WILLisms.com: Is The Surge Working, Or Not?

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Is The Surge Working, Or Not?

According to Senator Harry Reid, the Surge has already 'failed', even though the Surge properly has not even begun in earnest. It is never too early for the Democratic leadership to declare defeat however, invested as they are in failure in Iraq.

Is Reid correct? Not according to Michael Yon, who unlike Reid is actually in Iraq (and has been for months) and who has no axe to grind. Yon, you will recall, was not hesistant to declare that Iraq was undergoing a civil war - he calls 'em like he sees 'em. Listen to his interview with Hugh Hewitt, and contrast that with the views of the know-nothing Dems on the Hill.

So who do you believe, Yon or Reid? The question that answers itself.

Posted by Ken McCracken · 16 July 2007 08:35 PM

Comments

Jadegold's character assassination of Michael Yon begins in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 16, 2007 08:56 PM

I think it is too soon to tell, and will be for some months. One of the advantages of having the attitude of a grouchy old bastard is that you don't expect things to turn out hunky-dory in a short time, as in the movies. I didn't expect Iraq was going to be a quick fix, and I thought Bush unwise trying to make that case. I don't know whether he was just trying to rally national support or whether he was over-optimistic, but I expected this to be a 5-10 year police action with intermittent war right from the start. In fact, I thought it would be worse. What others considered a catastrophic deterioration in Iraq I regarded as a simple return to the miserable reality that war usually is.

Posted by: Assistant Village Idiot at July 16, 2007 09:36 PM

Didn't Clinton say that our troops would be home from Bosnia by Christmas?

Um, why didn't he say it would be Christmas 2015?

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 16, 2007 09:46 PM

Same thing. I don't know why presidents think they have to sell the idea that way. In the long run it creates unrealistic expectations in the populace. I suppose creating unrealistic expectations is what the spinmeisters are about, but it does us a terrible disservice in the long run. Better to say "this place has been a sadistic mess for centuries. We think we can improve it enough to reduce its regional danger."

I admit, that's not very inspiring, and the type of hypomanic personality that goes in for governance would never say it.

Posted by: Assistant Village Idiot at July 16, 2007 10:25 PM

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too many the ameriki man him brain now so dull not even think for how many iraki killed in war. this not pure and good usa man of geo. washington.

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also usa society destroy and proving to look at ameriki woman having the LBT (low back tattoo) take the meth and smoking cigerette. This not free. this the slut and whore. In wazirisitan him man protecting him daughter--never allow the slut or the smoking cigerette.

Posted by: mullah cimoc at July 16, 2007 11:36 PM

LOL

Well I am so touched that the good mullah decided to grace our blog with his pearls of wisdom.

I didn't know they even had internets in Waziristan - you learn something new every day.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 12:13 AM

Islamo-fascist control freak!

Posted by: zsa zsa at July 17, 2007 05:10 AM

It's great to get a lecture on mind-control techniques from a mullah in Waziristan.

It's called "reasoning" cimoc. And it is indeed very, very scary. You should keep your people away from it if you want to stay in power.

Posted by: Assistant Village Idiot at July 17, 2007 07:26 AM

Didn't Clinton say that our troops would be home from Bosnia by Christmas?

I vaguely recall him saying something like "3 months". Do we still have troops in Bosnia?

I also remember him predicting that the air campaign against Serbia, because of Kosovo, would last 30 days. I believe it took 78.

This gives me an idea. Maybe Bush should announce a pullout date for Iraq. By the standard applied to Clinton, it won't matter if we meet that date or not, just give us a date, and that should be enough to make the Congressional Dems shut their traps.

Posted by: Bigfoot at July 17, 2007 08:10 AM

If I am not mistake I do believe we have a small number of troops in Bosnia.

Posted by: goon at July 17, 2007 08:37 AM

Reid, of course.

Yon simply has a very, very limited perspective as to what goes on in Iraq. It's akin to asking the guy who loads boxes on the loading dock if FedEx is doing well financially or not.

Of course, Yon subscribes to the typical rightwing "truthiness" style of journalism. Witness his recent AQ 'baked child' story.

Posted by: Jadegold at July 17, 2007 10:10 AM

LOL

Jadegold you never fail to amuse.

I think your FedEx example is much better applied to Reid than Yon.

Oh yeah, the mortician from Nevada has a better grip on what is happening on the ground in Iraq than a reporter who is actually working there.

What a complete moron you are, Jadegold.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 01:13 PM

Heh, Jadegold, I am thinking of banning you for the worst blog sin possible: you are now a crashing bore.

I haven't made up my mind yet.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 01:18 PM

You see, Ken, Yon is on the front lines where the surge is happening. He's not in Washington reading the MSM's scoops via the Green Zone via Iraqi stringers that are impervious to making shit up - which is where the truth can be suppressed and fact rules.

Don't be coy.

Posted by: Hoodlumman at July 17, 2007 01:49 PM

You're so right, Hoodlumman, what was I thinking.

Actual reporting from Iraq counts for absolutely nothing, and people here in the United States are far, far more informed about Iraq than anyone actually in, you know, Iraq.

And we all know Senator Reid is perfectly detached and objective when it comes to the war.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 02:15 PM

Let's revisit Yon's story about AQ baking a kid and serving it up to his family.

Essentially, Yon hears a story from a US interpreter who claims to have heard it from some unnamed Iraqi. The story claims that AQ served a family the freshly roasted body of a child to that child's family.

Now, this is at least a third-hand story. A responsible journalist--not Yon--would consider maybe checking into the story a bit more before running it as fact. After all, Yon's story is that many families attended this AQ 'feast'--perhaps a corroborating witness or two?

But, no. Not Yon. Worse still, Yon admits he isn't sure of the veracity of the story but that doesn't trouble him. He justifies the story by saying that since AQ is capable of other terrible acts--they could have committed the act in question.

Hmmmm. That's a twist of logic.

BTW, this is not the first time Yon has been caught passing on third- or fourth-hand accounts as facts.

Yet, Yon is the fella Ken says we should trust because he's on the 'front lines.'

Posted by: Jadegold at July 17, 2007 04:41 PM

By your standards, Jadegold, there is not one single news outlet in the Middle East that we can rely on.

Surely by now you must be aware of the numerous times AP and Reuters have been caught 'passing on third- or fourth-hand accounts as facts' as in the many beheading stories that turned out to be completely baseless.

But then again, you only care about assassinating the characters of those journalists who disagree with you. AP passing along jihadist propaganda is apparently perfectly okay with you, because you are not holding them up to the same standards that you hold Yon to.

Moreover, Yon did fully qualify his statement about the baked child by saying he had no way to confirm it - which is far more than AP or Reuters ever does with their stories.

I am still considering whether to ban you or not for being a predictable bore, by the way. I need to discuss it with Will.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 04:57 PM

Unaware of AP or Reuters doing such a thing but I know Yon has purveyed the 'beheading' stories many times.

But, again, the point eludes Ken as surely as Ken eludes military service. The fact is Yon questioned the veracity of his own story but justified running it because, well, AQ has done horible things in the past.

That's what Stephen Colbert terms "truthiness."

Think, Ken. I know it's a foreign concept for you but think. Is it journalism to report something as fact when 1.) you doubt the story; 2.) you have no corroborating witnesses or evidence; 3.) you heard the story third- or fourth-hand?

This is your 'proof' the surge is working?

Of course, Young Master Bush's own interim report on the surge was pretty poor as well. Hey, but Yon knows where you can get 'baked; children.

Posted by: Jadegold at July 17, 2007 05:55 PM

Jadegold, you have an odd definition of 'fact'.

Not surprising, given your tenuous grasp of reasoning, logic and reality.

Yon did not report the baked child story as 'fact'.

He stated, clearly, that he had no confirmation of the story and that it was a rumor.

Again, Yon is far more honest than MSM outlets by at least warning his audience that the story might not be true.

Unlike AP and Reuters, for example.

Posted by: Ken McCracken at July 17, 2007 06:40 PM

The AP and Reuters stories were straight-forward. Nor have they been proven false. If you are relying on Treason-In-Defense-of-Slaverys account, well, you may need help.

Remember, AP also ran the story of the US military PAO calling the report false.

Therein lies the lesson you refuse to learn: AP and Reuter reported on the story, citing Iraqi police. They also ran the story by the military claiming it was false.

OTOH, Yon runs with a story, does no follow-up and then says it's ok because AQ has done bad things in the past.

Posted by: Jadegold at July 17, 2007 07:10 PM

Man, you have really twisted understanding of what journalistic standards are.

You mean to tell me, that the AP can run with any story they like, until it has 'been proven false' as you put it?

Well then, Yon's story about the baked child holds up - after all, according to your own standard, it hasn't 'been proven false' yet!

LOL Jadegold, you are a hopeless muddle.

Yon didn't 'run with the story' as you claim - he said it was a story without confirmation.

At least Yon, unlike you, understands what the journalistic standard is here: until it is proven true, warn your audience that this rumor may not be factual.

You aren't getting any traction here claiming Yon reported it as a fully vetted story, you might as well give up while you are behind.

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