Yet for every guerrilla in Iraq, John Abizaid, the general running the show there, needs a minimum of 10 counter-guerrillas. Otherwise it’s impossible to protect the oil pipelines, power stations, mosques, police stations, embassies or hotels from a foe who strikes from the shadows and runs.
What Hack seems to be forgetting is that when fundamentalists target the infrastructure of their own country, they undermine their philosophical "superiority".
Al-Qaeda and the Islamic militants want to attack Western troops.. predominantly non-Muslim interests... For them to target fellow muslims will drain their moral relevance, and turn the muslim world against them..
And that, IMO, is what needs to happen. We need that Islamic epiphany that causes moderate muslims to take sides, if only to defend themselves.
And that's where the US must MPT repeat the mistakes of Vietnam... Carrying on the battle without mobilizing the local population to wage the majority of the battle. The internal defense of Iraq must primarily be Iraqi.. The role of the US will be to secure Iraq's borders and prevent infiltration from neighboring countries.
Thus, if Al-Qaeda wishes to wage it's war on Iraqi soil, they will have to fight Shiites, Kurds, as well as those Sunnis unwilling to accept Islamic militancy..
And that will turn it's struggle into a muslim vs muslim war, not the muslim vs West conflict they seek...
IOW, it won't be just the US being "bogged down"...
That's what I believe Hack is overlooking in his analysis.
Hawk |
