Report: Osama bin Laden’s security coordinator captured in Pakistan

See? I rest my case, this should be breaking news, all over every single network and newspaper. But it wont be.

It’s so good to hear positive news coming out of Iraq for a change. If things continue like this, it’ll surely help out the Republican cause in the elections this Fall.

How will America hear about this? MSM? Bwaaaaaaaaahhh! This will be on the 32nd page of the NYtimes, just like every positive story that comes out of Iraq.

joewm315 on January 11, 2008 at 3:18 AM

Roger that. The sectarian issue continues to paralyze the Iraqi government. The more I learn about Islam, the less hope I have of that ever being resolved. But, as in any country, reform hardly if ever happens from the top down, it always starts at the grassroots.

labrat on January 11, 2008 at 2:31 AM

My worry is not so much Al Qaeda: they have been smashed and discredited on the field of battle.
I fear that we now are down to the meat of the problem: will Shiites and Sunnis unite in a national government? I don’t know how this one will turn out.

E.G. The two Iraqi Divisions in Anbar (1st/7th) increased manning by 200% in 2007 and the 7th Div is getting a 4th Brigade as a PIC present (March IOC).

http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2007/12/measuring_security_a.php

If there is one thing that I don’t count on HotAir doing, it is keeping up with the ongoing progress and success in Iraq. Granted, HotAir is first and foremost focused on politics and posts to generate blog hits. But that is why we have milblogs. You should check them out.

Thanks for keeping the progress in Iraq on Hotair. Everyone else is ignoring it

Drtuddle on January 10, 2008 at 5:55 PM

You obviously do not read milblogs, to say something like this. Blackfive, Mudville Gazette, Long War Journal, Michael Yon, Small Wars Journal, Michael Fumento, Michael Totten, just to name a few of tens, hundreds out there who report these things every day.

Saddam’s army officers were mostly there for the money
bnelson44 on January 10, 2008 at 6:26 PM

That’s to my point. Disbandment and de-Bathification created a surplus of unpaid soldiers who were just in it for the money. When the government stopped paying, they linked up with those who would pay (not only AQ but the Iranians, too.)

Anyway, everything’s debatable in the absense of a counter example. One of my pet peeves is with cheap shot arguments from the left about “mistakes” — always safe to make in hindsight. I don’t be anymore guilty of that than I already am. I mostly just wanted to give Crocker his due, too, for helping rectify what I always thought was a bad policy.

No doubt. But disbandment and de-bathification worked to al-Qaeda’s advantage.

Spolitics on January 10, 2008 at 6:22 PM

Maybe, maybe not. Now we are in the realm of speculation and Saddam’s army officers were mostly there for the money they got in bribes and were not what we think of as an officer and a gentleman. Saddam had no NCO corpse and his enlisted men were mostly Shiite conscripts.

That’s an impressive decline. Thanks for the link.

NTWR on January 10, 2008 at 6:22 PM

But we shouldn’t get too complacent. We are no where near done yet.

bnelson44 on January 10, 2008 at 6:11 PM

No doubt. But disbandment and de-bathification worked to al-Qaeda’s advantage.

bnelson44 on January 10, 2008 at 6:10 PM

That’s an impressive decline. Thanks for the link.

It strikes me that much of our problems in Iraq stemmed from disbanding their army and de-Bathification —
Spolitics on January 10, 2008 at 6:03 PM

you forgot about al-Qaeda. al-Anbar was al-Qaeda’s headquarters last year.

I wonder if things have cooled off over there because things have cooled off, literally, for the winter.
NTWR on January 10, 2008 at 6:01 PM

A history of US Casulties in Iraq is here:

http://icasualties.org/oif/HNH.aspx

Props to both Petreaus and Crocker for what they’re doing to clean up that mess.

Thank you for serving, troops!