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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: michael97123 who wrote (183078)	3/6/2006 6:03:35 PM
From: geode00	Respond to of 281500

The problem of hopelessness isn't just in the arab world, it's coming to a town near you. Have you seen outsourcing lately? It's going to be even more fast and furious in the future and the old adage of americans moving up to more educated jobs is utter baloney. The Indians and Chinese are getting to be more educated than we are. Try hopelessness and despair stateside.

To: michael97123 who wrote (183078)	3/6/2006 8:17:14 PM
From: Hawkmoon	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

How? is the $64 question. Mike, although slow and with a few setbacks, I think we're making progress little by little. Look, we've had two major elections, and a new government is to be seated within a week. 11 million Iraqis, including significant Sunni participation, voted in the last election. We're FINALLY seeing serious Sunni participation in the formation of the government and against Al Qai'da. I still recall the battle in Al Qa'im last summer when the Albu Mahal tribe finally realized that it was in their interest to confront neighboring tribes which supported Zarqawi. It cost them dearly, but eventually we saw a lot more support from them on that vital Line of Communication (LOC) there as it is one of the primary routes from Iraq to Syria via the Anbar province. billroggio.com al Qaeda’s actions in Qaim have forced the Albu Mahal tribe to choose sides. The co-opting of the Albu Mahal tribe in the Qaim region is a remarkable story that is virtually being ignored by the media (the Washington Post buried it on page A18). Now I left at the end of December, but I recall that we were having continuing success in Al Qa'im. I had to do some searching, because the only Googled information on Al Qa'im reflected articles from last summer and fall when we were hitting that area pretty hard, but I found a MCFI DOD briefing from a few weeks ago that addressed some of the activities that have been going on. defenselink.mil And with that, Colonel Davis, I'll turn it over to you. COL. DAVIS: Thank you very much for having us this morning, your time, this evening, our time out here. We've been privileged to have your attention for most of the last year out here in western Al Anbar province, where we've been operating out along the Syrian border, the Jordanian border and part of the Saudi border, down to our south. We've just concluded a couple of days ago an Operation Western Shield down in the city of Rutbah, along our main supply routes, Michigan and Mobile, in which we bermed up the city, and we have now an exclusive walled compound down there, with three entry control checkpoints, that's been getting rave reviews from the population down there because, for the first time in years now, the insurgents can't freely travel in and out of that city -- one more step in making western Al Anbar a prohibitive environment for the insurgents and terrorists to operate in. Up to our north, along the Syrian border in the al Qaim region, we continue to progress nicely. We stopped our kinetic effects towards the end of November, at the end of Operation Steel Curtain, and we're able to progress now with getting consistent power, free and clean running water for all the villages up there, as well as starting to rebuild the hospitals and the schoolhouses that have suffered over the last three years, where the inter-tribal fighting as well as the fighting between the terrorists and coalition forces have been taking place. A mark of the progress that's occurred up there is I was able to walk the Syrian border from the Euphrates down to Camp Gannon the other day and then drive from there all through Obeidi and across the river into the Rommana area, something that was absolutely unheard of a year ago. We continue to work these same efforts in the Triad, the area that consists of Hadithah, Habbaniya and Barwana, over on the Euphrates to the eastern part of my area, very solid efforts there. We have permanent combined presence with Iraqi and American forces now in 15 towns throughout the region, where we had none when we came here a year ago. I can attest to how nasty Al Qa'im was last fall. One of the guys I supported operated up there and it was almost impossible to get outside the compound without having serious firepower backing you. The fact that this officer was actually able to walk the Syrian border back to Camp Gannon is SIMPLY AMAZING!! It's a sign of the major progress that we've made there. It also probably explains why the violence shifted to Samarra, Taji, and Bayji, because the Al Qai'da elements had worn out their welcome in Anbar province. Mike.. you're not going to see it from the MSM. They have no interest in presenting good news about Iraq because it doesn't make ratings, or sell newspapers. But there is progress.. That mention of Rutbah for example.. Rutbah was SERIOUS INDIAN COUNTRY just three months ago. The surviving Al Qai'da elements from the battles in Al Qa'im, Haditha and Tal Afar were trying to use Rutbah as a safe haven.. I recall there was a rest area/village I recall being named 160 Kilo and it was notorious for Muj activity. But now it seems we've moved out from Ramadi and Fallujah and moved our presence out into that area. This is a TREMENDOUS blow to the Al Qai'da elements who were trying to hide out in these areas. Y'know.. I kinda miss being back there, even though I spent 1 1/2 there. But I'm making about the same amount of money trading stocks rights now per week and I don't know if I can justify it. But I sure enjoyed the view from the inside. It's far different that what we all see looking inward through the "dirty windows" of the MSM.. Hawk