Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Surge, then upsurge

Iraq will not heal till the last of the US occupiers remains on its soil
As was all along suspected, the US military "Surge" iSurge, then upsurgen Iraq invited an Upsurge: this one involving rival Shia clans. For the first time the dissonance between US strategic thinking and the ground situation in Iraq is as clear as the ultimate outcome is clouded, considering nobody in Washington is really sure about how many soldiers should stay around and for how long. (Quitting for good being out of question because that would look too much like defeat to allow for dressing up as victory – cowboy style. Also, what about the oil and the reconstruction booty, buddy? ) The much publicised surge did bring down violence – but expectedly the good news lasted only for a while. For hardly had the fruits of the good David Petraeus' work begun to register than the Bushies decided the time was ripe to wipe out the formidable Mehdi militia.

Actually, as the widening crisis shows, the time was anything but ripe. And with the Americans disregarding Sadr's repeated desperate calls for a ceasefire, it is clear to all that they will stop at nothing till the oil has been fully and permanently tapped, in keeping with Uncle Sam's scheme of things. Basra in southern Iraq, the stronghold of Sadr, is an oil-rich region – and what was the illegal war waged for if not for the oil?....Continue

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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