Article

2003-03-25 Iraq

Marines losing the battle for hearts and minds

Archived material is restricted to Rantburg regulars and members. If you need access email fred.pruitt=at=gmail.com with your nick to be added to the members list. There is no charge to join Rantburg as a member.

Posted by Steve White 2003-03-25 08:17 am|| || Front Page|| [11128 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Al Guardian, home of Charlotte Raven, temple-whore of the Hate America Cult (their arch-druid, Bob "hit me again" Fisk works for the laughably named Independent). The day after 9-11, Raven wrote of the United States that "a bully with a bloody nose is still a bully." Another Guardian slut, whose name escapes me, wrote that the money being spent to identify the dead from the WTC should be sent to third world countries instead, since the feelings of the rich oppressor class that populated the building did not matter. They are bigots, terror-apologists, and prostitutes, pure and simple. Any trustafarian or Mumia-cong halfwit who is offended by this can report me to the Thought Police.

Posted by Atomic Conspiracy 2003-03-25 01:10:51|| [www.nuclearspace.com] 2003-03-25 01:10:51|| Front Page Top

#2 Any combatant without uniform can be executed on the spot. I can't understand why they allow locals to retain arms during a war.

Posted by TJ Jackson 2003-03-25 01:31:16|| 2003-03-25 01:31:16|| Front Page Top

#3 I have seen some film of Fedayen irregulars. My evaluation: paunchy but fanatic. They appear to be recruiting any idiot who would feel gratitude for being empowered now by a dicator who disempowered people for over two decades. As the front tightens, they will become useless. However, during occupation they would be deadly. Perhaps, at victory Coalition troops should shoot anybody who isn't smiling.

Posted by Anonon 2003-03-25 02:07:12|| 2003-03-25 02:07:12|| Front Page Top

#4 There have been reports of some Iraqi gratitude and jubilation at liberation but the overwhelming picture painted by the media is negative - grumbling, if not outright hostile. Saddam may be a thug but he's their own thug. Why do they have to make things difficult for themselves?

I hope there's a change if we can break the back of the Rep. Guard resistance. Perhaps they'll be more relieved when the shots have stopped and relief aid arrives and the reconstruction begins in earnest. The best antidote will be to kill Sammy. Then they'll be less suspicious of reversals or reprisals. In the mean time, I feel bad for the boys that have to watch their backs and wipe out the hornet's nests. Good luck. I hope Baghdad doesn't turn into a big Moghadishu.

Posted by Anonymous 2003-03-25 02:43:56|| 2003-03-25 02:43:56|| Front Page Top

#5 Since "Three Kings" is one of my favorite war movies, I can understand their ambivilance towards us this time.

That said, Atom Conspiracy is correct. Forget the sensibilities of the Eurocreeps who would leave these folks in slavery and let's just do a hardcore WWII-style de-Nazification program with summary judgements on gunnys like that creepo son.

These Ba'athists need to be locked up and tried, not let go in 24 hours to terrorize the local yokels. We'll never be safe unless we administer the proper whupass.

Posted by JDB 2003-03-25 02:48:23|| 2003-03-25 02:48:23|| Front Page Top

#6 Let's connect a few points. Iraqis I've seen on TV have been polite with a little dancing. (See Safwan) Remember it was the Marine who started tearing down Saddam's portrait, then the local beat S's image with the sole of his sandal. They do, I'm sure, remember '91, so they're not going to jump into our arms until they KNOW they will not be punished by mukhabarat/feyadeen folks. You can be assured that they've been told as well about all the atrocities that Coalition forces would commit. Sounds ridiculous to us, but these folks have been conditioned to think like that.

My next point is related to the preceding sentence. These folks have also been traumatized by 30-40 or more years of terror; they have learned not to trust anybody. They see our guys and they're naturally reticent. So let's not get in a tif about why garlands are not being placed around our necks. The Kuwaitis were happy to see us. It's been said here on Rantburg many times before: The big opportunity was '91, but the UN mission was only for the lib of Kuwait. All the more reason to keep the UNSC the hell OUT until we and those Iraqis who want to help have started to rebuild people's minds and not just their infrastructure. Cambodians were probably in shock when Vietnamese came in to get rid of Pol Pot. Remember reaction of Dachau prisoners. Why didn't they look happier? Obvious answer.

Posted by Michael 2003-03-25 10:29:49|| 2003-03-25 10:29:49|| Front Page Top

#7 Michaels points are very good.

I would simply point out that this means we need patience. On the left there are some who are already calling this a quagmire. On the right we are getting murmurings to get tougher, stop worrying about civilian casualties, win and get out.

We're not at that point yet - we're not even a week into this thing. Lets see what happens after we've cleaned up Basra, after we've brought food in, after we've taken down a RG division. Hold firm - be resolute.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-03-25 10:58:54|| 2003-03-25 10:58:54|| Front Page Top

#8 "Since "Three Kings" is one of my favorite war movies, I can understand their ambivilance towards us this time."

So the Iraqis are a nation of extremely harsh film critics? Or perhaps they have a severe dislike of the Clooney family?

That movie was fiction, ya know. As in "never happened".

Posted by Robert Crawford 2003-03-25 13:30:10|| [www.kloognome.com/] 2003-03-25 13:30:10|| Front Page Top

#9 I think Anonon hit it - paunchy.

The only people with enough food to become "paunchy" are Sammy's bad-asses. It marks them.

Posted by mojo 2003-03-25 14:57:24|| 2003-03-25 14:57:24|| Front Page Top

#10 Yes, Robert, I realize that the movie was fiction. Many good films are fiction. The point I was trying to make about the ruthless crushing of the Shi'ite rebellion has been made much more eloquently by Michael.

Posted by JDB 2003-03-25 17:12:38|| 2003-03-25 17:12:38|| Front Page Top

10:11 raptor
08:38 raptor
01:28 R. McLeod
01:13 R. McLeod
00:54 R. McLeod
00:46 R. McLeod
00:44 R. McLeod
00:20 Bill
00:07 (lowercase) matt
23:45 OldSpook
23:29 tu3031
23:29 tu3031
23:20 tu3031
23:12 tu3031
23:08 tu3031
21:59 (lowercase) matt
21:50 eric
21:44 (lowercase) matt
21:39 eric
21:13 Dar Steckelberg
21:10 Dar Steckelberg
21:09 RW
21:07 Alaska Paul
21:02 Brew