Despite the ignorami of the MSM and Democrat Party leadership (Pelosi/Reid) claiming defeat when Iraqi forces first begain the assault in Basra, it looks increasingly like the Maliki campaign is a success. (h/t – Instapundit)
All across Iraq’s second city life is improving, a month after Iraqi troops began a surprise crackdown on the black-clad gangs who were allowed to flourish under the British military. The gunmen’s reign had enforced a strict set of religious codes.
Yet after three years of being terrified of kidnap, rape and murder — a fate that befell scores of other women — Nadyia Ahmed, 22, is among those enjoying a sense of normality, happy for the first time to attend her science course at Basra University. “I now have the university life that I heard of at high school before the war and always dreamt about,†she told The Times. “It was a nightmare because of these militiamen. I only attended class three days a week but now I look forward to going every day.â€
The real problem we are now realizing is that the British military allowed the militias to control Basra.Â
Raids are continuing in a few remaining strongholds but the Iraqi commander in charge of the unprecedented operation is confident that his forces will soon achieve something that the British military could not — a city free from rogue gunmen.
British and US officials acknowledge tentatively that a turning point has been reached. Sir Richard Dannatt, the head of the British Army, made an unannounced visit to Basra over the weekend.
Local people are daring to hope that the dark days of death squads and kidnap are over, displaying the sort of optimism that was last seen when British forces arrived in 2003 with the false promise of a better life free from Saddam Hussein.
Um… shouldn’t this news be leading all of the network news programs? The Iraqi Army is doing what we have been asking them to do. And at the same time pushing back on the Iranian influence in Southern Iraq.  So why isn’t Brian Williams broadcasting live from Basra?
The more important quesiton in all of this: Is the submission of (homeland) Britain to Islamic influence and law affecting the British military as well? After all, this is the same British military that surrendered one of its ships to Iran with nary a peep, much less any shots fired.
Winston must be spinning in his grave.
-Bruce (GayPatriot)
Instead of Brian Williams, I would rather see FOX send in Geraldo all pimped up in his Ralph Lauren fatigues and Ernest Hemingway fishing vest. He could strap pearl handled Crossman pellet pistols to his hips and ride his vintage Schwinn Panther with knee-action followed by a sound truck announcing his arrival.
Hundreds of women draped in black robes could ululate and hundreds of men looking on could urinate and Geraldo could breathlessly explain it all to us.
Basra is great news, considering the recent mess Monkey Al Sadr let loose there. I am beginning to believe that Malaki has seen the light.
Well sure, they are just adapting to what life will be like back home in Britain if they don’t stem the tide.
A few days ago I saw an article (probably from Gateway Pundit) that the city of Bedford is canceling it’s St. George Parade. Being Patron Saint of Britain is meaningless if some muslims are offended.
As things are now, Winston would have emigrated to America and claimed US citizenship via his American mother. Although I think he’d have remained an profilic author and lecturer and become a TV pundit rather than enter elective-office again.
Winston Churchill? Who is that? Brits have reduced him to a paragraph in their schools’ history books and an alarmingly high percentage (over 30 percent) believe him to be a fictional character.
Interesting post by the way. Now that you mention it, it seems likely that the same multiculturalism with which Labour is destroying Britain has caused the government to hamstring and undermine their troops mission in Iraq.
What another success story. This was mostly the Iraqui s with support from the US. I’m ex Army but seriously, is there anything better, gives America more pride, than the fighting men and women of the USA? Even compared to the Britts and NATO.
#4
That means even fewer know when “their finest hour” was.
Wonder if the English will start moving here in droves and establish New New England. Many are already here in Polk County.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/02/21/nexodus121.xml
Biggest brain drain from UK in 50 years
By Robert Winnett, Deputy Political Editor
Last Updated: 3:28am GMT 26/02/2008
Britain is experiencing the worst “brain drain” of any country as highly qualified professionals settle abroad, an authoritative international study showed yesterday.
Record numbers of Britons are leaving – many of them doctors, teachers and engineers – in the biggest exodus for almost 50 years.
Over a quarter of qualified professionals who have moved abroad had health or education qualifications
There are now 3.247 million British-born people living abroad, of whom more than 1.1 million are highly-skilled university graduates, say the researchers.
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No other nation is losing so many qualified people, it points out. Britain has now lost more than one in 10 of its most skilled citizens, while overall only Mexico has had more people emigrate.
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The most popular destinations are English-speaking countries such as Australia, America, Canada and New Zealand and holiday areas including France and Spain.
Almost 60 per cent of those leaving take jobs, although hundreds of thousands of retired people live abroad.
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Britain’s exodus is far higher than any of the OECD’s other 29 members. Germany has lost only 860,000 highly-skilled workers, America 410,000 and France 370,000.
The OECD found that 27.3 per cent of those emigrating had health or education qualifications, 37.7 per cent had humanities or social science degrees and 28.5 per cent were scientists or engineers.
Britain has a shortage of graduates in many of these fields and universities have long warned that some of the brightest hopes are being lost to higher salaries abroad.
The report cited research suggesting that 62 per cent of the world’s “star scientists” live in the US, primarily because of the efforts made by American research universities to attract them.
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Figures from the Office for National Statistics last year, suggested that 207,000 Britons – one every three minutes – left in 2006. The emigration rate is at its highest since just after the Second World War.
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Damian Green, the shadow immigration minister, said: “Ten years of Labour has re-created the brain drain. High taxes and Government interference are driving people away.”
The study found that foreign-born people make up 8.3 per cent of Britain’s population. A House of Lords report into the economic impact of migration is due next month.
Prof David Coleman, of St John’s, Oxford, said the brain drain was “to do with quality of life, laws and bureaucracy, tax and all the rest of it”.
Prof Christian Dustmann, of University College London, said: “The costs of leaving a country are substantial. The rewards must be very high.”
Just to arm chair general here: Malaki can send Iraqi troops into the mosques for a search. He can get a full report on the imams and their rhetoric. He can set up an FBI that keeps close tabs on dissidents. He does not have to resort to KGB, Gestapo or Stasi tactics.
Malaki has the legitimate reins of the legitimate government. When he sent troops into Basra, he did so to put down armed resistance to the legitimate government. It follows that he has the obligation to smoke out the resistance pockets and destroy them.
Hopefully, Malaki will become even more proactive in confronting the opposition to a united government in Iraq. Malaki is the key in our presence in Iraq. If the democrats succeed in pulling the rug from under him, Basra will be a distant memory and Iraq will be swallowed by Iran in one gulp. Who, after we run away, would lift a finger to stop them? Canada?