"The city just had its deadliest month since U.S.-led forces invaded the country in 2003, new Iraqi government documents indicate. More people were shot, stabbed or otherwise violently killed in May than in any other month since the invasion, according to Health Ministry statistics. The figure does not include slain soldiers or civilians killed in bombings, on whom autopsies are not usually performed."

Just because you asked for it.

“The U.S. military has cut the number of Iraqi civilians killed at checkpoints or shot by U.S. convoys to about one a week today from about seven a week in July ‘05. The statistics indicate hundreds of Iraqi civilians were killed at checkpoints or on Iraqi highways during the first two years of the war, a period when statistics were not recorded.”

See, I can post good news.

While the Iraqis are confident in their gov't is tremendous news, we are all still trying to find out why these Muslims in Canada hate Canada.

We were told by Axis and others here that Canadians are loved the world over and can go anywhere because of who they are.

Could someone answer this question for us?

LOL

I think the left will greet this WaPo article realistically... "Anthony H. Cordesman, who holds the Arleigh Burke chair in strategy at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies and has closely studied the Iraq insurgency, yesterday criticized the new Pentagon report as presenting 'a fundamentally false picture of the political situation in Iraq, and of the difficulties ahead.'"

Any links to the actual Pentagon report?

Which part of this report was the 'good news'?

[Note to poster, please choose another name]

Warriornation,

There are 6 billion people on the planet. There are Christians in America that hate America. Are we going to declare war on them and start profiling American Christians because of Timothy McVeigh or the northern militias? Of course not.
It is suprising that you would find 17 Canadian Muslims that hate Canada to be a shocker.

Hey, Keefer with a big "K," are you spoofing me? If not, how's about changing your name? I was here first, and I do not wish for you comments to be mistaken as mine. And if you've read some of mine, I'm sure you don't want credit for what I have to say.

Warrior, bear in mind that I, keefer, am on your side, unlike this other guy...

keefer

Forget about Queefer. You think it's an accident about his name?

I'm actually thinking Queefer is a pseudonym (to you ig'nant folk cain't spell, that means "fake name") used by axis, so he gets two checks from Daily Kos.

If you notice, his "thought" processes work on about the same wavelength, somewhere definitely simian but not quite up to homo sapiens...I'm thinking something in a lemur.

keefer

Forget about Queefer. You think it's an accident about his name?

I'm actually thinking Queefer is a pseudonym (to you ig'nant folk cain't spell, that means "fake name") used by axis, so he gets two checks from Daily Kos.

If you notice, his "thought" processes work on about the same wavelength, somewhere definitely simian but not quite up to homo sapiens...I'm thinking something in a lemur.

Barney

"The U.S. military has cut the number of Iraqi civilians killed at checkpoints or shot by U.S. convoys."

Exactly, just look at the drop in the insurgency. Our boys have killed the insurgents, always dressed as civilians, to such a degree that only about one or so of them a day approaches a checkpoint or is on the street near a convoy.

Eventually, all the terrorists will be dead, and then there will be no civilians killed at checkpoints.

Let freedom reign!

"Iraqis Confident In New Goverment"

This is great news. I think the Iraqis will make it.

CTTC, "Exactly, just look at the drop in the insurgency. Our boys have killed the insurgents, always dressed as civilians, to such a degree that only about one or so of them a day approaches a checkpoint or is on the street near a convoy."

The rest of the text reads"
"The killings are “are almost always the result of mistakes.”"

So not so much good news, but at least we are getting better.

Pentagon report starts off with "Attacks and casualty levels against civilians and military personnel in Iraq have risen "substantially"...

umm, weren't you Bushian cultists here just last week saying that Iraq is safe and commercially thriving? Wasn't some bilge by a GOP congressman posted here last week saying that Iraq is no more dangerous than the US, and that reports of rising civilian casualties are all lies made up by the MSM?

In any case, all of the reports from the many news sources and personal contacts I have in Iraq indicate extreme skepticism on the part of Iraqis that the government can protect them from this rising violence (you know, the rising violence that's not happening...)

Warriornation

Yes, it is true, we can go the world over and be welcomed. Our reputation in the world arena is that of a peaceful nation. We have invaded no one. Terrorists, no matter from what country, do not represent the thinking of law-abiding citizens. You cannot reason with fanatic religious zealots, no matter where they reside.

Canadian Observer...thank you. Exactly the point, you cannot reason with fanatic religious zealots.

A cogent and well thought out answer. Something that makes me think there is still stability for some on the left. Much appreciated.

That is exactly our point here in America and why some of us get a bit despondent over the left saying "going into Iraq has bred violence and terrorism". Poppycock!!

We were attacked on 9/11 before going into Iraq. We were attacked at the USS Cole, Khobar Towers, first WTC bombing, etc, etc, etc, etc before Iraq.

Radical muslims are radical muslims and it doesn't matter if you are punch and judy Canadians or Mean old Americans or jolly good old Australians. It doesn't matter if you are Serbs or Croats or Turks. Doesn't matter if your are Saudis.

It just doesn't matter. And now, hopefully some of your pals will get that through their thick skulls and understand what we are dealing with.

We can either sit back and wait for the inevitable to happen (our old strategy and it didn't work) or we can take the fight to them. Our new strategy (which also may not work, who knows).

keefer...I realize you are not KEEFER. Unfortunately he is a coward and cannot come up with a unique name and argue on the merits...this surprises no one.

Blarney, how do you identify a "citizen" in Iraq?

If citizens were being killed, the demographics would show a certain percentage of old men and women, of young men and women, and of children. But the "civilian" casualties in Iraq are about 90% young men, between 17-23.

So what makes them "citizens"? Not being in uniform? Hmmmm. How about hiding behind (or in) women's skirts? In mosques? Are young men in civilian clothing shooting rockets out of mosques classified as "citizens" in the reports? How about women who hide, shelter, and abet the terrorists? Are THEY "citizens"?

Tell you what. Get in touch with your terrorist buddies and tell them to start wearing uniforms---you know, unlike the cowardly jackals they are. Tell them to stand up on their hind legs like real men, wear uniforms, identify themselves, and fight like men, and stop skulking around hiding behind women and children and in places of worship. Then we can look at the bodies and tell the civilians from the fighters. Till then, it comes down to anyone trying to kill Americans or real Iraqis are the enemy.

Civilians! Ha!

Don't you ever get tired of being so gullible? Don't you get tired of having to basically announce "I am terminally stupid" by the nature of the crap you write?

"Get in touch with your terrorist buddies and tell them to start wearing uniforms---you know, unlike the cowardly jackals they are. Tell them to stand up on their hind legs like real men, wear uniforms, identify themselves, and fight like men, and stop skulking around hiding behind women and children and in places of worship." - Almi

I think the famous Bill Maher quote is appropriate here:

"We have been the cowards lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away. That's cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building, say what you want about it, it's not cowardly."

I'm sorry did you say famous quote and Bill Maher in the same sentence as if to link the two?

Bwa bwa lol lol ha ha. In your wet dreams and his.

In other words, Almi, drop the whole tough guy facade. Aren't you a woman, anyway? Nobody is impressed with the whole "we're the strongest, greatest killing force in the world" schtick any longer. Well, except for maybe War Boy & Bearman.

Wasn't Bill Clinton ordering dropping bombs and sending cruis missiles in Sarajevo and Bosnia. No boots on the ground?

Yup. That's exactly the case. Just goes to show you how much of a puss and coward Bill Clinton was and his use of the military.

It also leads to indiscriminate killing of innocents when you do that, but of course that's something that is only blamed on Bush by you crazy idiots.

Hypocrisy continues from the left.

All I know is that absolutely no good news is reported out of Iraq. If it wasn't for my friends and relatives in the military - I'd have no clue about what is really going on there.

With so few liberals joining the military - it is going to be interesting in ten or fifteen years when (almost) the only veterans available to run for office - ANY office will be conservatives. Interesting indeed.

"Exactly the point, you cannot reason with fanatic religious zealots."-Warriornation.

Yup, and we're breeding them right here in America. Right now. We MUST root out these Wahhabi imams/mosques from America!

Saudis Have Radicalized 80% of US Mosques

"...The power of the extremist Wahhabi form of Islam in the United States was created with generous Saudi financing of American Muslim communities over the past few decades. Over 80 percent of the mosques in the United States “have been radicalized by Saudi money and influence,” Barsky said.

Before the 1970s, she explained, “Muslim immigrants who came to the United States would build a store-front mosque somewhere. Then, since the 1970s, the Saudis have been approaching these mosques and telling them it wasn’t proper for the glory of Islam to build such small mosques.” For many Muslims, it seemed the Saudis were offering a free mosque. However, Barsky believes for each mosque they invested in, the Saudis sent along their own imam (teacher-cleric).

“These [immigrants] were not interested in this [Wahhabi] ideology, and suddenly they have a Saudi imam coming in and telling them they’re not praying properly and not practicing Shari’a [Islamic law] properly.” This Saudi strategy was being carried out “all over the world, from America to Bangladesh,” with the Saudis investing $70-80 billion in the endeavor over three decades.
***

1/28/2005: Saudi Hate Ideology Fills US Mosques

(via LGF)-Freedom House’s Center for Religious Freedom has completed a year-long study of documents collected from more than a dozen Saudi-funded mosques in the United States—"Among the key findings of the report:

* The documents promote contempt for the United States because it is ruled by legislated civil law rather than by totalitarian Wahhabi-style Islamic law. They condemn democracy as un-Islamic;

* The documents stress that when Muslims are in the lands of the unbelievers, they must behave as if on a mission behind enemy lines. Either they are there to acquire new knowledge and make money to be later employed in the jihad against the infidels, or they are there to proselytize the infidels until at least some convert to Islam.....

[Keep reading, it gets worse.]

I'd have no clue about what is really going on there.

Let me help you our here Kahn: there's a whole lotta needles killing going on. You don't need anybody inside Iraq to know that is really going on.

Oh and here's some more really goings on:

U.S. military investigators believe the killing of an Iraqi civilian on April 26 was planned by a small group of Marines who shot the man and then planted a shovel and an AK-47 rifle at the scene, a senior Pentagon official said Tuesday.

AP

Here is a report last week from an independent journalist who has lived two of the last three years in Iraq. It paints a picture of an Iraqi government that is, in the eyes of Iraqis, powerless to protect them against the rising tide of sectarian violence, and heavily stacked with Islamic fundamentalists. Hardly the feeling of confidence in the government portrayed by the Pentagon report.

Thanks Ash. Another unconfirmed accusation is just what I needed to clear things up.

Just got back from a morning school function for one of the kids. Another dad - an Army Lt. Col. just back from Iraq. He's frustrated by the continous stream of negative reporting. What about the schools, hospitals, and roads we build? Will individual soldiers do bad things? Yes. But we don't stop school buses and murder every other student.

How'd he put it? "Ya know, I never understood it when the old timers would say the press lost them Viet Nam - NOW, I get it."

Kahn said: "With so few liberals joining the military - it is going to be interesting in ten or fifteen years when (almost) the only veterans available to run for office - ANY office will be conservatives. Interesting indeed."

I guess that's something to look forward to. In the mean time, though, almost all of the veterans running for the first time for congress this year are running as Democrats. The prospects of most are very slim. Most of them are one-trick ponies -- they are basically anti-war candidates, not seasoned politicos with a broad grasp of all the issues. But still, it is an intersting -- and very counter-intuitive -- phenomenon.

Almiranta said: "...the "civilian" casualties in Iraq are about 90% young men, between 17-23."

That's an intersting statistic. Can you source it? I'd be very interested in reading about that.

Rico, I will see if I can dig up that reference. I post a lot of things like that to a Favorites file but I am not sure if I did that one. I do remember that it was part of a fairly lengthy analysis of the violence in Iraq. Try googling it to see if you can find anything, and if you can't, I'll do some digging in my archives.

I really hate those needles killing that Ash talked about. Is those needles killing all by theyselves or does they kill with stuffs in them? Hopes they is not needles in eyes--those be scary.