3,000

i still wonder what baldimo thinks of the "top" u.s. generals who are calling for a "political and economic solution" .
since those are the generals who see what has been going on in iraq for some years now , i would think they might have a pretty good idea of what's required to bring at least some degree of peace and normalcy to iraq .
if just shooting anyone who gets in the way is the proposed solution , SH could have been left in charge . he did bring "stability" to iraq i understand .
recalling the newsclips from before the war , ordinary iraqis seemed to be able to move around freely without having to worry about being kidnapped or blown to bits as is the case now every day .

of course , there is the option of deciding that the united states should be run like a dictatorship ; i'm reasonably sure baldimo is not proposing that .
hbg

So how many times you going to try and put words into my mouth? Your right to a point, before the war iraqis didn't have to worry about being blown up or kidnapped. Wait a minute your wrong there. They only had to worry about their govt taking them and feeding them to a tree shreader in front of their families or watching their families being fed to a tree shreader.

As to the way the US is run, I don't like the idea of a dictatorship here or any where. To think I endorse one is a mistake.

a/t to N.Y. TIMES Gen John Abizaid sees need for diplomatic solution of the iraq war and that 'understanding tribal loyalties in Pakistan' is necessary to defeat the taliban .
he does not seem to think that stepping up 'convential war"(increasing troop strength) will bring a solution .
hbg
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THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ; General Opposes Adding to U.S. Forces in Iraq, Emphasizing International Solutions for Region

December 20, 2006, Wednesday
By THOM SHANKER (NYT); Foreign Desk
Late Edition - Final, Section A, Page 12, Column 1, 1003 words
DISPLAYING ABSTRACT - Iraq commander Gen John Abizaid, completing final months of highly decorated career, acknowledges that additional US forces favored by some of Pres Bush's advisers might provide short-term boost in security but warns they are toxic to Iraqis and would merely postpone day when Iraqis are forced to take responsibility for themselves; says in interview while traveling around Iraq that Baghdad security requires more Iraqi troops and more American trainers embedded with Iraqi units; also says problem must be addressed diplomatically and regionally, that threat to American security ranges far beyond any one country, organized in virtual world in way that is very modern and very dangerous; explains that fighting Taliban in Afghanistan involves understanding tribal loyalties in Pakistan, that containing Mideast terrorists involves keeping them out of ungoverned corners of Africa


source :
N.Y. TIMES ABSTRACT