For all the doom and gloomers, the nay-sayers and people who only see the negative side to everything....I thought I'd share this article. It is very telling because "Der Spiegel" (where this article appears)is probably the most anti Iraq War, Anti- American , Anti Bush Media "magazine" I know of ( I'm sure there are many more..I said "I know of")They recently sent a reporter to Iraq just to see how things are. This is a side you seldom see covered by the media. Think what you will...but maybe things are starting to turn for the better...


By Ullrich Fichtner in Iraq
When describing Iraq, the word "peace" is seldom used. Truth be told, the Americans have restored order to many parts of the county. But Iraq remains fractured, and where new schools are built today, bombs could explode tomorrow.

The "Hands of Victory" in Baghdad's Green Zone: The US military is more successful in Iraq than the world wants to believe.
The Iraq war came within a hair of returning to Ramadi in early July. The attackers had already gathered four kilometers (about 2.5 miles) south of the city, on the banks of the Nasr canal. Between 40 and 50 men dressed in light uniforms were armed like soldiers and prepared to commit a series of suicide bombings. They had already strapped explosive vests to their bodies and loaded thousands of kilograms of explosives, missiles and grenades onto two old Mercedes trucks. But their plan was foiled when Iraqis intent on preserving peace in Ramadi betrayed them to the Americans.

Reporter Ullrich Fichtner (left), 42, and photographer Tina Hager, 43, spent three weeks in Iraq researching the current SPIEGEL cover story. For Fichtner, it was his fourth trip to Iraq since the war broke out in March 2003.
By March, however, the number of incidents reported in Tameem had dropped to 43, including only four direct attacks with rifles and pistols and one rocket attack. There were no bombings, snipers, rocket-propelled grenades or car bombs. And the leaders of the region's 23 powerful clans were finally meeting with US commanders for "security conferences," while the imams from the city's mosques met with the military's chaplains.

The Iraqis in Ramadi, almost all Sunnis, had been worn down by chronic violence. Many had been victims of kidnappings or blackmail at the hands of mafia-like terrorist groups. They had finally come to the realization that, in the long run, the Americans were less of a threat and offered more hope than the fanatical holy warriors from Iraq and abroad.

Families began sending their sons to join the new Iraqi police force and military and fathers ran for municipal offices. They began cooperating with US military officials, turning in bombers and revealing their weapons caches, all while going about their daily lives, running their businesses, working as contractors, shipping agents and garbage collectors. Teachers returned to their classrooms, doctors began treating patients again and store owners restocked their shelves. Iraqis were now building the barbed wire barriers around the city, constructed to force travelers through checkpoints. Iraqis even manned the checkpoints as the Americans -- the Iraqis' former enemies -- retreated to the background, watching over as the city made a fresh start.

Since June, Ramadi residents have only known the war from televison. Indeed, US military officials at the Baghdad headquarters of Operation Iraqi Freedom often have trouble believing their eyes when they read the reports coming in from their units in Ramadi these days. Exploded car bombs: zero. Detonated roadside bombs: zero. Rocket fire: zero. Grenade fire: zero. Shots from rifles and pistols: zero. Weapons caches discovered: dozens. Terrorists arrested: many.

An Irritating Contraction
Ramadi is an irritating contradiction of almost everything the world thinks it knows about Iraq -- it is proof that the US military is more successful than the world wants to believe. Ramadi demonstrates that large parts of Iraq -- not just Anbar Province, but also many other rural areas along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers -- are essentially pacified today. This is news the world doesn't hear: Ramadi, long a hotbed of unrest, a city that once formed the southwestern tip of the notorious "Sunni Triangle," is now telling a different story, a story of Americans who came here as liberators, became hated occupiers and are now the protectors of Iraqi reconstruction.
It's Friday, the Muslim day of rest. The city is practically asleep, the air filled a powder-fine sand the soldiers like to call "moon dust." Though still morning, it's 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius) outside. In the afternoon, the Iraqi national soccer team will play against Australia in the Asian Cup and win the match, 3:1. Sporting victories, of course, are something Iraqis haven't had much time to think about in the past four years. Shots will be heard in the city after the final whistle, bullets of joy fired off into the blue sky, salutes to a new Iraq.

The square in front of the mosque, a trash-covered wasteland between ruined rows of houses, fills up with people at the end of Friday prayers. Children hang on the American soldiers like grapes on a vine, plucking at their trousers, vying for their attention, for a glance, a piece of candy, a dollar, gazing up at the big foreigners as if they were gods.
The Americans run into acquaintances in the crowd. After being stationed in the city for 10 months, they have become a familiar sight. Bearded men greet the soldiers with hugs and kisses, and passersby hand them cold cans of lemonade. "Thank you, Mister," "Hello, Mister," "How are you, Mister?" they say. They talk about paint for schools and soccer jerseys, and they invite the Americans over for lunch. The Iraqis pose for photos with them, making "V's" for "victory" with their fingers.

Lauer's unit arrives at the home of Ali Chudeir, a charming 30-year-old construction company manager in need of a good dentist. His English is good, but only, he says, because his father practically pounded five new vocabulary words into his head each day as a kid. Bodyguards armed with Kalashnikov rifles lurk around his front door. Chudeir still doesn't fully trust the newfound peace that has come to town. The terrorists, he warns, could return. They are still lurking outside the city, randomly attacking people, he says. "This will continue for a long time. That's why the Americans should stay here longer."
It's clear that Lauer and Chudeir have become friends. They have a lot in common: Both are 30 and have children, Lauer three and Chudeir four. When the Iraqi heard that his American friend was shot in the back at the Battle of Donkey Island, he says, "My family and I wept and prayed for him." The bullet that had hit Lauer stopped just in time to spare his life. It ripped a hole in his T-shirt, but produced nothing more serious than a large bruise thanks to the Kevlar vest he was wearing. But Lauer doesn't like to talk about it, saying only, "I'm a lucky bastard"

Five American officers sit on sofas in front of Chudeir's desk, behaving as if they were on leave, their guns leaning carelessly against a wall, their bulletproof vests removed as they watch Arab MTV on television. Anyone who has satellite TV in Iraq can receive up to 200 stations, including Egyptian Koran channels and Saudi Arabian religious broadcasts, "Pulp Fiction" and "Star Wars" on movie channels, Japanese game shows and English animal series. Five or six news stations are on the air 24 hours a day, while others broadcast European football matches, shows about makeup, cooking, Bollywood movies and luxury car commercials -- mirages of a more carefree life beyond Iraq.

Dinner arrives and it's a true feast, with a spread of kebabs and large pieces of roast chicken, salad and rice with coriander leaves. Chudeir serves sumptuous meals whenever the Americans come to visit, not only because he is a good host, but also because he is grateful to his American friends. Thanks to the American engineers, he says, the city has up to 10 hours of electricity a day now. "We have never had this in all of Ramadi's history. In the end, we will live like civilized people."
As his friends leave, Chudeir waves goodbye with both arms while other neighbors to the left and right do the same. Once again, passersby make the "V" for "victory" sign, greeting the soldiers, "Hello, Mister. How are you?" They're like scenes from another country, another city, a different movie.

Ok.....you can put the blinders back on...We all know the whole country is in chaos...this must be all BS

WOW..68 views and not one comment..the silence is deafening Shock and awe??

It just goes to show you what the blinders do! They blind you with propoganda to distract you from the truth!

Look at this, It is a list of the most deadliest attacks in Iraq. They are dated, count and look at the differences in the death tolls. Not only is the problem getting worse, but the enemy is becomeing more effective!

7 this year so far, 1 in 03, 2 in 04, 4 in 05, 2 in 06!
That is the problem with fighting an unconditional war, chase them from one area, they move to another. Your article mentions one town in one province. Iraq is a big place, and you will never win. When you see the next 10 year old boy here at home, picture him the victim of an IED in 8 years, if everyone falls for yours and Bush's propoganda! It could very well be !!!!

(AP) - Some of the deadliest attacks in Iraq since the war began in March 2003:

_ Aug. 14: Four suicide bombers hit a Kurdish Yazidi community in northwest Iraq, killing at least 200 people and wounding 300 others, the Iraqi military said.

_July 7: A suicide truck bomber rips through a market in a Shiite Turkoman town north of Baghdad, killing at least 160 people.

_June 19: A truck bomb packed with explosives strikes the Shiite Khulani mosque in central Baghdad, killing at least 87 people.

_April 18: A car bomb explodes at a Baghdad market as workers leave for the day, killing 127 people.

_March 6: Two suicide bombers blow themselves up in Hillah, about 60 miles south of Baghdad, killing 93 people in a crowd of Shiite pilgrims.

_Feb. 3: A suicide truck bomber strikes a market in a predominantly Shiite area of Baghdad, killing 137 people.

_Jan. 22: A parked car bomb followed immediately by a suicide car bomber strikes a predominantly Shiite commercial area in the Bab al-Sharqi market in central Baghdad, killing 88 people.

_Nov. 23, 2006: Mortar rounds and five car bombs kill 215 people in the Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City.

_April 7, 2006: Two suicide bombers attack the Shiite Buratha mosque in northern Baghdad, killing 85 people.

_Sept. 29, 2005: Three suicide attackers detonate car bombs in an outdoor market and two nearby commercial streets in the mostly Shiite town of Balad, north of Baghdad, killing at least 102 people.

_Sept. 14, 2005: A suicide car bomber strikes as day laborers gather shortly after dawn in a heavily Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad, killing 112 people.

_July 16, 2005: A suicide bomber detonates explosives strapped to his body at a gas station near a Shiite mosque in Musayyib, killing at least 90 people.

_Feb. 28, 2005: A suicide car bomber targets mostly Shiite police and national guard recruits in Hillah, killing 125 people.

_March 2, 2004: A suicide bomber kills at least 85 people at the Imam Hussein shrine in the Shiite holy city of Karbala.

_Feb. 1, 2004: Twin suicide bombers kill 109 people in two Kurdish party offices in the northern city of Irbil.

_Aug. 29, 2003: A car bomb explodes outside a mosque in Najaf, killing more than 85 people, including Shiite leader Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim.

My brain is trying to wrap itself around this whole article. What it's pumping out to my conscious mind is this. Strange that a country, suddenly filled with able bodied men and women, could not have found a way, to free themselves from tyranny. Instead, the fall in line behind those who have staked their lives to get them to this point. Surely followers need leaders, but it sounds like they were all too fearful to give their own lives to become a leader in their own land but very willing to follow those from another country, who would give their lives.

Lesson here, I think, that we need to view our own fault, and deal with the issues of our own country, before we try to lead those in other countries to greener pastures, on the backs of those who should be serving this country, not another.

that should have been the problem with fighting an unconventional war...

I track that article down red wine. you really do need to stay away from those right wing bloggs!!!!

Fanta..Two points to make with your Post..one..all but two ..happened around bagdad, and as you say Iraq is a huge country...bigger then California...The whole Sunni Triangle is smaller then LA...so its not as "wide spread" as you suggest. Two..your stats go back along way...except for the most recent bombing (not sure if that was today or yesterday)...death toll in Iraq has been SHARPly decreasing in last two minths.

Not to mention today,
250 dead so far and hundreds injured.

Surely we can find some good going on but when so many are still dying it can certainly get overshadowed. Building schools and helping doesnt get as good a rating as bombs and deaths does it?

You know I made that same comment about 10 year olds growing up to die in the illegal war that is Iraq 5 years ago. Everyone said, your crazy that war will never last that long!
pause so you can think..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Imagine those dots represent time and tombstones.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................5 years ago, my nephew was 13!!!......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................OCT 11, 2007, he graduates from the Infantry training center at Ft Benning, GA and goes to IRAQ!!!.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Stop the madness, I dont want him to be one of those last dots!!!!!

Redy..If you watch your family and neigbors families pulled from their homes and dissapear into the night , never to be seen again, or worse watch suddams men kill or rape your children in front of you..over a 30 year reign..you would be hard pressed to talk amongst even your "friends" about organizing any revolt in fear your neighbors would turn you in.It not as simple as you make it sound...Talk to anyone who lived in Romania, or Czech Republic when it was still a communist country and they will tell you what its like to live in fear of the secret police.

Bull****.............

10 americans died today 8 yesterday, one little lull does not signify an end nor a decline worth mentioning!!!!!

I have a bridge for sale in Arizona. would you like to invest in it!!!

Fanta..I wonder how you keep determining its an "illegal" war...Congress Approved it, there where countless UN resolutions...how come you aren't complaining about the REAL Illegal war in Bosnia, and Kosova..which Clinton jumped into with out any congressional approval, no UN mandate...just on his own whim...he said we'd be there for 6 months...we are still there over ten years later....what gives my friend?

If the issue is presidential power, it must be pointed out that President Clinton in 1999 waged a war without Congressional approval against Serbia, a part of the country of Yugoslavia, which was ruled by a communist, Slobodan Milosevic, but which posed absolutely no military threat to the U.S. Clinton's military intervention put the U.S. (and NATO) effectively on the side of Muslim terrorists in the Kosovo Liberation Army. Many Christian Serbs in Kosovo have since fled this province of Serbia, which is now under U.N. administration, and have seen their churches and homes destroyed."

The attack raised to at least 73 the number of U.S. service members who have died in Iraq in July, the lowest number since November 2006, when at least 70 U.S. deaths were reported. The monthly toll topped 100 in April, May and June.

In all, at least 3,652 members of the U.S. military have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes seven military civilians.

The No. 2 commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, expressed cautious optimism last week about the downturn. He said casualties had increased as U.S. forces expanded operations into militant strongholds as part of a five-month-old security crackdown aimed at clamping off violence in Baghdad, but were going down as Americans gained control of the areas.

"It's an initial positive sign, but I would argue we need a bit more time to make an assessment whether it's a true trend," he said then.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/08/15/iraq/main3168487.shtml?source=mostpop_story

Go read that redwine

and I dont know what happened to that one post but if you scan right you'll see the rest of what I wrote!

Illegal, because of the lies told and covered up. Don't you know what all the beef and investigations involving Libby and Cheney and the boys are about!
Its still on going, Bush is claiming executive privilege to keep people from testifying and congress is filing contempt charges!
You dont keep up with the news do you?

Heres some more news for you wine:

By Sally Buzbee, Associated Press | August 8, 2007

BAGHDAD -- Four more US troops and a British soldier have died in attacks, military officials said yesterday, in a possible sign that extremists are regrouping after a drop in American deaths last month.

The spate of recent US deaths -- 19 so far in August -- seems certain to intensify the debate over US progress to calm Iraq and gain ground against militants ahead of a key September report to Congress.

US deaths had dropped slightly in July to 79 -- the lowest monthly tally since 70 were killed in November. More than 100 American forces died each month in the April-to-June period as the US military struck out at insurgents on dangerous streets and cities across Iraq.

The recent attacks against US forces included two powerful roadside bombs that left multiple soldiers dead and wounded -- three soldiers died Saturday south of Baghdad and four were killed Monday in a blast that also wounded 11 in restive Diyala province north of the capital, where Sunni insurgents remain active.

Read the rest of the story and you'll find the US military has determined the enemy in Iraq has shifted to sunni militia's. Isnt that who the were boasting as friends and arming a couple months ago?

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2007/08/08/rise_in_us_death_toll_seen_as_sign_extremists_in_iraq_are_regrouping/

The news these days are about as trust worthy as a cheating spouse

http://www.iraqwar.org/med-distortions.htm

Davy thats a silly statement so full of holes its not worth a comment.

But here is an interesting tid bit that might interest you:

Astoundingly, in the peacetime of the 1980s, more American military died each year than during our occupation of Iraq. Between 1980 and 1989, the death toll was averaging 2,000 a year, according to the Congressional Research Service, a branch of the Library of Congress.

Now even with the lower death count in the Iraq war, the anguish felt by the families of the boys dying is no less terrible, and the war is no less wrong!

Did you read those stories redwine, or just close your eyes?

What the heck did you do to this post Fanta?, I have a 22" widescreen and still havta scroll wayyyyyyyyyyyyy over.

I didnt do it!!! it must have been all those periods!