The victory and progress in Iraq will not go unnoticed, at least by us conservative bloggers. The MSM has all but abandoned reporting on Iraq and Afghanistan save for the rare, sporadic bombing by pissed off Islamic mutants who are not pleased with the outcome.
Iraq has developed from a terrorist facilitating dictatorship, to taking baby steps as a fragile, chaotic legislative body, and finally to a stable, pro-U.S., representative Parliament. We sent a message to the Islamic world with this exclaimation point: attack us and we will hit back right where you live.
At the very least we’ve eliminated two terrorist strongholds by stabilizing Iraq and cleansing Afghanistan of the Taliban and al Qaeda. Iraq is no longer an enemy state at the heart of the Arab world.
Tehran failed in its attempt to blow up the process through its agent, Moqtada al-Sadr, who is now back Iran having been humiliated both on the battlefield and in Parliament.
Iraq will have to prove its mettle once we have withdrawn completely by 2011, as the treaty stipulates.
I think it will do just fine.
Afghanistan: Weapons and terrorists are flowing in from logistics routes in Pakistan, with the help of the allies in the government, military, and Pakistan intelligence. The tribal areas in neighboring Waziristan are being used as a haven for Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives. The Al Qaeda, according to U.S. intel, has about 157 known training camps in the country.
As a result, we have carried out Predator and Special Forces strikes across the borders to kill Al Qaeda and Taliban, and destroy their operations.
Bill Roggio has updates and dispatches on The Long War Journal:
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/11/us_strike_in_north_w.php
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/11/al_qaeda_operative_r.php
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/11/us_hits_taliban_safe.php
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/11/us_predator_strikes.php
The next war on Islamic territories, will be in Pakistan.
Bin Laden’s there, and so are the rest of the terrorist turds who ran after getting their asses kicked in Iraq and Afghanistan. There will be a surge in Afghanistan, similar to the one we had in Iraq. After Afghanistan is swept clean, we will have to conduct a military campaign cross the border into Pakistan. There’s no way around it. Pakistan is saturated with training camps and a government-sponsored environment that lends encouragement to Islamic terrorist groups.
All-out Air-Land battle should be waged. I’d prep with MOABs. Lots of them.
Primary Function: Guided air-to-surface weapon
Guidance System: GPS/inertial gyroscopes
Launch Weight: 21,500 pounds, incl. 18,000 pounds of high explosives
Diameter: 40.5 inches
Contractor: Dynetics
It’s the largest non-nuclear weapon in existence.
While it’s true that you cannot hold ground without ground troops, you can at least drop a few of those to announce the grand opening of a new campaign.
In any case, America had better steel itself for the long haul. Since our government (especially B. Hussein Obama) is not willing to pummel the Middle East into a harmless, non-terrorist region that prefers to worship peacefully instead of killing non-believers for allah, it looks like this will be a piecemeal war.
The war Islam declared on the West will not be finished until every last radical muslim is either dead or limits their Sharia Law and strict Koran-inspired ‘lifestyle’ to their own lives.
It will most likely be the former.