Back Tomorrow

Not much going on tonight to blog about. I have a guest in town for the 5th (and last) night in a row, so I don't really have the energy to talk about anything. That and the fact that I ate some fire, I mean Indian food, tonight.

Be good to yourselves in the meantime. I mean it.

UPDATE: Go read this post from Jeff at Beautiful Atrocities. Ok Penraker, you're right, Ward Churchill has given us far more material than I ever could have imagined.

Bush and Putin Part II

Anthony Perez-Miller commented on my first Bush/Putin post about my prediction that Bush would tone down the democracy talk during their summit:

On the whole, I agree with you: it's worth trying to keep Putin looking towards the West, as opposed to, say, trying to reforge the old Sino-Soviet alliance (which may well happen anyway).

But it seems our President is playing hardball. I didn't see the news conference--I was sleeping or something--but as the Independent portrays it, Bush gave Putin something just shy of a public thrashing. Not quite what I expected.

Indeed. Bush let him have it and it wasn't what I expected either. Looks like Putin is sparring back (this is a Drudge link, so I'm not sure how long it will last):

George Bush knew Vladimir Putin would be defensive when Bush brought up the pace of democratic reform in Russia in their private meeting at the end of Bush's four-day, three-city tour of Europe. But when Bush talked about the Kremlin's crackdown on the media and explained that democracies require a free press, the Russian leader gave a rebuttal that left the President nonplussed, TIME magazine will report on Monday.

If the press was so free in the U.S., Putin asked, then why had those reporters at CBS lost their jobs? Bush was openmouthed. "Putin thought we'd fired Dan Rather," says a senior Administration official. "It was like something out of 1984."

TIME's John Dickerson: The Russians did not let the matter drop. Later, during the leaders' joint press conference, one of the questioners Putin called on asked Bush about the very same firings, a coincidence the White House assumed had been orchestrated. The odd episode reinforced the Administration's view that Putin's impressions of America are often based on urban myths fed to him by ill-informed aides.

This is extremely interesting, however it isn't shocking as cronyism and corruption have been so ingrained within Russian society--it's natural that he would assume everyone else would act in the same manner. I thought Bush would ease the pressure, but instead he put the mind of Putin on public display.

Free Lebanon - Rally in San Francisco

I have an on-the-ground blog report of today's "Free Lebanon" rally at City Hall in San Francisco. Truth be told, I came across it on accident as I was heading to the Asian Art Museum with a friend. As I passed the backside of City Hall, I heard some chanting from the steps and, being that this is San Francisco, I figured it to be another "US out of Iraq" type event; so imagine my shock when I turned around and saw about a hundred people joyfully waving American and Lebannese flags right side up. I walked over and heard them shouting "Syria Out of Lebannon" and "Down with Syria." The Lebanese that gathered had pictures of assassinated Prime Minister Rafik Hariri pasted to their flags and banners. In general it was an upbeat event.

As we stood watching, a man around his 40's was standing behind me smoking a cigarrette with a "Free Lebanon - Syria Out" t-shirt tied around his neck. I introduced myself to him and we chatted for a bit about where we were from and how the rally was going. I expressed my support for Lebanese independence and he smiled, thanked me and told me to get the word out. I asked him what he thought about similarities of this situation to what happened in the Ukraine recently and he simply said, "Just like them, we want to be free--just like everyone else that is free."

Shame on all those people that, even to this day, don't think the people of the Middle East are ready for democracy. Shame on them.

Scorecard

Penraker has a scorecard on democracy in the Middle East-ish area. To be fair, I would throw in Turkey and Pakistan as established democracy and dictatorship respectively.

iPods Will Kill Your Brain

I must be very careful in critizing anything that Andrew Sullivan writes without knee-jerking with such speed that my shoes are left on the ground. However, Ian Wood over at Astonished Head wrote a great critique on the latest Sullivan rant against a socialogical trend of people retreating inward into their iPods as they stroll around New York City.

I must start with a disclaimer: I am one of these socially inward people, when I am commuting or getting somewhere on public transportation, that you see walking down the street with earphones in my ear--I have been this way ever since I got my first walkman. So take my responses and disagreement of Sullivan's claims with a grain of salt.

As I read Sullivan's article, I couldn't help but shake that feeling I used to get sitting in church listening to the Preacher's latest sermon; there were way too many generalities spoken about to deliver a well reasoned conclusion from the perspective of one person. The drift to hyperbole based on making assumptions on such a large sample size are unavoidable. Sullivan says:

I was visiting New York last week and noticed something I’d never thought I’d say about the city. Yes, nightlife is pretty much dead (and I’m in no way the first to notice that). But daylife — that insane mishmash of yells, chatter, clatter, hustle and chutzpah that makes New York the urban equivalent of methamphetamine — was also a little different. It was quieter.

Ah, the logical fallicy of appealing to an annonymous authority. I haven't been to New York recently enough to form any kind of judgement as to whether this is true or not, so I won't comment. It just hard for Sullivan to set-up a credible argument with such a lame, broad-brushed stroke.

But, for the sake of argument, let's say Sullivan is right and there are, due to the iPod, substantial numbers of people walking down the streets of our cities, interacting less as they head to work (or wherever they are going). I'd take that as a good thing. Often times when I am crammed on the MUNI like a sardine with a bunch of San Franciscians that only shower on rainy days, one needs a little solace to keep from knocking someone out--especially when I'm running late and the bus is held up by some homeless guy who is trying to negotiate his fare with the bus driver for 10 cents and a box of half eaten M&Ms. We should welcome the iPod as an anestitizer.

Anyway, here is Sullivan's other generalized pot shot:

It wouldn’t be so worrying if it weren’t part of something even bigger. Americans are beginning to narrow their lives.

You get your news from your favourite blogs, the ones that won’t challenge your view of the world. You tune into a satellite radio service that also aims directly at a small market — for new age fanatics, liberal talk or Christian rock. Television is all cable. Culture is all subculture. Your cell phones can receive e-mail feeds of your favourite blogger’s latest thoughts — seconds after he has posted them — get sports scores for your team or stock quotes of your portfolio.

Read the rest of Ian's post for a perfect example of how one uses the avenues of a subculture, in his case a message board, to find a community of people with similar interests who challenged his view and ultimately improved his understanding his problem. (Speculation alert) I think Sullivan is projecting his fear that his pledge drive will be substantially less successful this year. He will no doubt take on the martyr's role of "no one wants to listen to bloggers that challenge your view of the world." Naturally it would have nothing to do with the fact that he can't even make an argument that challenges those that agree with him.

But on a more substantive level, I am unconvinced by Sullivan's argument where he observes, using the sample size of one city, that iPod use is pointing towards America's inward drift. The natural conclusion of that drift is to assume that eventually we'll all be reduced to roaming around in our digital and virtual tribes, striking out at those that cross our boundries. If that is the case, then I lement the day where I run into the "La Tribe Ricky Martin."

Anyway, enough of that. My narrow life and I are going to drink with a bunch of people that I call my friends. I wonder if our narrowing views will converge long enough to form a reasonable conversation.

...as long as "Sweetness" brings those long legs of her's, we should have plenty to talk about.

Happy Birthday Indeed

Daniel Berczik over at Bloggledygook has intercepted a birthday note from Putin to Yuschenko. For the record, I want her cell number too...

Bush and Putin Meet

Today President Bush and Vladimir Putin sat down in the middle of an expanding dust cloud caused by recent events: Ukrainian independence, Putin's growing stranglehold on Russia's already tenuous democracy, Bush's strong rebuke and Russia's support for Iranian nuclear ambitions. I've read a lot of commentary that hopes President Bush uses the opportunity to set Putin straight, but when dealing with Russia, this is a time where I believe some true "nuance" is needed.

This ABC article describes the tensions involved in this summit:

High on the meeting agenda are U.S. concerns over Putin's moves to solidify his power and clamp down on civil and press liberties. Also drawing U.S. alarm are Putin's attempts to influence elections in Ukraine, Russian arms sales to Syria and the Kremlin's close ties to Iran.

But Bush seeks to balance those concerns with a desire for continued cooperation on security issues such as terrorism, weapons proliferation and energy.

For their part, Russian officials dislike what they see as U.S. meddling in their internal affairs and in former Soviet republics where Moscow's influence is waning as some new leaders look westward. Putin argues that the Russian people are accustomed to strong rule by czars and a large government role in everyday life.

In looking at Russia, it is important that we look past the make-up to see her true face. After the failed coup and the subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia made tremendous gains in moving towards creating a democratic government. The progress that was made was considerable only in that they had come from such a deeply totalitarian police-state. However, a large delta doesn't give you a functioning, democratic government. As we have seen with the former regime in Iraq, ex-KGB and communist leaders with blood on their hands reformed in the Russian underground as the Russian mafia. This was partially defensive in nature as they sought self-preservation, but also offensive in that they had always hoped that they could regain control of Russia.

So Putin, as one of the KGB's own, became President over a country that sits on one of the largest nuclear arsenals in the world. They are being threatening internally and externally though a festering Islamic element in Chechnya, diminishing influence in world politics and a staggering, corruption based economy.

Russia's poor economic situation causes them to seek out old partners, often of dubious character, to sell what Russia makes best--arms. However, Putin knows that any Russian weapons or nukes sold to Islamic countries could end up in their back yard. Many, including me, tensed up as Putin sat down with our favorite Mullahs to reassert that Russia would continue to support Iran's "peaceful" nuclear ambitions. However, in looking back, I believe that meeting was intended to be more of a warning to America. Putin has lost out on some major issues to the U.S. recently; like Iraq and, more directly, in the Ukraine. It is no coincidence that Putin made this announcement prior to meeting with President Bush because, in order to protect Russia's position, Putin needs to put some more chips back on table with which to bargain. Putin has clearly reasserted that he will not allow the U.S. to wag any fingers at him, while at the same time reinforcing the reality that Russia is a strategic neccessity with whom we need to work as partners.

Unfortunately, democratic reform in Russia is far off. Their nuclear arsenal in the wrong hands is scary for us, but also terrifying for them in a man-bites-dog scenario. Even though Russia could be burned by Iranian nukes, we have a lot more to lose in a region that is starting to develop in our favor. Putin is far from a benevolent character--he got what he deserved in Iraq and the Ukraine, however expect Bush to tone down the democractic reform talk as it is clear that Russia is an essential partner in fighting our most dangerous enemy: Fundamentalist Islamic Fascism. This makes for strange bedfellows, however, until America can get things stabilized on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, we must continue to engage in PDA (Public Displays of Affection) with some loose women: Russia, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

UPDATE: Marc Schulman at American Future has some highlights from the Bush/Putin press conference.

TF6S and the Fat Man

So, I ran into Michael Moore this morning and we shared a glazed, chili-dog, jelly-donut while discussing current events at a cafe in North Beach. We had this conversation:

Me: Hey Mike, how do you feel about this article in the Telegraph that states that the Taliban's will is broken and that a captured, senior-Taliban leader is working with the new government, and the Americans, to negotiate their surrender?

Mike:

Me: Wake up, Sleepy! Or was that Dopey? Now go read that above paragraph again.

Mike: Really? Oh shit.

Me: I mean, you dedicated your movie Fahrenheit 9/11 to the troops that fought in that "forgotten war." I thought you would be happy to know that things are going really well.

Mike: I'm so depressed. Do you know what this is going to do my name in this town?

Me: Aw man, don't be so hard on yourself. It's not like anyone actually believed that you cared in the first place.

UPDATE: Well, the bigger they are, the harder they fall...or something like that.

Planes, Trains & Automobiles

When I woke up yesterday morning to catch my plane back to San Francisco, my sole desire was to think about pretty things: flowers, rainbows and open meadows--however, in dealing with United Airlines after my flight was cancelled, all I could think of was &@#$, (&@#, *^@#$.

Needless to say I am a little behind at work and I am going to catch Indiana-Purdue game this afternoon. See you tomorrow.

On My Way Back

Hi all. Sorry for the lack of brilliant material, but that's always been problematic here at TF6S. I'm at my alma mater, Indiana University for a few days and I haven't done much other than watch a lot of basketball, drink OB Joyfuls, and hang out with this guy. Once I get out of this cloudy haze and back to San Francisco, I will write about my amazing adventures.

However, I do have time for a quick word to all the University of Michigan folks out there: SWEEP.

Kyoto

There are few things that drive me more nuts than having to listen to defenders of the Kyoto Treaty pin its failure on the Bush Administration. It is absolutely clear that Bush does not support this treaty, however via the SF Chronical, Washington Post reporter Shankar Vedantam repeats the fallacy of Bush's contribution to its demise:

The global environmental movement calls it a historic victory, but critics in the industry and elsewhere say the bang could end in a whimper: Emissions of carbon dioxide will continue to rise, many of the cuts in greenhouse gases claimed under Kyoto probably would have happened anyway, and its future could be derailed by the stony opposition of the Bush administration.

A little political science 101--the United States Constitution requires all treaties to be ratified by the Senate, i.e. the Legislative Branch, not the Executive Branch--you know, the one that Bush and his enviromental hate-squad are in:

“Domestically, treaties to which the United States is a party are equivalent in status to Federal legislation, forming part of what the Constitution calls ‘the supreme Law of the Land.’ Yet, the word treaty does not have the same meaning in the United States and in international law.”1 The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties defines a treaty “as an international agreement concluded between States in written form and governed by international law, whether embodied in a single instrument or in two or more related instruments and whatever its particular designation.”2 Under United States law, however, there is a distinction made between the terms treaty and executive agreement. “In the United States, the word treaty is reserved for an agreement that is made ‘by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate’ (Article II, section 2, clause 2 of the Constitution). International agreements not submitted to the Senate are known as ‘executive agreements’ in the United States.”3 Generally, a treaty is a binding international agreement and an executive agreement applies in domestic law only. Under international law, however, both types of agreements are considered binding. Regardless of whether an international agreement is called a convention, agreement, protocol, accord, etc.; if it is submitted to the Senate for advice and consent, it is considered a treaty under United States law.

So, pray tell, how did the Senate vote on this bill? 95-0: unanimous rejection of the treaty. Here were some notable Senators that voted for the rejection of Kyoto:

• Boxer (D-CA), Yea
• Biden (D-DE), Yea
• Byrd (D-WV), Yea
• Daschle (D-SD), Yea
• Feinstein (D-CA), Not Voting
• Kennedy (D-MA), Yea
• Kerry (D-MA), Yea
• Moseley-Braun (D-IL), Yea
• Murray (D-WA), Yea
• Wellstone (D-MN), Yea

When it comes down to it, no thinking person can put an argument together to support this treaty. Reading further in the SF Chronicle article, a Kyoto supporter reveals her hand:

"The greatest value is symbolic," said Eileen Claussen, president of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, an independent research and advocacy organization that works with many large companies interested in addressing the risks of global warming.

Symbolism? How can one even argue with that logic? At the end of the day its all about good-hearted people and their fabulous intentions, not solving actual problems. Reducing emissions is a noble cause that deserves serious solutions, but the "good-hearted people" won't solve much if the world is enveloped in a brown, Los Angeles-style inversion and they respond by waving their origami fans while cerimoniously cursing Bush with all the good intentions they can muster.

Guitars and Beavers

It's Monday, Valentine's Day, and it's raining like crazy. I stepped out to purchase an overpriced sandwich for lunch when I came across a beaver trying to dam the street. I told him that it would probably be a good idea to try positioning his dam in another neighborhood that wasn't known for having its sewers back-up during flash floods. Trying to appeal to the universal desire where no-one, not even a buck-toothed animal, would want crap pumped into their living rooms, I was sure he would move along--he did.

I couldn't stand the site of his pouty little beaver face, so I offered to buy him an overpriced, soggy sandwich. He piped up and, over a couple of pastrami sandwiches served on Wonderbread, he suggested to me that I should put up some hot guitar licks on this site.

I've never received better advice from a beaver. Anyway, if there is anyone out there that knows the best way to go about doing this, send me an email, or drop a line in the comments section. Maybe I'll get around to putting up a guitar lesson or two a week. A veritable orgy of guitarness awaits!

Best Wishes

From the staff here at Ten Fingers 6 Strings; we wish Pea a speedy recovery.

Whiskies of the World

In light of Kyle's posting of his top five whiskeys, I thought I would take the time to alert everyone to an event that could change your life: The Whiskies of the World Expo 2005. I have homefield advantage in that it will be held in San Francisco.

So Hirsch, you want me to embarrass myself by telling everyone how Booker's 127-proof bourbon almost ended my life? Kyle said the following about Bookers:

It is bottled at a natural proof between 121 and 127; straight from the barrel. I know it sounds a little harsh, but it's incredibly smooth.

When he first got me to try Booker's, he poured me about a shot and a half of the stuff and said, "Take it all down fast, it is really smooth." I was kind of a rookie bourbon drinker at the time, so I tried to be concious of good bourbon edicate; I would smell the aroma then drink a sip and measure its taste on my palate, while savoring its riches. Instead, I found it slightly odd that he would tell me to throw it back in one, "smooth" shot. Being that he was a good friend, I didn't even question it.

Here is how it unfolded:

Picked up glass and without hesitation, poured "smooth" shot down my throat.

Knees buckled. Grabbed counter to keep from falling.

Esophagus caught on fire.

Face turned 14 shades of red.

Toe nails and finger nails popped off.

Heard angels singing arias for a few seconds.

Lost all memories of 6th grade.

Then Kyle laughed his southern-ass off shouting, "The South will riiiiiiise again!" at my yellow-bellied, Yankee sorry-ness.

Iraq Bets are Paying Off and Flowers are Blooming

Many heartening stories have been reported from Iraq in recent weeks, the greatest being the first free election in Iraq, however, it looks as if some of long-term bets the administration made in Iraq are starting to pay dividends.

The initials stages of occupation had to deal with several problems that required long-term solutions being executed in the short-term with a constant and ongoing reassurance to the Iraqi people. Many of the war critics warned that America and its partners were headed into a hornet's nest--and they were right, they did. What the critics don't understand is that, instead of ignoring it, with a little courage and clever thinking, it is better to permanently remove the hornet's nest away from all that it threatens.

After the invasion America entered the hornets nest. They found a population that had been shell-shocked from 25 years of torturous rule under Saddam. Saddam's regime was Stalinist in everyway; he ruled Iraq by terror. Questioning Saddam's authority caused family members to be maimed, tortured or killed in front of the perpetrators. So when the Coalition successfully removed Saddam and his Baathists from power, Iraqi citizens were still reluctant to help for two reasons: (1) after years of seeing severe abuses of power, they were averse to trusting anything that came from positions of authority and (2) knew that there were thousands of muderous Baathists that were still roaming the country. American success in Iraq would hinge on getting Iraqis to believe that our intentions were not to, as Ted Kennedy put it, "reopen Saddam's torture chambers under new management."

Back in September of 2003, Steven Den Beste came up with one of the best visuals to describe this conundrum:

In the Antarctic, penguins nest on land but hunt at sea. There are leopard seals and killer whales who think that penguins are delicious, and who know where the rookeries are located. They hang out in the ocean nearby and wait, looking for a meal. If a group of penguins want to go to sea to hunt, the first few to enter the water take the greatest risk, and no one wants to be the first. So they collect on the edge of the ice, and jostle themselves, and eventually one or two lose their balance and fall in, and then the rest of them dive in after them.

Iraqis are not penguins, obviously, but there's something like that going on. After 25 years where expressing any kind of independence could earn you a horrible death, or earn such a death for everyone you love, it's hard to believe that it's changed. They were told that it was changed, but was it really true? And was it permanent?

There was a natural tendency for most to not take that chance. But a few took small chances, and didn't suffer for it. That encouraged others to try a bit more as time went on.

The first independent newspapers were very tentative. The Americans said they believed in free press, but did they really? And would supporters of Saddam visit the newspapers in the night? It was a risk, and those working on those newspapers were doing things which would have gotten them all killed just two months before.

But they didn't suffer. The Americans left them alone, and they didn't get visited by Baathist death squads. More newspapers appeared and began to be more frank, and Iraq now has the most free press in the Arab world. But that didn't happen overnight.

Part of why this change began slow was simple emotional trauma. People who go through a terrible experience go through a period in which they don't quite believe it's over. They may fear that it will happen again or that something like it will happen; to a certain extent they live in the past, and look fearfully to the future. It can take counseling for some people to really get past this. Some never do.

We're dealing with an entire nation that's going through this. We have to give them time.

During the following year, we noticed that the penguins weren't jumping in the water in the quantities that we had hoped they would. The press and the war detractors mistakenly pinned this as a failure of the United States to convince the Iraqi population that they weren't like Saddam. I disagree. As the Iraqis stood on the edge of the ice, they saw what everyone else refused or couldn't see: the same predators that hunted the Iraqis out in the open before, were quietly lurking below, ready to strike at anyone that was bold enough to take the plunge. Wretchard describes the predators' new hunting method in War Plan Orange; Saddam's plan was to move his terror machine from above to below ground, with the hopes of holding out until America lost its will:

...the successful campaign to prevent the US from pushing the 4ID down from Turkey gave Saddam the time and space to move assets into Syria and disperse munitions and men into the Sunni Triangle. About 600,000 tons of munitions were dispersed throughout the country of which 100,000 tons -- five Hiroshima bombs worth of explosive -- were taken to Anbar province in the Sunni Triangle alone.

...Nor was there any shortage of men to use these weapons. Former CPA Administrator Paul Bremer noted that 100,000 convicted criminals were released just before US forces overran the cities, ready to be officered, along with many Sunnis, by either the cadre of the former Ba'athist dominated armies or international terrorists flooding in from Iran and Syria.

The major modern innovation of the Arab Way of War has been its radical new conception of defense in depth. The concept made its debut in Algeria; it was subsequently refined in Lebanon, Afghanistan, Checnya and the West Bank. Unlike Ushijima's Shuri Line with its tunnels in rock, the Arab redoubt was founded on establishing an underground of terror in the civilian populace. From the anonymity of crowds, they could emerge to attack the enemy from the rear as the Imperial Japanese Army once had done from tunnels. Faced with superior United States forces, this 21st century War Plan Orange was the natural choice of the Arab strategists. By denying the United States proof of its WMDs and grinding them down through occupation warfare -- the one mode of combat at which they excelled, they had a reasonable hope of holding America until a politician willing to treat with them was elected into office. There was no need for despair because, as James Lileks put it, "hope is on the way" -- a reference to the eventual actions of the antiwar Left. In Iraq the ultimate blitzkrieg force met the ultimate protracted war army and the protracted war army awaited events confidently.

However, the United States dug in and got to work. The long process of rooting out these terrorists would be executed through the following measures:

• Creation of a sustainable Iraqi security force from the ground up.
• Development of a robust intellegence operation that networked and mapped the insurgency components. Sources of intellegence would combine various technologies with on-the-ground tips and information gathered from captured enemies.
• Commitment to ruthlessly squash any armed rebellions.
• Rebuilding of Iraq's delapidated civil infrastructure
• Commitment to keeping our word that their country, once the Baathists terrorists were defanged, would ultimately belong to them.

Strategypage posted a detailed analysis of the results from the execution of the first two bullet points:

Iraqi army and police forces are mow in charge of security in 12 of the country’s 18 provinces. The Iraqi armed forces currently have 136,000 trained and equipped personnel on duty, with another 3,500 completing their training this week. The Interior Ministry has 79,000 police and security personnel. These include regular police; special police commandoes (SWAT teams), plus public order and police mechanized battalions; border guard units; and VIP bodyguards ("dignitary-protection elements.") The Defense Ministry has the other 57,000 personnel, who are assigned to the Iraqi army, intervention forces (SWAT teams), National Guard, air force, navy and special operations (the Iraqi Special Operations Forces). These forces are organized into ninety battalions, or which 88 are operating, and two more are still in training, and will be in operation by the end of the month. The battalions tend to be smaller than American units, averaging 400-500 men each. There are some women in police units.

...Iraqi headquarters and intelligence troops are getting computers, and software for managing information. The bases being built for American troops will be turned over to the Iraqis when American troops leave. The American trainers make a point of saying that as soon as Iraqi troops and police can handle security in all 18 provinces, American combat units can go home. Exactly when this happens is up to the Iraqis. The last American combat units to leave will be a few combat brigades serving as reaction forces, to back up Iraqi military units.

The war against the terrorists is mainly a police operation, with Iraqi intelligence personnel and SWAT teams taking the lead in identifying, and arresting (or killing) the terrorists. The SWAT teams and commandoes get most of the publicity, but the work of the new Iraqi intelligence units is crucial (and, for obvious reasons, not given a lot of publicity). A major problem with intelligence work is the corruption that is endemic to Iraq. Eventually, American intelligence forces will turn over their huge collection of data to the Iraqis. But first, the Iraqis have to get control of the corruption that enables the terrorists to bribe or blackmail (by kidnapping a relative, for example) Iraqi intelligence officers. Such corruption is also a problem throughout the security forces, but it’s most troublesome with the Iraqi intelligence personnel. No one is predicting when this problem will be solved, or at least reduced to acceptable levels.

In a related post, they describe how the tide seems to be turning; the insurgents are starting to fear fighting these Iraqi commando units:

But month by month, more Iraqis were identified as effective officers and NCOs. Unfortunately, the few thousand men who filled the bill were spread thinly across a force of some 150,000 police and troops. What this meant, in early 2004, was that where was no Iraqi units that could be used for offensive operations. Meanwhile some foreign police advisors, and American division commanders, took matters into their own hands and collected small numbers of eager and capable Iraqis, and gave them commando or SWAT training. The main need here was for some combat capable Iraqis who could work with American troops in raids and, in particular, operations inside mosques. This worked, and soon the Iraqi Special Operations Force was established. The first battalion, the 36th Special Operations Commando battalion attracted applicants from all over Iraq. Some had served in Saddam’s commando units, but wanted nothing to do with joining the terrorists. Others were Kurds who had been trained by American Special Forces during the 1990s. By the end of 2004, the 36th battalion had 300 trained troops, and effective leadership. By this time, the Iraqi Special Operations Brigade was formed, and additional commando battalions were in training. The terrorists recognized this threat, and began using terror tactics on the families of commando troops. The answer to that was to build a base for the brigade, and their families.

For the police there was the similar Iraqi Security Forces Quick Response units. Basically SWAT teams, which gave police in heavily Sunni Arab areas some offensive forces. The SWAT teams could shoot it out with terrorist units and win. More importantly, the SWAT team commander learned how to outthink the terrorists.

...As more commando battalions and SWAT teams are formed, the rate of formation increases. That’s because Iraqi instructors are taken from existing battalions and teams. In another year, there will be several thousand Iraqis trained, or in training, for commando and SWAT operations. This is what will wipe out the terrorists. The Iraqi police can sort through the arrested a lot more quickly than can Americans, even Americans who speak Arabic. The terrorists also find it demoralizing when they are taken down by Iraqi troops or police. The terrorists recognize the threat, but now regard the Iraqi commando and SWAT operators as difficult targets, just as they do American troops. The result is that this year, you are going to see more battles between Iraqis and terrorists this year, battles the terrorists are going to usually lose.

In the meantime, the United States would have to back-up their talk with their own blood to prove that they were willing to bear any cost to ensure security. Led by the 1st Armored Division, the Coalition was able to suppress the uprising by radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. A few months later, after an initial siege and pullout from Fallujah, the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, backed by the British Black Watch Brigade, retook the city and destroyed the central hub of the insurgency. There the Coalition would unveil torture chambers, car bomb factories and large munition caches, while killing or capturing thousands of terrorists. The terrorists proved they were no match for the Coalition.

So, the Americans proved that they could train fighters and proved that they themselves could fight, but what was being done about changing Iraqi's perception of their invasion intentions? How would America make them believe that they weren't a "hedgemonic empire" bent on stealing their oil? The fourth bullet point, the committment to rebuilding Iraq's infrastructure, was one. I won't detail this here as there are hundreds of examples, but click over to Arthur Chrenkoff to see many examples of how well the Coalition is actively executing these measures.

Ultimately though, the Coalition put its money where its mouth was by delivering on their promise to give political control back to them. On June 28th, 2004 the United States shocked the Iraqi people by peacefully handing Coalition control over to the Iraqi Provisional Government lead by Iyad Allawi. Then President Bush firmly set January 30th, 2005 as the day that the Iraqis would be able to vote in their new leaders. As we saw two weeks ago, 8 million Iraqis jumped off that iceflow and plunged into the water despite threats of deaths and violence. This great act of courage delivered images of smiling Iraqis and joyous celebrations as Iraqis voiced their political views for the first time in their history.

The peanut gallery is right--voting doesn't make a democracy, but yet again they don't see the whole picture. Things are starting to look up and the seeds that America planted early on are starting to bloom. The insurgents may be able wrap their weeds around a couple of flowers here and there, but the garden, with the help of its gardener, is growing and sustaining faster than they can contain it.

Good News in Iraq

I have a longer analysis in the incubator, however, it looks like we are continuing to make steady progress in Iraq:

Terrorists in Iraq have resumed their terrorist campaign of suicide bombings, murders and threats. But there's been a change since the January 30th elections. In many mixed neighborhoods (where Sunni Arabs live next to Shia Arabs and/or other minorities), the amount of tips to police regarding terrorist activity has increased. It's uncertain if this is because of the morale boost from the election turnout, the growing use of Iraqi commandos and SWAT teams for raids against terrorists, or the growing availability of cell phones. It's probably all three. As a result, American and Iraqi security officials are more confident that American troops will be able to start leaving this year. While details are not given, there is apparently better security on the Syrian and Iranian borders. There are dozens of new border guard bases (actually small forts) being built on those borders, and more aircraft and UAVs patrolling there as well.

The economy is booming. The terrorist attacks are too few to paralyze the entire country, and seem to stage their operations mainly for the foreign media friendly to their goals (the return of a Sunni Arab dictatorship).

Duke Eats My Shorts

Oh man, do I hate Duke. The fawning from hacks like "Dukie V." and Andy Katz drives me to root against this team anytime they hit the hardwood.

Oh well. I would just like all you Dukies out there to remember this:

That is 6'3" A.J. Moye blocking 6'11" Carlos Boozer in route to a Hoosier upset. I don't know which was better, watching this block or watch Jason (Jay) Williams walk of the court crying.

This morning I am eating a heeping bowlful of sour grapes.

Out of courtesy, I feel the need to inform my four-person readership about my feelings on the latest "blogosphere" knee-jerk ripple.

Ward Churchill is a dirty, little, filthy, yucky thing. He deserves every ounce of humiliation that comes his way, however, I don't particularly care for all the attention he is getting. Since this professional agitator cannot bring anything of value to the world, the only validation to his existence comes from getting under people's skin. How else would someone of Ward Churchill's standing manage to get his face plastered all over CNN, Fox News, NBC, etc? Do you actually think his academic work enlightens people to American Indian and U.S. History?

If instead of outrage we would have just laughed in his face, his modus operandi would have melted into a slimy, goo-like substance that matches his backbone. I understand it is completely insane for me to believe that his detractors could act with such collective zen, but sometimes absurdities need to be appropriately responded to in-kind.

UPDATE: Here is a perfect example of how to respond "in-kind." Plus, Jeff gets bonus points for using another absurd story to tie into the absurdity of absurd Ward Churchill.

This is a good time to plug my Christmas Wishlist for next year: a Theasaurus.

Don't worry, this blog hasn't gone on hiatus with me soaking in all the incredible blog money that I received from my generous readership. This weekend was more about climbing, watching the Superbowl, eating Argentinian steak and drinking too much beer.

Also, I can relate to this. Last night, I was far more interested in running my fingers over a fretboard than writing. Result: all cats within three miles ran for cover.

If you have a cat problem that needs solving, give me a call and I'll show up with my screaming guitar. The Geneva Conventions won't even touch my torture methods with a ten-foot pole.

Secret Reveled

Astonished Head has found Matt Furey's secret. I used to perform this trick in college to the awe of many (except for that hot little quiet girl Cindy, who just wasn't into medium-sized white guys), but I stopped doing it the second my upstairs neighbors thought it would be funny to play whack-a-mole.

Kofi's "Shocked"

After wondering "where (the) people are and what has happened to them," Kofi yet again struggles with a perplexing issue:

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan was "shocked" by an independent enquiry that found unethical behaviour by the official who ran the oil-for-food programme in Iraq, his chief of staff said.

The enquiry said the official, Benon Sevan, solicited allocations of Iraqi oil from the Baghdad regime of Saddam Hussein and had got questionable cash payments but stopped short of saying he had taken bribes.

Mark Malloch Brown, Annan's chief of staff, said disciplinary proceedings had been started against Sevan, although it was unclear what measures could be taken because Sevan has already resigned from the United Nations.

"The secretary general is shocked by what the report has to say about Mr Sevan, terribly dismayed that a colleague of so many years' standing is accused of breaching the UN code of conduct and staff rules in the way he did," Malloch Brown told reporters.

"He very much doubts there can be any extenuating circumstances to explain the behaviour which appears proven in the report," Malloch Brown said.

Kofi, where do you think your son got the money for his new Beemers? His paper route? Call me dubious as subscriptions to the NY Times seem to be rapidly decreasing.

Volcker told reporters that the findings about Sevan were the "most disturbing" part of the highly technical initial report but cautioned that his investigation was still continuing.

"This is an interim report. It is not the whole story by a long shot," he said at a press conference in New York.

Yep, not by a long shot. Something tells me there will be a purple finger pointed in Kofi's direction under the new Iraqi government, which will be met with further "shock" and "dismay."

"He's Cut, the Russian is Cut!"

Please allow me to continue my streak of bad metaphors--just as the invincible Russian in Rocky IV showed that he could bleed, this week there were two reports of suicide bombers that, although far from pointing to anything conclusive, show that the insurgency in Iraq may be bleeding.

The first story is about a Saudi who had a change of heart:

He wasn't supposed to live, and the way he tells the story today, this "suicide bomber" wasn't quite ready to die. Twenty-one-year-old Ahmed Abdullah al-Shayea had come to Iraq from Saudi Arabia to join the infamous terrorist known as Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi in a holy war against the American infidels. On Christmas morning, 2004, he got his first assignment, to park a tanker truck full of explosives near the high walls around the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad. He didn't know that four fellow terrorists in a Jeep Cherokee following a safe distance behind held the remote-control trigger. When they pushed it, an explosion thundered across the city, killing 10 Iraqi policemen. But al-Shayea, unlike scores of other bombers who've been vaporized beyond recognition, was blown through the windshield and, against all odds, survived.

This story sure doesn't tell the narrative of the fanatical Muslim willing to die in order to kill the enemies of "true Islam." In this instance a young man thought he was on a mission and, when completed, would go back into the ranks and fight another day. Much to his surprise, he was betrayed by the men to which he swore allegiance. His perfidious friends didn't count on their cannon fodder to survive and give up detailed information that would eventually lead to the arrest of some of Zarqawi's top lieutenants.

The treacherous methods that the insurgency is executing doesn't stop there. On election day, the insurgents strapped a bomb to downs syndrom patient:

The suicide attack that was performed on an election center in one of Baghdad's districts (Baghdad Al-Jadeedah) last Sunday was performed using a kidnapped "Down Syndrome" patient. Eye witnesses said (and I'm quoting one of my colleagues; a dentist who lives there) "the poor victim was so scared when ordered to walk to the searching point and began to walk back to the terrorists. In response the criminals pressed the button and blew up the poor victim almost half way between their position and the voting center's entrance".

I couldn't believe the news until I met another guy from that neighborhood who knows the family of the victim. The guy was reported missing 5 days prior to elections' day and the family were distributing posters that specified his descriptions and asking anyone who finds him to contact them.

Seems the insurgents are running out of loyal maniacs. None of these murdering slimeballs made the ultimate sacrifice by stapping a bomb jacket on themselves to disrupt the elections last Saturday. Is it possible that their ranks are so depleted that the leaders of the insurgency are forced to either deceive their own men or to prey on the weak?

The moral cowardice of these numskulls is nothing new. These men hide in schools, used women and children as shields and shoot at coalition troops from Mosques; it should not be surpising that they would stoop so low as to kidnap a handicapped kid, strap a bomb to him and blow him up in a line full of innocent people.

Although these acts are extremely morally deplorable, there may be a silver lining--the enemy is revealing signs that it is losing. If this is a hearts and minds campaign, it doesn't look as if the insurgents are gathering the multitudes of people willing to die for their cause. The Western Press is convinced that the insurgency is "growing" (continue reading that Newsweek article), yet these accounts belie that notion. On Saturday, eight million people publically voted, and the insurgents' big response was a bomb strapped to a weak man.

Time is now on our side--The Coalition strategy of empowering Iraqis to fight for themselves is building, while the insurgency continues to seek out the weak, expending them in the process. The momemtum given by the election will give the American cause a huge boost, while the insurgents continue to lose men, resources and time. I'm waxing confident that the Coalition is going to succeed in Iraq. At this point, we'd be advised to heed the advice that Duke told Rocky, "He's worried. You cut him. You hurt him. You see he's not a machine."

UPDATE: Strange Women Lying in Ponds links to another story in which bold Iraqis fight back:

Citizens of Al Mudiryiah were subjected to an attack by several militants today who were trying to punish the residents of this small town for voting in the election last Sunday.

The citizens responded and managed to stop the attack, kill 5 of the attackers, wounded 8 and burned their cars

Critics Roundup

Penraker highlights a couple of very outspoken individuals who were rather pessemistic about the Iraqi elections. These folks haven't been heard from since. I'd say it's pretty hard to comment when 8 million people just gave you the finger.

Those Who Don't Learn From History Are Destined to Repeat It

Back when I was about 8 years old, my friends and I would get all our toys together and play war. We'd spend hours digging in the dirt, building impenetrable forts to protect our men from the evil that lurked on the other side. Most of our forces were an amalgamation of Star Wars, GI Joe, Transformers, Voltron and He Man. After hours of tedious set-up, we'd begin our battle culminating in someone getting bored and "going nuclear" by physically jumping on his enemy's fort, wiping out the entire opposing army.

One particular battle in my backyard consisted of me using my Millennium Falcon as a jail for captured enemy forces. For those that don't know, the Millennium Falcon was an enormous piece of crap. It was too big, made of cheap plastic, and pretty much started falling apart the second I began playing with it. My dad would come home and spend hours gluing it back together again. Sometimes the damn thing would fall apart after giving it a dirty look.

Anyway, back to the battle. I believe I had captured Starscream, Snake Eyes, Darth Vader and my friend's Chia Pet (ok, I don't really remember, but it gives you a visual) and put them in the Falcon, along with about 14,000 jawas. I told him that if he didn't return my prisoners, his men would meet certain doom. Naturally, he scoffed and said that I was the son of a motherless whore and that he befouls himself in the milk of my cereal.

That pissed me off. I took my Falcon up the stairs of my house to the 2nd floor deck. I repeated my warnings, and he just responded in kind with more foul language. I then launched that giant piece of shit off my deck and it landed face-first in the ground, exploding into a thousand pieces. About the time it left my hand, my mom came out to see what I was yelling at. Not knowing that she was there, I erupted in laughter after I saw the Falcon explode. I had just started my victory dance, when my mom grabbed me by my shirt, picked me off the ground and started cracking my behind.

Needless to say, the war was over and I was left crying like a little baby. Moral of the story: I learned that it never pays to use toys as hostages in order to get your enemy to submit to your demands. Your opposing foe will not listen and you'll just end up getting hit my your mom.

Never in my life did I think that a bunch of murdering, terrorist thugs would be so stupid at to repeat my mistake. Don't these idiots ever learn from history?