Political Bloviation

In two recent post Glenn nails it. The first What “winning” in Iraq looks like hits on what’s happened in Basra since the British abandoned it:

The article details that Shiite militias — which British troops “unintentionally” armed for years by failing to realize that the “security forces” had no allegiance to the central government — completely dominate the city. The militias are “strong enough to overpower security forces and brutal enough to behead women considered not sufficiently Islamic.” According to the police chief, “Basra has become so lawless that in the last three months 45 women have been killed for being ‘immoral’ because they were not fully covered or because they may have given birth outside wedlock” — Freedom is on the March — and “Shia militia are better armed than his men and control Iraq’s main port.”

Needless to say, the British, upon withdrawing, claimed — just as our government does endlessly — that they had achieved victory in Basra. The British General in charge of Basra “said the province had ‘begun to regain its strength’” and added: “I came to rid Basra of its enemies and I now formally hand Basra back to its friends.” But residents of Basra who live with the reality of what our invasion has wrought are quite emphatic about what has happened. From the BBC several days ago:

More than 85% of the residents of Basra believe British troops have had a negative effect on the Iraqi province since 2003, an opinion poll suggests. The survey for BBC Newsnight of nearly 1,000 people also suggests that 56% believe their presence has increased the overall level of militia violence.

 Winning Hearts and Minds. And Basra is one of the places being held up as a Success Story in light of the British withdrawal.

Aren’t you glad you know what “victory” looks like?

Then there’s the take down of Senate “leadership” offered by Harry Reid. He not only fails at attempts to curb unfettered wiretapping, but recently acts as an enabler to bring the President’s favored version of the FISA revision to a vote. Chris Dodd has vowed to lead a filibuster if it comes to the Senate floor. With democrats like this who needs republicans?

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