Good News

Adex_Xeda · Post by **Adex_Xeda** » February 15, 2004, 5:38 pm

So, some Kurdish intelligence guys laid a trap and caught a high profile Al Qaeda operative trying to cross the border into Iraq.

He had some paperwork with him.

Here's the story from Time Magazine.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... ml?cnn=yes

Of particular interest in the article:

The captured letter describes the plan to foment violence between Shi'ites and Sunnis as a last-ditch effort by the resistance. The author complains of various obstacles: that the U.S. won't leave Iraq "no matter how many wounds it sustains," that Iraqis offer hospitality but "will not allow you to make their homes a base for operations or a safe house," that "our enemy is growing stronger day after day, and its intelligence information increases." He laments, "By God, this is suffocation!" The writer argues that the resistance has only a limited time in which to act—until the U.S. confers sovereignty on a new Iraqi government, a turnover planned for June. "We are racing against time," he says. Once democracy is in place, "we will have no pretexts," he argues. "If, God forbid, the [new Iraqi] government is successful and takes control of the country, we will just have to pack up and go somewhere else again

I'm glad we learned our lesson from Somilia. Once you start a cause, don't chicken out half way through it. This is why we need to hang in there and make sure Iraq is solid before we leave. Our actions today will disuade or enbolden our enemies' acts tomorrow

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » February 15, 2004, 6:18 pm

Of course, you face the problem with a growing number of Iraqis wanting you out ASAP. You have to walk a very fine line between leaving too soon and staying too long. If you leave too soon, one side will be happy. If you stay too long, you risk pushing more and more peopel to support that side.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » February 15, 2004, 6:30 pm

until the U.S. confers sovereignty on a new Iraqi government,

Sovereignty. That's a cool word : )

Fallanthas · Post by **Fallanthas** » February 16, 2004, 8:57 pm

100% correct, Kelshara . Wouldn't it suck to have to wake up every day and face that particular tightrope?

Avestan · Post by **Avestan** » February 22, 2004, 10:48 pm

Hey Kel,

Do you actually have some kind of information showing a trend of Iraqis wanting the US out? I am not trying to flame, merely curous. The last time I heard numbers, the majority of the country wanted the US to stay, not to leave.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » February 23, 2004, 1:25 am

I know some people who work with mine clearing etc down there, not connected with the military but with a volunteer organization. It has been a while since I talked with them (and I can't for the life of me remember the name.. a British organization I believe it is) and last I heard that was what they said. Don't even know if they are still down there, should probably try to get some news from them. It also seems to be backed up by a few newswriters I've read (and honestly, it is mostly common sense.. people in this area and also in Afghanistan have always been very independent and have never acted friendly towards "invaders").

And btw, did anyone catch the MTV Diary episode from Iraq? I usually hate MTV but hit it while flipping channels a while back. It was actually quite interesting, very down to earth with interviews of young people in Baghdad (only thing that annoyed me a bit was that the group they interviewed only consisted of people from the "richer" part of the country who can afford to go out to cafees etc), and showed how they had supported 100% how Americans had arrived there. Yet now they had lost faith in them because it seemed like if they had a plan it wasn't working whatsoever etc. Was interesting to hear their comments, and to see how poorly electricity etc was there since it went out in the middle of the interview (and they said that was quite normal). Of course, you also heard gunfire in the street etc.