The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Friday, December 14, 2007

War News for Friday, December 14, 2007

MNF-Iraq is reporting the death of a Multi-National Division – Center Soldier in a roadside bombing south of Baghdad on Thursday, December 13th.

MNF-Iraq is reporting the death of a Multi-National Division - Baghdad soldier in a small-arms fire attack in an southern neighborhood of Baghdad on Thursday, December 13th.

The British MoD is reporting the death of a 1st Battalion The Scots Guards soldier from a traffic accident in Basra Province, on Wednesday, December 12th.

The U.S. DoD is reporting the death of a Navy SEAL previously unreported by CENTCOM who died from enemy action in Iraq on Tuesday, December 11th. No other details were released.


Security incidents:

I have only been able to find a few sparse security incidents in the on-line news today. Perhaps it's a very slow day in respect to violence which if true I hope this trend continues into the future. I do not believe that the war is over, it's has perhaps metamorphosed into a new stage of the war but it likely will continue until the invading armies have left and the people sort out a new government for themselves without outside interference. A more likely scenario is the military is clamping down on the media today for some reason or another which seems to happon from time to time but as far as my posting today's blog that is irrelevant. I'll update later today when and if any prevalent reporting gets released.

Baghdad:
#1: Thousands of followers of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr took to Baghdad's streets following Friday prayers to protest a triple car bombing in one of their southern strongholds, in a show of strength directed at a rival Shi'ite powerbroker.

#2: A Soldier from Multi-National Division-Baghdad was killed Dec. 13 in a small-arms fire attack in southern Baghdad.

#3: A Multi-National Division – Center Soldier died of wounds suffered when the Soldier’s dismounted patrol encountered an improvised explosive device south of Baghdad Dec. 13.


#4: Two dead bodies were found in western Baghdad, police said.

#5: Friday morning , a roadside bomb exploded at AlMitabag street in Mashtal neighborhood. No casualties recorded.

#6: Around 4 p.m., a roadside bomb targeted a joint forces convoy at Bub Al-Sham neighborhood near al-Rashideen mosque ( north Baghdad) .The American blocked the area having no further information of incident.


Diyala Prv:
Muqdadiya
#1: Friday afternoon, Al- Qaeda gunmen tried to attack Mansouriat Al-Muqdadiyah village( 7 km east of Muqdadiya and 36 km east of Baquba ).The residents of the village resisted them killing three gunmen while two residents were injured.


al-Hayakel:
#1: Policemen in the province of Wassit found the body of a civil defense man south of the city on Friday morning, a Wassit police source said. "The police received a report from a citizen about an unidentified body in the area of al-Hayakel, south of Wassit," the source, who did not want his name mentioned, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq


Basra:
#1: The British base in the Basra International Airport came under indirect fire attack on Thursday night but no casualties or damage were reported, the Multi-National Force (MNF) in southern Iraq said.

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