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| Fifth Column |
| AP: "resilient" and "robust" insurgents defy US forces! |
| 2007-03-19 |
| Jules Crittenden fisks a "news" article to within an inch of its life: The AP’s Stephen R. Hurst proclaims the resilience of Sunni insurgents! BAGHDAD (AP) - Sunni insurgents, resilient despite the five-week security crackdown in the capital, killed at least six more American troops over the weekend. A Sunni car bomber hit a largely Shiite district in the capital Sunday, killing at least eight people. I’m getting a warm and fuzzy Pravda kind of feel off that, the ”resilience.” Stalwart insurgents resiliently marching forward! You have to troll the North Korean web to find that kind of thing these days! To the tractor factories, comrades! The Five Year Plan must be fulfilled! The next three paragraphs are devoted to American death, spiced up with phrases like the one about Anbar being “controlled by the Sunni insurgency.” I’m concerned that might be somewhat overbroad, when you consider the significant influence of both the U.S. and Iraqi military and pro-government tribes have over what goes on in Anbar. But that’s what good propaganda is all about! Then we get to this: While U.S. and Iraqi troops have flooded the Baghdad streets and a heavily armored American column was sent north to adjacent Diyala province, attacks on American and Iraqi forces have been robust. The resilient enemy is also robust! Strangely, no mention of the “dozens” of resilient, robust insurgents who were granted martyrdom in that action. But let’s not dawdle about the trivial details. We’ll get to those, such as the “violence down” later. We’re following AP’s schedule, and AP is playing gotcha! Any action or reaction by terrorists who have been severely set back is a sign of surge failure, and must be played high, resiliently and robustly. All American statements must be buried, carefully selected and couched to suggest futility. . . . Go read the rest of it |
| Posted by:Mike |
| #7 Search and engage operations can have limited effect in a conflict where the terrorists kill by planting remotely controlled explosives. 24-7 patrol methods do little more than provide easy targets for the enemy. Either we create conditions for both gathering better Intel and executing disproportionate retaliation, or we will do little to deter this enemy. And given that over 60% of US casualties have occurred in Anbar Province, Saudi interference should not be overlooked. |
| Posted by: Sneaze 2007-03-19 18:03 |
| #6 Crips and Bloods 'Resilient' and 'Robust' Guess we need to declare victory and withdraw from LA |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-03-19 17:39 |
| #5 Had the same reaction when I saw the headline yesterday. Typical poor, tendentious "analysis" masquerading as journalism - and always, always in one direction. In the Palace, in the golden days, we had a nearly daily fisking of the news from Iraq, usually an email circulated in the office and to a few carefully vetted outsiders, who'd be discreet with them. And Rantburg has always been one thing keeping me from setting up a daily fisk site - this place seems to fulfill the mission more than adequately. |
| Posted by: Verlaine 2007-03-19 12:16 |
| #4 resiliant == chicken$hit attacks && running away robust == stupid enough to come back for more despite the terrible odds even against 'resiliant' attacks |
| Posted by: gorb 2007-03-19 11:33 |
| #3 Uncle Mike, does 'resilient' mean dying or being arrested in large numbers? |
| Posted by: SteveS 2007-03-19 10:11 |
| #2 BP you nailed it. I saw the "resilient" headline floating around on Yahoo news last night and thought about posting it here too, but I'm glad I didn't. Mr. Crittenden's fisk was magnificent: You have to troll the North Korean web to find that kind of thing these days! Brilliant. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2007-03-19 09:23 |
| #1 Aha the terrorists respond to "The Surge" in the only way they can, via their media allies. |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles in Blairistan 2007-03-19 07:46 |