 3:25 pmTypical Republican methodology: Screw something up so badly that when it improves slightly it will look like success.
Pass the popcorn, please.
January 11th, 2008 at 3:26 pm"Typical Republican methodology: Screw something up so badly that when it improves slightly it will look like success.
Pass the popcorn, please."
It is what Bush himself called 'the soft bigotry of low expectations' Bush then proceeded to model his presidency on such a maxim.
-GSD
January 11th, 2008 at 3:31 pm“Typical Republican methodology: Screw something up so badly that when it improves slightly it will look like success."
Comment by GSD — January 11, 2008 @ 3:31 pm
Why not? It works with gas prices...
January 11th, 2008 at 3:40 pmoops -- I credited GSD with that quote. It actually came from Willy. Sorry, Willy!
January 11th, 2008 at 3:41 pm'Thank god, mc cain will SOON be off the back pages." altho I want the easiest republican to beat......so far any of them will do.
January 11th, 2008 at 4:07 pmThe surge has worked in enabling a "new" land/air offensive.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23040338-15084,00.html
and...
The need for a large reinforcement, though smaller than the commanders wish, of our forces in Afghanistan.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23032362-401,00.html
I think it's safe to say that any real chance of a significant draw-down, in either theater, is slim for the foreseeable future.
Buschco has succeeded in getting the maximum number of troops pinned down and it's going to be brutal to remove them whether it's 100 days, or 100 years.
The good news? All of the major candidates are smarter than Bush and I don't know if any of them are as bloodthirsty. Even if catastrophe strikes, and we end up with another Rep administration (1 in a million), we will have a better chance. I'm pretty sure any Dem President, even Hillary, would do everything they can to get us out.
January 11th, 2008 at 4:15 pm"large parts of Baghdad are more peaceful"
January 11th, 2008 at 4:55 pmlarge parts of Baghdad are deserted ruins
Fiasco was a great book. Ricks rocks.
January 11th, 2008 at 5:18 pmIraq is now safer than the "socialist sea of paradise" of Venezuela. That is amazing:
http://tinyurl.com/yof9c6
Thank you to all our troops who are serving our nation with courage and commitment.
January 11th, 2008 at 5:20 pmComment by systemlevel
Wow. Using a pile of shit as a yarstick in order to not feel so bad about the trememdous pile of shit you're measuring with it.
Makes perfect Rightwingnut sense...
January 11th, 2008 at 5:38 pmCaptain Mantastic: "He’s saying that because it is undeniable that progress is being made."
Progress towards what? The "surge" was supposed to create an atmosphere where political reconciliation was possible. It hasn't happened and shows no sign of ever happening, so what exactly has the "surge" accomplished? It certainly hasn't accomplished what its stated goals were last summer.
January 11th, 2008 at 5:47 pmJust a little perspective:
More US Military Personnel have been killed in Iraq than ALL US Citizens killed in ALL terrorist attacks from 1920 - 2001 (including Twin Towers attack).
Seems like a clear case cutting off your nose to spite your face.
Way to make us safer GW!
January 11th, 2008 at 6:09 pmI shouldn't need to mention this, but, their is a vast difference between "deaths by homicide" (A category in which Venezuela has been infamous since long before Chavez) and what's happening in Iraq. They have their own share of social, political, and economic strife without having their government toppled. Though, Chavez has been taking some hits in recent challenges to his power. "Impeachment" may be a possibility.
Off Topic: Venezuela has, for lack of a better term, a "bandit culture" in it's wild areas. I have distant relatives who fled in the 1980's because they got sick of having to travel off their ranch in armed convoys. Lot's of horrific stories. They have only resumed visiting their relatives in the last few years.
January 11th, 2008 at 6:19 pmNews Corp,
its more like 1 million that has fled the country.
The REFUGEE crisis is one of the most under-reported stories of 2006
The Flight From Iraq
The Iraq Refugee Crisis - Bill Moyers
January 11th, 2008 at 6:19 pmThe COST of Iraq
oops...
January 11th, 2008 at 6:21 pm2007
weve been there so long, its probably the most under-reported stories
of both years...
McCain says he doesn't mind if we're there for 100 years. Is that what you mean?
January 11th, 2008 at 7:59 pmCaptain, do you really want to continue with this fool's game of comparing this attack and occupation to WWII. We fought the two most formidable industrial/military powers the world had ever known in two major theaters of battle, powers which had annexed much of the world by force by the time we got involved - and it was over in about 3 years. Saddam Hussein was.... what exactly? A two-bit dictator of a fourth-rate military power who hadn't been able to successfully invade anyone and we're still losing soldiers trying to deal with the aftermath. Not one U.S. soldier died because of any insurgency in either Japan or Germany. This has been the worst military and strategic blunder in modern history and we will feel the negative results of this blunder for decades.
January 11th, 2008 at 8:04 pmIf you haven't read, Fiasco, give it a try. Ricks' book is a good read.
January 11th, 2008 at 8:54 pmWhy anyone would take Liebermann's word over a guy like Ricks only demonstrates their ignorance.
[Ricks] Says this:
“I think Iraqis recognize that large parts of Baghdad are more peaceful than they wereâ€
[...] He’s saying that because it is undeniable that progress is being made.
Comment by CaptainMantastic @ 5:01 pm
wow... it's like the trooll's brain just shuts down, the eyes quit seeing,
as soon as the concurring wingnut opinion is reached...
what about the REST of that sentence?:
"but violence is basically back to 2005 levels. And that was no picnic, 2005. It’s just 2006 was pure hell."
how can such an important fact be just ignored, discounted?...
why do the troolls have to keep on lying?...
that quote again, the complete sentence included:
"I think Iraqis recognize that large parts of Baghdad are more peaceful than they were, but violence is basically back to 2005 levels. And that was no picnic, 2005. It’s just 2006 was pure hell."
and it was supposed to be over in less than "6 months"...
4 years ago...
stop the damn LIES.
January 11th, 2008 at 9:35 pmSpeaking of Iraq:
The firefighting system in the massive $736 million embassy complex in Baghdad has potential safety problems that top U.S. officials dismissed in their rush to declare construction largely completed by the end of last year, according to internal State Department documents, e-mails and interviews.
Some officials assert that in the push to complete the long-delayed project, potentially life-threatening problems have been left untouched. "This is serious enough to get someone killed," said a State Department official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he feared retaliation. "The fire systems are the tip of the iceberg. That is the most visible. But no one has ever inspected the electrical system, the power plant" and other parts of the embassy complex, which will house more than 1,000 people and is vulnerable to mortar attacks.
January 12th, 2008 at 11:51 am