6 Years in Iraq Down 2 to Go?

Today marks the 6th anniversary of the war in and on Iraq. With US forces committed to the country for at least another two years and an escalation in Afghanistan under way, we should not forget the men and women who have had their lives put on the line, nor the hundreds of thousands of civilians who have died during this prolonged conflagration.

With concerns about the economy here at home, we should be doubly aware of the connection between our warring ways and the economic engine that runs it.

Tonight in Iowa City, a Candlelight Peace Walk will commemorate the anniversary of the Iraq War. The walk will begin at 7PM on the sidewalk in front of Old Capitol, on the west side of the intersection of Clinton St. & Iowa Ave. This night we will remember all those who have suffered and died in this humanitarian crisis. This includes U. S. and Coalition soldiers who have died, U.S. and Coalition forces injured, all those who have committed suicide as a result of their experience, as well as innocent Iraqis who have died, been injured, or displaced. And this includes all of their families and friends. Please bring your own candle. The walk will end at Old Brick where refreshments will be served, approximately 9 PM. For more information contact PEACE Iowa - (319) 354-1925.

According to United for Peace and Justice, the war in Iraq has led to:

• at least one million Iraqis killed
• 4.5 million Iraqis displaced and 5 million orphans
• over 4,000 U.S. service people killed, tens of thousands wounded
• more than $600,000,000,000 already spent
• $720 million spent each day
• estimates that in the end we will spend upwards of $3 trillion

The Voice of America probably has one of the more ironic stories stating "As Iraq enters its seventh year of war, he [Robert Gates] predicted the country will emerge much better off by the time U.S. troops finish their scheduled withdrawal at the end of 2011, nearly nine years after they arrived." I'm sure that the facts on the ground do not support that assessment.

Hope Takes a Turn to the Center?

With the appointment of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and keeping on Robert Gates as the Secretary of Defense, a clear message is being sent by Team Obama to those that believed he would shift the country to the left. While Hillary Clinton is no Alexander Haig, she is likely to be less progressive in leading the State Department than some, including myself, would like. Couple her with Robert Gates and more moderate Democrats and Republicans are going to rest easier in the transition period.

Still, is this the change that Obama supporters expected? What these moves seem to indicate is that President-elect Obama is a pragmatist and is not willing to waste his political capital coming out of the gate. In this time of uncertainty he seems to be choosing to inspire calm by making safer, more calculated choices.

As he did in his campaign, Obama is building a core around himself that will allow him to lead from his strengths--calm resolve, well-turned phrases and themes, and executing legislation with calculation.

Does this apparent turn to easing the anxiety of the middle mean he won't accomplish his more progressive agenda? No, it means he is working on the middle to trust his judgment. If he is successful at doing this, it will be easier to accomplish the more difficult tasks that lie further ahead. Developing things like a new energy policy that is far greener than anything we've seen, investing in the infrastructure to create the new economy and transportation options we need, and moving us closer to a health care system that covers all of us--these are longer term battles to be waged. But to do this, the Obama team needs us to simmer down so that we can embrace the change he campaigned to bring.

Def Sec Gates May Slow Down Drawdown

From the Washington Post

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Monday that it "probably does make sense"
to pause troop withdrawals from Iraq late this summer after the last of the
forces sent in as part of an offensive surge have gone home.

Gates told reporters traveling with him in Baghdad that he was leaning toward recommending "a brief period of consolidation and evaluation" before further reducing the number of U.S. troops in Iraq, according to a Defense Department release.

He spoke a day after a series of bombings targeting Iraqi security
forces and U.S.-backed Sunni guards killed as many as 37 people in northern
Iraq. The violence continued Monday, with two suicide car bombs detonating
outside the compound of a top Sunni tribal leader, Ali Hatam al-Suleiman,
killing at least eight people and wounding 23.

General Petraeus echoes the sentiment.

The Surge Sags As Gates Visits Baghdad

From the AP

Storekeepers swept up broken glass in darkness. Grim-faced shoppers cut forlorn figures making their way home down side streets. Trucks hauled off the charred skeletons of cars under police escort.

A dreary mood descended after a parked car loaded with explosives blew up and killed at least 16 people Wednesday in a Shiite district of Baghdad where life had come closer to normal than any other during the security campaign that has quieted the city's long bout of violence.

The bombing in Karradah — the deadliest of four across Iraq that killed at least 25 people — came less than an hour before Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters in the heavily fortified Green Zone across the Tigris River that "a secure, stable Iraq is within reach."

U.S. military commanders, meanwhile, announced that three American soldiers were killed Tuesday during an attack by insurgents north of Baghdad.

The Karradah bombing, which bore the hallmarks of al-Qaida in Iraq, was followed by gunfire and sirens. A plume of smoke rose into the dusky sky, and a witness said several trees caught fire and burned.

Police and hospital officials said at least 16 people died and 38 were wounded by the blast on a busy commercial street in the heart of Karradah. It hit during rush hour as shoppers crowded into stores preparing for Eid al-Adha, the feast of sacrifice, later this month.

Karradah was frequently attacked with car bombs in the past, but it had become one of Baghdad's quietest neighborhoods during a stepped-up security campaign by U.S. and Iraqi forces that has greatly reduced violence after 4 1/2 years of destruction and sectarian hatred.

As of Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2007, at least 3,883 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes eight military civilians.

Robert Gates: Why did I Take This Job?

Since his appointment, Robert Gates has been a busy Defense Secretary. With the ongoing "rebranding" of the Iraq war, the Turks threatening to invade Iraq from the north, and our messing about with Somalia, a guy could really regret leaving a posh job at a large university.

According to the AP

Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Sunday cautioned Turkey against sending troops into northern Iraq, as it has threatened, to hunt down Kurdish rebels it accuses of carrying out terrorist raids inside Turkey.

"We hope there would not be a unilateral military action across the border into Iraq," Gates told a news conference after meetings here with Asian government officials. Turkey and Iraq were not represented.

Gates said he sympathized with the Turks' concern about cross-border raids by Kurdish rebels.

"The Turks have a genuine concern with Kurdish terrorism that takes place on Turkish soil," he said. "So one can understand their frustration and unhappiness over this. Several hundred Turks lose their lives each year, and we have been working with the Turks to try to help them get control of this problem on Turkish soil."

Tensions have heightened in recent weeks in northern Iraq as Turkey has built up its military forces on Iraq's border, a move clearly meant to pressure Iraq to rein in the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, separatists who launch raids into southeast Turkey's Kurdish region from hideouts in Iraq.

At the Singapore news conference Gates was asked about a reported U.S. naval bombardment on Friday of terrorist targets in northern Somalia.

"That's possibly an ongoing operation," he said, adding that as a result he would not comment on it.