It's probably not fair, but I've tended to assess how we're doing in Iraq as inversely proportional to how The Wanker is doing. As faithful Cobb readers know, I'm referring to Muqtada Al Sadr. ('Crazy A' is Iranian leader Ahmadinejad.) I appropriated the term from Christopher Hitchens (and at least commenter Kunta Kinte knows that I dig Hitch) who has a rather dim view of most religious leaders and this one in particular. Since such muslim clerics must make all appearances that they are chaste and Al Sadr happens to be ugly and chubby, Hitch suggested that he must do a lot of wanking in his spare time. Now I don't normally assess the sex lives of leaders, then again, this guy deserves no quarter.
At any rate, I can recall the specific day when George W. Bush called Al Sadr out by name. And I also recall that murder charges against him have never been pressed in some deal to keep the Maliki coaltion together. Of course I recall all of the boneheads who suggested that American and Coalition forces were no match for the guerilla tactics of his Madhi Army. I'm sure I brought that back when part of the MEF whipped the crap out of them cockroach militiamen. But I haven't spent much time repeating the news that Wankie Boy skipped out of his namesake ghetto in Baghdad, Sadr City, when the Surge rolled in.
Well the news is that from somewhere, Al Sadr is issuing orders for his flunkies to start up some propaganda. Captain Ed has the story. I'm really hoping against hope that Al Sadr disobeys Maliki's injunction against the use of militia forces and that these protests escalate. I mean obviously one has a measure of head shaking empathy for those poor saps who feel that they are accomplishing something by shaking their fists at America, sadly misinformed as they might be. On the other hand, if they have the courage of their convictions and are ready to escalate their frustrations into combat, more power bullets to them.
We Americans are somewhat adjusted to the fact that we have our own loudmouth wankers with influence in our Parliamentary system. And we know not to trust them as far as we can throw them. What we don't have are Congresscritters with private armies, death squads and murder charges held in abeyance for the sake of a unity government. Al Sadr's power in Iraq demonstrates the retarded nature of their democracy, and we need to nurse it along while stamping out the gang wars. The ends of all democracies are similar and Iraq has one, but it is quite young and uncivilized right now. It may or may not be fair to compare it with Scorsese's vision of New York 150 years ago. Baghdad is clearly on the corrupt and roughneck side.
The gamble that Bush has taken has been proper. Once again we are met to debate a question of timing. How long can we stand an unpacified Iraq?
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