The Iraq War is morphing into the Iraqi Civil War, and US President Bush is apparently preparing to send another 20,000 to 35,000 U.S. troops into the feckless fray by early 2007. There are more than 140,000 U.S. troops in country right now. Will this "move forward" slow the almost inevitable splintering of Iraq? Time will tell. If history is any judge, keep your seartbelts buckled: continued nasty ride ahead. If this turns out well, I'll be as surprised as anyone.
Present situation on the ground: a Sunni enclave around Al-Anbar province; a Shi'ite enclave bordering Iran and the Persian Gulf access points; a Kurdish enclave bordering Turkey; and a Berlin or Jerusalem-like mixed bag of scratching shrieking alley cats in Baghdad itself. Where we fit in over the long run is anybody's guess. In the short run, expect more dead and maimed Americans and more dead and maimed Iraqis and tens of thousands of new cases of post traumatic stress syndrome.
Since 2003, the Iraq theatre has now more than doubled the casualties of the Second Seminole War (1835-1842), which itself began and ended messily. In that one, the U.S. deployed about 50,000 regulars and militia troops to seize and hold Florida against no more than 10,000 Seminole guerilla fighters. The U.S. suffered about 10,000 casualties (including 1,500 dead); the Seminoles lost roughly 3,000 casualties. In the end, some of the Seminoles agreed to relocate to Oklahoma and the rest agreed to restrict their movements to southwest Florida, including the Everglades, leaving the U.S. free to develop and despoil the rest of Florida as its greedier citizens saw fit.
Around New Year's Day 2007, the U.S. will have sustained more than 3,000 killed and more than 25,000 seriously wounded in Iraq. In the end, even if the president who prematurely declared "mission accomplished" declares "victory," there will be no equivalent to a Florida pay off. No Baghdad Disney World, no Iraqi Miami, no Shi'ite Gator World. Not even a Basra Superbowl. And cheaper gas at American pumps? What do you expect from a gang of oil barons with no sense of history?
From "American Military Strategy In The Second Seminole War," MA thesis, Marine Corps Command and Staff College, April 1995, by Major John C. White, Jr.:
"The greatest lesson of the Second Seminole War shows how a government can lose public support for a war that has simply lasted for too long. As the Army became more deeply involved in the conflict, as the government sent more troops into the theater, and as the public saw more money appropriated for the war, people began to lose their interest. . . . ."
Today's Rune: Defense.
Birthdays today include:
Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536)
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1822)
Jane Austen (1775-1817)
Margaret Meade (1901-1978)
Arthur C. Clarke (b. 1917)
Philip Kindred Dick (1928-1982)
Adieu!
12 comments:
Splendid work, sir. Why not come to Walden and write? I opposed the Mexican War, you know.
I prefer to transcend such depressing matters and explore the New Age.
I prefer water crackers and stale cheese.
Refer to ze master Carlos Castaneda to zee ver I dwell.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.(O.W.A.P.) thank yooz above doods
Hi Erik,
I'm not sure if you would lose anything by switching to a new template; I only changed the colors on my template when I switched over. You can always save your template, which they recommend before making changes, anyway. As for tags, at the bottom of the post editor, where you see post options, there's a box next to it where you can type "labels," which is the same thing. In layout mode, adding links to your list are so much easier, just typing in the name and the url, and you can just copy and paste html code for things you want to add on your sidebar... Hope this is helpful. Good luck! --Robin
Thanks a zillion, Robin! I'll give it a go, then. No guts, no glory ;)
That is just so sad. And infuriating.
Good story. Depressing, but good. Like they always say, War is Hell.
Thanks all for the comments. Laura, sadly this is not a story. This is how it really is over there.
By the way, a salute to your ancestor, William Tecumseh Sherman!
'E
When I go to work in the morning I usually see the American flag at half mast. I've lost what little faith I had in "The Shrub." Aren't his approval ratings nearing single digits?
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