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| Iraq |
| Republican Guard hiding in individual civilian homes? |
| 2003-03-25 |
| Heavily Edited First of all, there is the lack of the outflow of Iraqi refugees Using our self-imposed assumptions, we have interpreted this to mean that the populace has faith that the coalition forces will not harm them. It would be nigh on impossible to hide a 40,000+ man force and, therefore, we should able to effectively target it. Yet that is not our current situation. We have hit the various compounds and facilities in that urban area with great precision, seeking to spare the populace from harm. Yet in ignoring the publicly announced paradigm of our enemy, we are in all likelihood targeting places long empty of the enemy's strength. So where are these divisions of Republican Guards? In town after town in southern Iraq, our forces have found only a few organized units, usually poorly supplied and equipped, and assume that the bulk of the forces have slunk away rather than face the coalition onslaught. As long announced, we have not sought to enter these towns for fear of inflicting civilian casualties, and so have routinely bypassed them intact. But the news is that our hyper-extended supply columns are now being attacked in the area of these same towns by irregular units, is the assumption, rather than line units in mufti. But the populace of the coalition-spared towns are not coming out to greet our forces other than in small numbers who, immediately after we depart, turn to the Arab media to back the Baath regime. Why is this the norm? If we use the same facts plainly in evidence – but evaluate them by first taking Saddam at his word, in the awful knowledge of his brutal tactics and arrogant disregard for human life – it becomes apparent that he has not planned to use human shields for his facilities, but rather for each of his individual soldiers. This stratagem at a stroke accomplishes several critical military and political goals. First, it reduces the effectiveness of our advanced standoff weapons – forces us into close combat and the increased casualties, both civilian and/or coalition that it will inevitably create. It also suppresses any internal revolt without diverting forces away from engaging coalition forces. On the political side, it uses our own citizens' paradigm of expecting quick, bloodless victory and our public policy of reducing civilian casualties against us. So where is the Iraqi military? It is hiding in the homes of everyday citizens, suppressing any nascent revolt while using their own country's women and children as living sandbags – a stunningly brutal, but highly effective tactic. Hitler told us what he was planning in "Mein Kampf" and was ignored at the cost of rivers of blood, but we cannot afford to discount Saddam's announcement – nor should we. Sept. 11 should have already taught us that innocents are of no concern to terrorists or their supporters. What I have seen leads me to suspect that what we are being drawn into is a partisan style, urban conflict rather than the conventional one we hoped for. This will create a flood of civilian and coalition casualties with the predictable adverse political fallout. We will have to deal with the political costs, for the world is not likely to blame Hussein for the death of the innocents that he so blithely positions to hide behind. If true, it shows how our goodness will be used against us very effectively. The Blame America First Crowd won't let the continued slaughter of Iraqi citizens bother them today any more than it let them bother them yesterday. At least, not if it can be manipulated to humiliate America. |
| Posted by:becky |
| #3 Joe: Source links usually hide under the article title (which doesn't seem to show if you're viewing the "comment on this article" page). This one excerpts Tom Marzullo's March 25 "Strategies and Paradigms" column from World Net Daily. |
| Posted by: Old Grouch 2003-03-25 11:22:30 |
| #2 Source? Even if you don't link it (preferred), you need to at least mention it. |
| Posted by: Joe Katzman 2003-03-25 10:19:24 |
| #1 Someday soon, we will start to transition the Iraqi Television Network toward the free Iraq. Outside of Iraq we discuss "is he or isn't he the Real Slim Shady (Saddam). Internally they still see Saddam's machine on the tv screen. Once we pull the plug on him it will become more difficult to keep the image up that he is in control. It has been a subject of debate between "intelligence" wanting tv information to analyse and "military operations" wanting to squeeze the dying power structures remaining assets- the media. |
| Posted by: Capsu78 2003-03-25 09:07:46 |