Adnan G. El Shukrijumah
Aliases: Adnan G. El Shukri Jumah, Abu Arif, Ja'far Al-Tayar, Jaffar Al-Tayyar, Jafar Tayar, Jaafar Al-Tayyar
Adnan G. El Shukrijumah is wanted in connection with possible terrorist threats against the United States.
Blackfive takes Allahpundit to task for letting the NYT do what the NYT is good at: Asking loaded questions to get expected answers.
Quite obviously we are at a pivotal moment in Iraq; security operations have done what they are supposed to, reduce the violence to a level that politicians could swing some deals but that has yet to materialize. I realize that it would have been ideal if the Iraqi Parliament had stayed in session and passed an Oil law and reconciliation procedures, but like every other legislature including ours, they took the hottest month of the year off and went home. I don't recall any expectations being laid out that political progress would track right alongside security, as a matter of fact common sense ought to have pointed toward that as a follow on to less killing. It is tough to think about peace in the midst of battle. Well things have cooled down and we have made amazing progress in Anbar, which even 6 months ago was de facto ruled by AQI, and Baghdad is hardly pacified but it is much safer.
In the face of this we have plenty of skeptics and pessimists and there is plenty to be skeptical and pessimistic about. Before I knee him in the neck let me say I love 99% of Allah's work at Hot Air, but sometimes he gets out of his depth. Today Allahpundit at Hot Air continues his trend of skeptical pessimism and you can almost hear the "We're doomed Christopher Robin", as he hugs the skirts of the NYT's Damien Cave. In a piece he titles NYT survey: Surge has largely failed, Allah joins Cave in concluding the surge has likely failed because there is no instant political reconciliation.
Amen, brother.
The NYT metaphorically seeks that which it knows cannot be--symmetrical improvements in political and sectarian reconciliation that match the improvements in security. There are only two camps to be in, at this point. Either security has improved because of the surge in troops and clear-hold-build operations, or it hasn't. We know what camp the left wing media is in. It's worth noting that the NYT has something of a professional image at stake here, having gone "Reid" and declared the surge a failure months ago.
Suck it up, Allah. Get yourself together and stop letting the NYT do that Jedi mind thing to you.
|