Archives for the 'Iraq' Category
Big Hollywood Re Small Hollywood
Published on 11 Feb 2009 at 12:05 pm.
4 Comments.
Filed under Hollywood, Iraq.
John Nolte at Big Hollywood with the Top 5 conservative moments in film in the last couple of decades, and small-minded Hollywood’s tragic failure to record the great moments of our time.
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Love & Hate
Published on 10 Feb 2009 at 10:26 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military.
At Small Wars Journal, a captain mulls the softer side of soldiering, and some of its harder edges. It is an anguished love story. Warning on some disturbing, graphic art at the top of “Love and Hate.”
The Unlikely Dissident
Published on 8 Feb 2009 at 8:49 am.
3 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military.
Ricks on Odierno. A Washington Post surge series kicks off today with an “unlikely dissident,” a look at Odierno’s role in shifting US strategy from moving out of the cities to moving into them, from drawdown to victory. A couple of highlights and related links below:
Sounds of Shaitan
Published on 4 Feb 2009 at 11:16 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, song.
They do have to live refugees. NYT reports on Iraqi heavy metal band Acrassicauda’s odyssey to Elizabeth, N.J., with extended stops in Damascus and Istanbul, after jihadis chased them out of Baghdad for playing the western devil music.
AQ Equal Opportunity Martyrdom Recruitment Program
Published on 3 Feb 2009 at 9:37 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, al qaeda, media, terrorists.
Captured Iraqi bomb cell “mother” describes how it works. First, the guys rape some young women. The rape victims are sent to the old woman for matronly counseling. She explains to them that only through martyrdom can they redeem their lost honor. The Mother of Believers provides counseling to turn them from traumatized rape victims into [...]
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Novice In Chief
Published on 2 Feb 2009 at 10:26 pm.
4 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, Obama, military.
Reportedly opts to ignore his generals. IPS:
Elusive Political Progress Spotted
Published on 1 Feb 2009 at 10:34 am.
3 Comments.
Filed under Iraq.
In “smoothest yet” Iraqi election. AP notes turnout high in Sunni areas that boycotted the polls in the past, lower in the Shiite south. AP notes that Iraq’s voter reg process is a holdover from the kite-flying Saddam era. No mention of the war criminal Bush or other indicators of how this remarkable outcome was achieved … [...]
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Everything Old
Published on 22 Jan 2009 at 7:59 am.
3 Comments.
Filed under Afghanistan, Iraq, Obama, military.
Is new again. NYT: Obama signals his commitment to end war.
The Gamble
Published on 12 Jan 2009 at 8:52 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, history, military.
Tom Ricks, now blogging at Foreign Policy,* has a new one coming out. The Gamble: General David Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008:
Flagging Effort
Published on 9 Jan 2009 at 9:48 am.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, flags, military.
Iraq grunt’s appeal duly flagged. Sounds like a good way to get yourself a righteous one.
Smart Brit
Published on 21 Dec 2008 at 10:39 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Afghanistan, Britain, Iraq, military.
On the difference between America and Britain in Iraq, a thing or two Britain could learn from America and from Iraq, posits Britain has “lost its stomach for a fight.” Harsh view falls apart a little at the end, though…
Safe To Come Out Now
Published on 21 Dec 2008 at 10:20 am.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq.
Shooting’s over, someone tell the rest of the fairweather heroes its OK to emerge triumphant. Obama, first out of the bunker, has already figured it out. Gateway provides some perspective for this Washington Post op-ed by McCain, Lieberman and Graham.
Shoes Of Vengeance
Published on 21 Dec 2008 at 9:34 am.
3 Comments.
Filed under Iraq.
Times of London, in heartfelt reporting on the angst and anger of abu Tripol-e al-Shoedi, all the American war crimes that enraged him, misses the biographical insight noted by colleagues. He’s a braggart and a blowhard. via The Star:
“He was very boastful, arrogant and always showing off,” said Zanko Ahmed, a Kurdish journalist who attended a journalism training [...]
Baby Gone, Baath Water …
Published on 18 Dec 2008 at 8:23 am.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq.
… still in the tub. Iraqi generals, security officers busted in purported bid to restore Baathism. LA Times:
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Shoes of Rage!
Published on 17 Dec 2008 at 9:05 pm.
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Filed under Iraq, moronocy.
Gateway rounds up Code Pink’s pro-shoe ambush on the Iraqi ambassador, who tells them to take a hike. The above art of a Shoeist protest in Berkeley would be poignantly reminiscent of the traveling anti-war symbolic boot protests of a few years ago … except instead of being tragically wrongheaded, this one is just ridiculously boneheaded. I hope the long-suffering [...]
Shoe Trial
Published on 16 Dec 2008 at 8:37 pm.
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Filed under Iraq.
Abu Shoe will get one. NYT. Beats what he would have gotten under Saddam, though the beating should serve as a reminder. I’ve been a little distracted, not following shoe developments closely. I hope the Iraqi government is developing a footwear security policy for press conferences. OK, here we go:
War Defended
Published on 15 Dec 2008 at 8:12 am.
5 Comments.
Filed under Afghanistan, Bush, Iraq.
Washington Post, reporting on the shoe thing, informs that Bush “staunchly defended a war that has taken far more time, money and lives than anticipated.” On the first two, true. What were they thinking? On lives, there was in fact an expectation in the invasion that thousands of Americans could be killed by stiff resistance and chemical [...]
This Never Happened To Saddam
Published on 14 Dec 2008 at 7:00 pm.
5 Comments.
Filed under Bush, Iraq.
Iraqi journalist throws his shoes at Bush. “Here’s a farewell kiss, you dog!” Big Arab insult.
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Mideast News & Views
Published on 11 Dec 2008 at 10:40 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Arabs, Iran, Iraq, Islam, middle east, military.
Quick roundup runs a gamut. MEMRI first:
Bush Good, Saddam Bad
Published on 11 Dec 2008 at 9:13 pm.
3 Comments.
Filed under Bush, Iraq.
Current Iraqi government, not headed to a happy place. That’s the conclusion of someone else who thinks Bush did a good thing, WMD or no: ”Bush should have no regrets about faulty intel.”
Perhaps one of the Bush Administration’s most courageous decisions was the removal of Saddam Hussein. Despite opposition from the United Nations, the U.S. freed [...]
Bitter Pills
Published on 5 Dec 2008 at 8:34 am.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, military.
Greyhawk’s got ‘em. Blue Pill. Red Pill. Another Red Pill. I like this part from Red Pill Part 2:
Its become all too common these days to approach declaring everything before the surge as “failed” in Iraq - in spite of the fact that all of the tactics used during the surge were tried and proven in [...]
Transformation Complete
Published on 3 Dec 2008 at 9:00 am.
2 Comments.
Filed under Bush, Iraq, Obama.
Obama = Bush on Iraq. Bush/Obama SecDef Gates explains. NYT:
When asked specifically if he considered himself “at odds” with Mr. Obama on a withdrawal timetable, the secretary replied, “I think that I would subscribe to what the president-elect said yesterday in Chicago.”
“He repeated his desire to try and get our combat forces out within 16 [...]
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Down Is Up
Published on 1 Dec 2008 at 10:28 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Afghanistan, Iraq, media.
AP on Iraqi violence watch claims insurgents are bypassing US soldiers, hence a drop in US deaths, and going for Iraqi security forces. The ensuing report is all about attacks on joint patrols and convoys, however, with US wounded. Also, the kind of attacks on police recruiting facilities we’ve seen all along. So it’s hard to make [...]
First Rewrite of History
Published on 1 Dec 2008 at 9:02 pm.
4 Comments.
Filed under Bush, Iraq, media.
The most recent of so many.
UK Guardian, under the headline “Iraq war my biggest regret, Bush admits,” reports that in an ABC interview Bush “last night admitted that the decision to go to war against Saddam Hussein on the basis of flawed intelligence was the biggest regret of his presidency.” Sounds great, though neither head nor [...]
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Kumbayah, My Lord
Published on 29 Nov 2008 at 9:21 am.
9 Comments.
Filed under Clintons, Iran, Iraq, Obama, genocide.
Samantha Power is back in. You’ll remember her as the Harvard prof/Obama advisor who was forced to resign after she called Hillary a “monster,” one of the earlier examples of Obamian gutlessness, when an apology would have sufficed. Back from Coventry, out of the oubliette or whatever closet she was shoved in, Power’s now working on the Obama transition [...]
Ultimate Heroes
Published on 25 Nov 2008 at 8:47 am.
2 Comments.
Filed under Afghanistan, Iraq, courage, military.
Mansfield., Mass. lays one to rest. Spec. Corey Shea, 21, 3/3 Armor. KIA in Mosul Nov. 12 when an Iraqi soldier turned his weapon on American soldiers. Boston Herald with the funeral, “Ultimate Hero,” and a profile, ”Heart of Gold.”
“His life had changed since 9/11 and he wanted to serve our country,” said Shea’s aunt Renee O’Neil. “And [...]
AP Transitions
Published on 24 Nov 2008 at 11:06 pm.
4 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, media.
Key boilerplate is being swapped out as President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take over the Iraq war. AP:
NYT At War
Published on 24 Nov 2008 at 12:58 pm.
2 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, media.
Seth Mnookin at Vanity Fair takes a ramble through the New York Times Baghdad bureau. It’s NYT at war … with itself, in much of this article … but despite offering some insight on infighting and bang-bang, Mnookin’s meander fails to go much of anywhere.
War’s Over Indicator No. 52
Published on 19 Nov 2008 at 9:11 pm.
2 Comments.
Filed under Iraq.
$3 billion subway planned for Baghdad. Either the war’s over, or some bright Iraqi bureaucrat familiar with the Big Dig saw how $3 billion can turn into $14 billion worth of cost overruns and good jobs at good wages.
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Continuing And Fighting
Published on 13 Nov 2008 at 7:42 am.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military.
Small Wars Journal with a 1st Cav brigade commander’s Veterans Day recollections, a year to the day after exiting Diyala surge operations, salutes them all but zeroes in on one soldier’s bravery, presence of mind and finally his death.
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Veterans’ Days
Published on 11 Nov 2008 at 9:04 am.
3 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military.
And nights. Five years, 10 years, 60-odd years in. Here’s the Boston Herald’s Peter Gelzinis with an old vet trying to get it all out.
(Hot) Reporter Investigated For Looting
Published on 9 Nov 2008 at 8:14 am.
11 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, art, media, moronocy.
No, not me this time. In case the (Hot) part and the Bond girl art didn’t make that clear. It’s CBS correspondent Lara Logan, now being investigated by federal agents for taking trashy Saddam propaganda from the wreckage of bombed-out Iraqi government buildings, at a time when U.S. soldiers were using Saddam’s mug for target practice and [...]
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Cred
Published on 6 Nov 2008 at 9:18 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, blogs, military.
For Castle Argghhh!!! as a Canadian COIN researcher snags his tale of Hussayn.
Big Little Man
Published on 3 Nov 2008 at 10:46 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, pols.
Neptunus Lex on a race where we’d all like to see an upset. Republican Bill Russell vs. U.S. Rep. JohnMurtha, D-Penn., includes the unkind remark that Murtha, “while he’s a big guy physically, he really is a small, little man in every other way.“
Crazed War Vet
Published on 3 Nov 2008 at 9:19 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, Obama, guns.
Question: When is a crazed war veteran engaged in an armed standoff with a gun not identified in the lede as a crazed war veteran?
Some News Is Good News
Published on 1 Nov 2008 at 11:01 am.
1 Comment.
Filed under Afghanistan, Iraq, military.
U.S. casualties down in Iraq and Afghanistan, terrorist deaths up in Pakistan. Ace does the honors. Meanwhile, Petraeus takes command, flies into the thick of it. First stop, Pakistan.
Sole Remaining Non-Obama Endorser
Published on 31 Oct 2008 at 8:41 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military, pols.
To judge by the reported stampede, anyway. BCC with YouTube’s most viewed, an Iraq vet:
“Dear Mr Obama having spent 12 months in Iraq theatre I can promise you it’s not a mistake.”
“When you call the Iraqi war a mistake you disrespect the service and sacrifice of everyone who has died promoting freedom… Because you do not [...]
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U.S. Out of Iraq
Published on 27 Oct 2008 at 9:50 pm.
1 Comment.
Filed under Iraq, military.
Could happen sooner than even Obama wants if the Iraqis don’t make more political progress like the Dems always told them to. This time it’s intransigent Iraqi pols driving the bus, not just Democrats having a tantrum. Odierno warns Iraqis, no deal, no security. McClatchy:
Long War’s Reach Extended
Published on 26 Oct 2008 at 11:19 pm.
2 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, Syria, military.
As time runs short.* Roggio at Long War Journal has your cross-border raid into Syria:
The raid was reportedly carried out in the town of Sukkariya near Abu Kamal in eastern Syria. According to witnesses, four US helicopters crossed the border and two of the helicopters landed to drop off special operations forces.
Syrian television claimed nine people [...]
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Keep The Feith
Published on 23 Oct 2008 at 8:05 am.
2 Comments.
Filed under Boston, Iraq, history.
Former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith is on stage at the Ford Hall Forum* tonight. I get to moderate. Old South Meeting House on Washington Street, 6:30 p.m. Expect critics. His book, “War and Decision” is an excellent, highly readable narrative of the development of war policy post-9/11, with a lot of the history leading [...]
Rave Review
Published on 22 Oct 2008 at 10:03 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, literary, military.
From Teflon Don at Acute Politics for “In A Time of War,” on West Point’s Class of 2002.
Once A Marine
Published on 21 Oct 2008 at 9:13 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, literary, military.
Gunny Nick Popaditch’s book, released earlier this month, synopsis, reviews and vid here. Here’s Ralph Peters’ take:
Battlespace
Published on 14 Oct 2008 at 11:46 pm.
No Comments.
Filed under Afghanistan, Iraq, media.
Great online anthology of combat photography from Iraq and Afghanistan at Battlespace, a project of Novembereleven.org, which is about supporting independent journalism. 2007 Balazs Gardi shot of an exhausted grunt in Afghanistan above via Theo. The rest you need to go into the site to see. Links to some standouts, intensity follow. No political commentary,* it is what it is, [...]
Good News Is No News
Published on 12 Oct 2008 at 10:37 am.
5 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, media.
If it doesn’t bleed, it not only doesn’t lede … it doesn’t get covered. Media abandons surge success. Washington Post:
The Forgotten War
Published on 10 Oct 2008 at 11:22 am.
9 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, media, pols.
It ain’t bleeding (much), it ain’t leading … much. No shortage of irony as Baghdad blast walls tumble like Wall Street stock portfolios … only in orderly fashion, due to a sense of security, not panic. It must be safe to start reporting on good news in Iraq. Iraq roundup starts with NYT:
AP Goes Neo-Con
Published on 4 Oct 2008 at 1:15 am.
9 Comments.
Filed under America, Bush, Iran, Iraq, media, middle east, saudi arabia.
OK, al-P and reasonable people might dispute that.
But try as it might to discuss where we are five years on without giving Bush any props, the Associated Press has to admit that we have some leverage, and a substantial national interest, at stake in that nascent democracy won with the blood of many thousands of Iraqis and [...]
Of More Important Things
Published on 29 Sep 2008 at 11:15 am.
1 Comment.
Filed under America, Iraq, military.
1st Brigade, 1st Armored Div CO Peter R. Mansoor’s memoir of May’03 to July ‘04 raks up another rave review, this one at Small Wars Journal for its detail of the early phase of the war in one critical sector, lessons learned, advocacy of cultural change in the military and America at large, which always seems to have [...]
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Slander
Published on 25 Sep 2008 at 3:21 pm.
3 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, military, pols.
John Murtha to get sued again for accusing exonerated Marines of killing “in cold blood” in Haditha. Gateway with the news and the links. Good luck, LCpl. Justin Sharratt, getting it to stick on a member of Congress. There’s the law for us, then there’s the law for them.
Back In Iraq, Jarred By Calm
Published on 21 Sep 2008 at 10:11 am.
No Comments.
Filed under Iraq, media.
NYT’s Dexter Filkins goes back to all the unfamiliar old places:
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Pols Want Review
Published on 20 Sep 2008 at 2:27 pm.
2 Comments.
Filed under Iraq, courage, military, pols.
California pols want Bush to review the denial of a Medal of Honor for USMC Rafael Peralta. San Diego Union-Trib. Fair enough, review. Put the evidence out there. Just keep the politics out of it, and the pols at arm’s length.
Previously, MOH Denied.
