Freedom will win in Iraq.
Freedom is already winning. Here is the latest report from Ralph Peters in Baghdad:
AMONG the many positive stories you aren't being told about Iraq, the media ignored another big one last week: In the wake of the terrorist bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra, it was the Iraqi army that kept the peace in the streets.
It's routinely declared a failure by those who yearn for the new Iraq to fail. But an increasingly capable Iraqi military has been developing while reporters (who never really investigated the issue) wrote it off as hopeless.
What actually happened last week, as the prophets of doom in the media prematurely declared civil war?
* The Iraqi army deployed over 100,000 soldiers to maintain public order. U.S. Forces remained available as a backup, but Iraqi soldiers controlled the streets.
* Iraqi forces behaved with discipline and restraint - as the local sectarian outbreaks fizzled, not one civilian had been killed by an Iraqi soldier.
* Time and again, Iraqi military officers were able to defuse potential confrontations and frustrate terrorist hopes of igniting a religious war.
* Forty-seven battalions drawn from all 10 of Iraq's army divisions took part in an operation that, above all, aimed at reassuring the public. The effort worked - from the luxury districts to the slums, the Iraqis were proud of their army.
AS a result of its nationwide success, the Iraqi army gained tremendously in confidence. Its morale soared. After all the lies and exaggerations splashed in your direction, the truth is that we're seeing a new, competent, patriotic military emerge. The media may cling to its image of earlier failures, but last week was a great Iraqi success.
This matters. Not only for Iraq's sake, but because standing up a responsible military subordinate to an elected civilian government is the essential development that will allow us to reduce our troop presence in the next few years. Much remains to do - and much could still go wrong - but I, for one, am more optimistic after this visit to Baghdad.
Here's Ralph Peters' conclusion as he heads home from Iraq:
Serious problems remain. No question about it. We'll hear more bad news (some of it may even be true). But from my heart I believe that the odds are improving that, decades from now, we'll look back and see that our sacrifices were worth it. I found Baghdad a city of hope, its citizens determined not to be ruled by terrorists, fanatics, militias or thieves.
We are doing the right thing.
Nor do I say this lightly. I just learned that the son of an old friend was seriously wounded in Iraq and evacuated to a military hospital in Germany (the latest news I have is that the young man will make a complete recovery - let's pray that it's so).
This is a gigantic struggle for indescribably high stakes. We're trying to help a failing civilization rescue itself, to lift a vast region out of the grip of terror and fanaticism, and to make this troubled world safer for our own citizens. Don't let anyone tell you we're failing in Iraq.
The future remains undecided, but the last few weeks may have been a decisive turning point - against our enemies. Iraqis, military and civilian, stood up for their own country, for reason, for peace.
What more could we ask?
Ralph Peters provides much-needed perspective from someone who has just spent time on the ground in Iraq. It is clear from this report, and from his previous report, that much of the truth about Iraq has not been told. No wonder too many on the left, and a few on the right, have become so mired in the bog of defeatism that they can barely see what is right about Iraq anymore.
The defeatists have had their say, and their day. Now it is time for America and Iraq to finish winning this war.
We in America must remember who we are, and what our country is about.
When something is really important, we never, never, never surrender.
Victory in Iraq matters. Even the defeatists can explain why.
It matters to the Iraqi people -- men, women and children who finally live free of tyranny. It matters to America. It matters to the coalition. It matters to the civilized world.
Americans know that when the odds seem to turn against us, it is not a signal to give up. It is a signal to redouble our efforts and win.
We will prevail even though some forces in America and around the world are doing everything they can to try to bring about defeat. They cannot defeat America on the battlefield, so the enemies of Iraqi freedom seek to undermine America's will to win. They tried to undermine America's will to win yesterday, and the day before, and the year before. They will try again today. They will try even harder again tomorrow.
It won't work. Not with this president in the White House. Not with the American people who stand behind him in the war on terror. Not with America's soldiers.
America will not give up on Iraq.
Freedom is already winning in Iraq. And Iraq grows stronger every day.
America will win in Iraq. Iraqi freedom will win. Try the idea on for size. Wrap your brain around it. Get used to it. Know it and celebrate it even before you see it with your eyes. By your resolve and unwavering commitment, you will help to make it real.
America has helped the Iraqi people give birth to another democracy.
The people of Iraq and the United States of America will forever be blessed for this.
_________________________
Ralph Peters' report from Iraq is discussed further at The RCP Blog, MartiniPundit, TigerHawk, Dean's World, Power Line, GOP Bloggers and irishpennants.com
Comments