CIA: AL QAEDA NEAR DEFEAT

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Chad
"Just think of how little influence Bin Laden would have right now if we had paid as much attention to him as we did Saddam, who was conducting that occasional attack of flack sent skyward in the no-fly zones towards our fighter jets that were flying about a mile higher than the flack could reach? Better to fight a guy "over there" that presented no threat to us, than to fight a guy "over there" that had already attacked us and killed 3,000 of our citizens."

Yep ---are you telling me UBL has more influence now confined to a cave than running carte blanc world wide.
--and on the fihting over there--I'd much rather be kicking their ass in Iraq right now--than them training opening and waiting to hit us here again like before--you didn't forget the are we safer stats that soon did you?
I must assume you liked it better the way Bill handled it on 1st attack--and have saddam still thumbing his nose--taliban still in power in afgan/pakistan--lybyia still develpopining nukes--UBL globe rotting-U.S. still supporting N.K. if they say they are being good. Yep those were the good ole days right? felt much safer with all our enemies firing on all cylinders.

Matt- again your Viet nam is good comparision battle wise--casualities were cut to 1/10 th
of max --NVA (North Vietnamese regular army) had given up and were no where to be found in division strength--reduced to supplying the Viet Cong rag tag bands. south vietnamese army was taking over most of fighting and things looking bright--and boom Johnson and Nixon both bow to media and protestors fearing they might be drafted. To make matters worse we cut off all funding to the South and they couldn't even run equipment we had given them.All all of a sudden North says- "What is this" and come down and proceed to unsue in the greatest slaughter in history--which was forwarned. and what did the liberals have to say about that--not squat--stuck head in sand --only to resurface with "we" lost the war.
Wasn't no "we" about it--the ones that did no fighting - orchestrated the retreat--

--and now your looking at instant replay

--as far as Iran--they have no chance in hell of taking over iraq as long as we have a presence there.

Someone should have told Obama when he was defending his Kum ba Ya approach to Iran that his examples of kennedy and reagan were both with super powers--if he wants to use exact comparison--try N.K. and billy and madeline notsobright's --results

Not that I am suggesting you think Obama is remotely qualified to be pres.

now in case either of you would suggest Obaama would go to war if needed--let me pose this question.

His planned social benfits are already approaching what were spending on war (but for a better cause he says) what happens if he uses money spent there on his plans then has to go to war too? MORE taxes of course on top increase he already said is comimg.
Work hard boys your going to have quite a load, running the country--paying retirement bennies for us boomers--and supporting Smurphs clan

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

from WJS
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121218707586633975.html?mod=opinion_main_review_and_outlooks

REVIEW & OUTLOOK


Al Qaeda on the Run
May 31, 2008; Page A10
A year ago in July, a National Intelligence Estimate warned that al Qaeda had "protected or regenerated key elements of its Homeland attack capability," meaning it could be poised to strike America again. The political reaction was instantaneous and damning. "This clearly says al Qaeda is not beaten," said Michael Scheuer, the former CIA spook turned antiterror scold.

What a difference 10 months ? and a surge ? make.

CIA Director Michael Hayden painted a far more optimistic picture in an interview yesterday in the Washington Post. "On balance, we are doing pretty well," he said. "Near strategic defeat of al Qaeda in Iraq. Near strategic defeat for al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. Significant setbacks for al Qaeda globally ? and here I'm going to use the word 'ideologically' ? as a lot of the Islamic world pushes back on their form of Islam."

What happened? To certain sophisticates, this is all al Qaeda's doing: By launching suicide attacks on Shiite and even Sunni targets, and ruling barbarically wherever they took control, the group has worn out its welcome in the Muslim world.

There's some truth in this. The Sunni Awakening in Iraq was in part a reaction by local clan leaders against al Qaeda's efforts to subjugate and brutalize them. The Arab world took note when Abu Musab al-Zarqawi ordered the November 2005 bombing of three hotels in Amman, Jordan, in which nearly all of the victims were Sunni Arabs. Extremist Islamic parties took an electoral drubbing in Pakistan's elections earlier this year following a wave of suicide bombings, one of which murdered Benazir Bhutto.

It's also true that al Qaeda finds itself on the ideological backfoot, even in radical circles. As our Bret Stephens reported in March, Sayyed Imam, a founder of Egyptian Islamic Jihad and once a mentor to Ayman al Zawahiri, has written an influential manifesto sternly denouncing his former comrades for their methods and theology. This was enough to prompt a 215-page rebuttal from Zawahiri, who seems to have time on his hands. Lawrence Wright in the New Yorker and Peter Bergen and Paul Cruickshank in the New Republic have recently written about similar jihadist defections.

But the U.S. offensives in Afghanistan and especially Iraq deserve most of the credit. The destruction of the Taliban denied al Qaeda one sanctuary, and the U.S. seems to have picked up the pace of Predator strikes in Pakistan ? or at least their success rate. This has damaged al Qaeda's freedom of movement and command-and-control.

As for Iraq, Zawahiri himself last month repeated his claim that the country "is now the most important arena in which our Muslim nation is waging the battle against the forces of the Crusader-Zionist campaign." So it's all the more significant that on this crucial battleground, al Qaeda has been decimated by the surge of U.S. forces into Baghdad. The surge, in turn, gave confidence to the Sunni tribes that this was a fight they could win. For Zawahiri, losing the battles you say you need to win is not a way to collect new recruits.

General Hayden was careful to say the threat continues, and he warned specifically about those in Congress and the media who "[focus] less on the threat and more on the tactics the nation has chosen to deal with the threat." This refers to the political campaign to restrict wiretapping and aggressive interrogation, both of which the CIA director says have been crucial to gathering intelligence that has blocked further terrorist spectaculars that would have burnished al Qaeda's prestige.

One irony here is that Barack Obama is promising a rapid withdrawal from Iraq on grounds that we can't defeat al Qaeda unless we focus on Afghanistan. He opposed the Iraq surge on similar grounds. Yet it is the surge, and the destruction of al Qaeda in Iraq, that has helped to demoralize al Qaeda around the world. Nothing would more embolden Zawahiri now than a U.S. retreat from Iraq, which al Qaeda would see as the U.S. version of the Soviet defeat in Afghanistan.

It is far too soon to declare victory over al Qaeda. Still, Mr. Hayden's upbeat assessment is encouraging, and it suggests that President Bush's strategy of taking the battle to the terrorists is making America safer.

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

The only way they can get away with attacking Iran before Bush leaves is to paint a nice, bright, shiny picture of our other disaster areas. I just don't buy it.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Thought Pew Research poll at end of May was quite interesting--especially in light of what has transpired.

I guess my question is--
A: WHO are they polling
B: --and where do those they poll get their information?


Pew Research Poll

56% - Iraq War: Bring Troops Home? Thu May 29, 1:00 AM ET



Significantly fewer Americans now say things are going well in Iraq than did so in February, and support for a quick withdrawal of U.S. forces has climbed by seven points (to 56%), one of several reversals in what appeared to be a positive shift in several of the public?s perceptions about the war in Iraq and views of what to do next. For instance, a plurality (48%) now says the United States is losing ground in reducing the number of civilian casualties while 37% say the United States is making progress toward this objective. The balance of opinion on this issue has flipped since February 2008, when 46% said progress was being made and 40% said the United States was losing ground.

 

[Tapir Caper]

Not every American is a congenital coward scared stoopid by BushFox lies about terrorism.

Any halfway rational person can sort of guess that the guys who invent lies as a pretext to conduct bombings/invasions that result in hundreds of thousands of innocent dead and millions of refugees are not the good guys and might reasonably be taken as the terrorists themselves.

 

[StevieD]

It seems to me that bin Laden could almost say Mission Accomplished as he watches our country Bankrupt itself.

 

[djv]

When it comes to money They Win. But it's not about that. You spend whats needed for safty. But I do not believe THE CIA. As long as we look the other way with Pakistan giving our enemies safe places to hide. Our buddies from Pakistan. B S

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

I see--and these are best 3 answers the liberal base could come up with in how people perceived war is going worse this month compared to Feburary.

While none of you remotely attempted to answer question (because factually evidence is obvious) collectively you did answer it.

Regardless of whats happens if they poll liberals such as yourself--all fact and data is disregarded and perceptions of your political agenda's trump all facts.

Thank you--I believe I understand now.

 

[Jabberwocky]

I see--and these are best 3 answers the liberal base could come up with in how people perceived war is going worse this month compared to Feburary.

While none of you remotely attempted to answer question (because factually evidence is obvious) collectively you did answer it.

Regardless of whats happens if they poll liberals such as yourself--all fact and data is disregarded and perceptions of your political agenda's trump all facts.

Thank you--I believe I understand now.

Honestly DTB, you really believe that we are at "war"? Can you please look up the definition of war and tell me who the United States of America is at war with?

 

[Tapir Caper]

I see--and these are best 3 answers the liberal base could come up with in how people perceived war is going worse this month compared to Feburary.

While none of you remotely attempted to answer question (because factually evidence is obvious) collectively you did answer it.

Regardless of whats happens if they poll liberals such as yourself--all fact and data is disregarded and perceptions of your political agenda's trump all facts.

Thank you--I believe I understand now.

Face it: you guys who think you're conservatives aren't. You're simply cowards. A clown in authority says the terrorists are coming, you lose your water, sign away all your rights and hand over your wallet.

You and gardenweasel need to grow a pair.

 

[rusty]

Iran isn't sucking ten million dollars a day out of our treasury. Iran isn't making up lies about Israel's WMD as a pretext for invasion. Iran hasn't got 4,000 of our boys killed and 30-50,000 injured.

We didn't have any enemies in the Middle East before 1948.

If you check your history Britian and Russia did invade Iran for oil supply reasons when they didnt give in on demand.

Althought the USA didnt partake in the invasion,it was in there best interests,in other words at the time they wernt needed,but the oil was just in case in got in German hands.

The invasion took place around the German/Russian conflict.It was over in less then a month.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Face it: you guys who think you're conservatives aren't. You're simply cowards. A clown in authority says the terrorists are coming, you lose your water, sign away all your rights and hand over your wallet.

You and gardenweasel need to grow a pair.

You New Yorkers were singing same tune till 911 then waving flags from every window after the fact. City sold out of flags in a day.

a--and on your op ed on courage

Could you give us a live photo of yourself in fanny pack--and pink outfit- packing a protest sign with "courage" on it.

You might make daily Kos/moveon poster child

 

[smurphy]

You New Yorkers were singing same tune till 911 then waving flags from every window after the fact. City sold out of flags in a day.

a--and on your op ed on courage

Could you give us a live photo of yourself in fanny pack--and pink outfit- packing a protest sign with "courage" on it.

You might make daily Kos/moveon poster child

Might be your dumbest post ever.

 

[AR182]

Might be your dumbest post ever.

:nono: :nono:

 

[smurphy]

:nono: :nono:

Not one of your best either.

 

[AR182]

Not one of your best either.

thank you..

 

[djv]

Were at war in Afghan no doubt. BUT we are nation building in Iraq. And we need too do nothing about Iran right now. It's up to Iran's neighbors and Europe not us.