Friday, June 16, 2006

"The Beginning of The End?"

A discussion.....or at least exchange of notes on the implications of recent Iraqi events....Zarqawi's death; the resultant raids on many homes/buildings and the recovery of an apparent vast informational treasure; as well as the crackdown on traffic and resistance ability to move about in Baghdad....is underway involving Hugh Hewitt and John Hinderaker (PowerPoint).

Hinderaker's theory is this is the beginning of the end for the terrorists. His comments center, of course, on Iraq and should be read by you!

Hugh believes the issue is far beyond Iraq, and encompasses the terrorist activities globally.

I think the issues are separate. The Iraqi situation is changing for the better from any viewpoint. Perhaps one of the best views is from within Iraq, by Iraqi Mohammad.

The facts seem clear that the corner is turned in Iraq....The new governmental control effort of checkpoints doing serious checks of vehicles in Baghdad is having an impact according to Mohammad, and the crushing of Zarqawi's team has left them calling for a leader from a team in the far South of Iraq....much removed from the local goings-on, and obviously out-of-touch with the central team....or whatever is left of it.

I feel elation which I firmly believe is not premature.

Perhaps most interesting to me is the gloom and doom picture still being painted of Iraq by the Democrats in yesterday's showdown over troop levels and their continuation. The vote was a smashing 93-6 to NOT try to impact those levels, yet the rhetorical content of several prime Democratic Senators was full of woe and sorrow over the imagined massive quagmire (a favorite Democratic word on Iraq, Katrina, or ethics).

This IS the beginning of the end! Soon the only efforts left will be the broader world-wide picture...a not-diminuitive task, but impacted by the successes against organized, well-armed, and in many cases locally-supported Iraqi Terrorists. The prospect of similar efforts by the coalition in other parts of the world must send shudders through the terrorists at this point.

Duke