Glenn Reynolds has just posted a reader email that is a must read. This is an update to Glenn’s post on the Strategy Page articles that I referenced earlier today. This is "great stuff" as Glenn said, excerpts follow, but please read the whole thing:
Here’s the email:
I went to an AUSA dinner last night at the Ft. Hood Officers’ Club to hear a speech by MG Pete Chiarelli, CG of the 1st Cav Div. He and most of the Div. have just returned from Iraq. Very informative and, surprise, the Mainstream Media (MSM) isn’t telling the story. I was not there as a reporter, didn’t take notes but I’ll make some the points I remember that were interesting, surprising or generally stuff I had not heard before.
It was not a speech per se. He just walked and talked, showed some slides and answered questions. Very impressive guy.
3. He showed a graph of attacks in Sadr City by month. Last Aug-Sep they were getting up to 160 attacks per week. During the last three months, the graph had flatlined at below 5 to zero per week.
4. His big point was not that they were "winning battles" to do this but that cleaning the place up, electricity, sewage, water were the key factors. He said yes they fought but after they started delivering services that the Iraqis in Sadr City had never had, the terrorist recruiting of 15 and 16 year olds came up empty.
5. The electrical "grid" is a bad, deadly joke. Said that driving down the street in a Hummv with an antenna would short out a whole block of apt. buildings. People do their own wiring and it was not uncommon for early morning patrols would find one or two people lying dead in the street, having been electrocuted trying to re-wire their own homes. …
9. Said the MSM was making a big, and wrong, deal out of the religious sects. Said Iraqis are incredibly nationalistic. They are Iraqis first and then say they are Muslum but the Shi’a - Sunni thing is just not that big a deal to them.
10. After the election the Mayor of Baghdad told him that the people of the region (Middle East) are joyous and the governments are nervous….
It is great stuff.
Glad to hear someone out there realizes how great Chiarelli is. I have been working to gain support for him. Like to help?
I have much respect for General Chiarelli. He focuses on the facts on the ground and is clear about the need for economic strategies. I have contributed to economic developement plans for 1st CD in the past. I have also made three civilian (unescorted trips) to Iraq to see for myself what is happening on the ground.
All of the efforts under his command (from Fallujah in 2004 to operations in Baghdad today) have met wiith mixed results. Security has gotten worse, so has the general economy, as the general acknowledges. The bright spots (improved water, sewer, schools, agriculture) is overshadowed by the dire situation (medical, security, electricity, commerce).
THE SOLUTION TO IRAQ IS NOT A MILITARY ONE, as acknowledged by the both U.S. military and political leaders. However, look who continues to be in charge and what tools they have to work with.
The General needs to speak out more strongly NOW about the failures of Administration policis and the need to withdraw troops…and not wait until after he retires to do so.
Charlie Jackson
Texans for Peace
Nearly another year has gone by, one that included the greatest number of U.S. casualties and the most annual dollar amount spent on the war so far.
Meanwhile, we are still waiting for the General to have courage to speak the truth and recommend withdrawal.
Charlie Jackson
Texans for Peace
I would comment that knowing soldiers who served under Petraeus as both Commander of the 101st Airborne Division and of MNF-I and soldiers who served under Chiarelli as commander of 1st Cavalry Division and MNC-I, both of these men are seen as “soldiers’ leaders.” They are men who care intensely about their men and who are willing to take personal risks and demonstrate moral and physical courage far above that demonstrated by most men of their rank.
Both were also early leaders in the call for a counterinsurgency approach when such calls were unpopular in the Army and in Washington. Both of these men are bright visionaries.
Chiarelli’s strengths would also suit him towards the current task at hand if Petraeus does indeed move. Petraeus did exactly what was needed for the time – he re-established the security situation in Iraq through the surge. Only through re-establishment of security could the conditions be set for social and political progress. However, security will not last if the Iraqi government cannot make significant political progress and Iraq does not progress socially and economically. Chiarelli has made a name for himself as a counterinsurgency thinker through his focus on tying security gains to economic, social, infrastructure, and political gains, understanding that none of those lines of operation can stand alone for long. (In many ways this is a far tougher task than just re-establishing security. If he does replace Patraeus, Chiarelli’s job will be even tougher and more dependent on Iraqi actions.)
My only fear is that these two men will become the General Abrams of this war – the men who swam against the tide with the right strategy but who were listened to too late and too little.
With Petreaus leaving, Chiarelli’s job will be more difficult - especially since the surge DID NOT re-establish the security situation in Iraq.
The security situation is now little better than it was during 2004-2005 (although much better than 2007).
If the Medhi Army resumes the fight (or rouge elements do), the situation could rapidly deteriorate and American support would plummet even further.
However, since Petraeus and Crocker won’t tell the truth, it’s left up to Pete to do it - and recommend a phased withdrawal.