A Complex War

The war in Iraq is a complex affair, far more so than the majority of American observers understand. Most Americans seem to want a "sound bite" war, totally comprehensible within the space of a 60 second news segment. This is probably no different than any past war, except in one important respect: today anyone who wants to be informed about the complex details, can be -- thanks to the Internet. There are many sources available, with different perspectives and access to different information -- and all of it is in nearly real time.

For example, the web site Strategy Page has a number of contributors with various kinds of expertise and contacts -- conventional military, special operations, political, and more. A recent article of theirs discusses some of the effects of the "surge", and it includes this discussion of the reality of the insurgents existence:

What is news is the declining terrorist activity. But that won't be big news until there are no more bombs going off. The terrorists realize this, and are scrambling to keep the car bombs coming. This is increasingly difficult as troops and police move through the Baghdad suburbs, finding and destroying the bomb workshops. Not only that, several recent raids have also captured large amounts of cash. The terrorism in Iraq is sustained by cash, because most attacks are paid for. The Sunni Arab population suffered an economic catastrophe once Saddam and his Baath Party were out of power. For decades before 2003, the Sunni Arabs, 20 percent of the population, got most of the oil money, and any other economic action. Suddenly, they were getting less than even their fair share of 20 percent.

Not once have I seen the lamestream media convey this reality: that most of the enemy operations in Iraq are essentially mercenary. And they certainly haven't conveyed the damage that the "surge" is doing to the finances that sustain these mercenaries. Many interesting and important questions flow from the mercenary nature of our enemy in Iraq. Where is the money coming from? Where are the supplies coming from? How are the logistics being handled?

The answers to these questions are known to our forces, if not to most Americans. But anyone in the world could know, if only they would take the trouble to inform themselves...