Ask A Troop Sunday
It's Sunday again, one more week gone. For those who don't know, Sunday is the day I open up the comments section and let anyone with any opinion (idiotic or not) pose a question or make a statement. I do my best to answer every question fully, but I obviously won't do something stupid like violating OPSEC. So if you have a question you've always wanted to ask a troop, here's your chance!
posted by MarksMomma at 10:25
BANDIT.THREE.SIX
THE LIZ
THE WIZ
6 Comments:
Have Israeli operations against Hizbullah had any noticable effect on the Shia in Baghdad? I know Al-Sadr organized a protest but what about your average, non-RPG toting Iraqi? Do they equate America more with Israel after the support America has shown her?
And...
Is it true that Coalition forces have 'sold their soul'? as alleged by Iraq: The Reckoning shown on channel 4 here in the UK, giving free reign to pretty unsavoury militias in order to restore order?
I HAVE A NEW BUMBER
STICKER....
"SUPPORT A TERRORIST"
are sooooooooooooooo many
people that dumb now?
how about this one..
"2 towers gone,many more to come"
i was dumb bandit...before 9-11...
not no more!!!!!!!!!
anonymous, I'm not answering the question for B36, but you have to ask yourself, what would be the benefit for them to do that. Realizing that they would be facing an additional group beyond the ones who are already arrayed against them wouldn't be a wise thing to do. By definition unsavory groups wouldn't be predictable in a partnership.
Off the topic of war, what's on your top five list of the things you want to do when you get back home?
just a couple of questions that you may or may ot be able to answer.
1. does anyone have any idea of the number of insurgents there are over there?
2. if so, does anyone know the makeup of the insurgency, iraqis vs outsiders?
3. has the number gone up or can we say that the number has gone down since the beginning?
the reason for the questions is because you hear the claim that for every one terrorist we kill three more take their place.
anon,
Not that I've been able to notice. In my experience, the average Iraqi is really concerned with day-to-day activities and will pay attention to the situation in Israel much the same as do most Americans. While they may be more inclined to sympathize with the Lebonese rather than the Israelies, it's more of a topic of discussion than a call to arms.
For your second question, I think it's absolutely incorrect that the Coalition forces have given free reign to militias. In fact I'd have to say it's exactly the opposite. The ongoing operation to clear Baghdad, Together Forward, is aimed at getting rid of them. Because a militia is composed of armed and organized civilians, we aren't able to just lay siege to Baghdad and shoot anyone with a weapon since the political fallout of such an action would no doubt be unbearable. This means that we have to go door to door (which we're doing) and confiscate weaponry and ammo. Under Iraqi law, each household is authorized one rifle and a set amount of ammo for self defense. If we find more than the alloted equipment we sieze it and potentially detain the owner of the house. The assertion that we're encouraging or ignoring militias is absolutely incorrect.
solo,
1 - hug my wife and son
2 - sleep
3 - wear shorts and flip-flops
4 - go on walks in the park with my family
5 - take my family out for pizza and ice cream
The Griper,
1 - Yes, but I don't have the info readily available. One of the ways it's tracked is by interviewing those we detain.
2 - The breakdown of where people are from and what their motivation for being a bad guy is is tracked, but the particulars aren't readily available. There are several groups that we classify them into such as Terrorists & Foreign Fighters (TFF), criminals, Rejectionists, etc. What seperates a criminal from a TFF is their motive. Criminals here in Iraq are just like criminals anywhere else, just better equipped. For these guys, knocking off a few troops with an IED builds their street cred and local powerbase. TFF are the crazy jihadists who set up suicide attacks to get to Allah.
I'll do some looking and see what I cam come up with as far as unclassified statistics.
3 - In my estimation, the number of bad guys had increased, but is now decreasing. With the high-profile raids that we conduct and the fact that when we do get attacked we not only survive, but often destroy those attacking us goes a long way to discouraging future attacks. If you compare the reports the terrorists are killing way more civilians than Coalition. It doesn't necessarily mean they like us better, they just know they shouldn't mess with us.
Post a Comment
<< Home