Bill at InFallujah Journal

Bill InDC is embedded in Iraq again, and while he's just gotten there, his first report is pretty positive.

Polished commentary will be a few days out. But a quick teaser: the positive change in Fallujah since my January visit is astounding.
...

Through a local interpreter, we talked about their changing opinion of Americans, Iraq's prospects, the misery of living under al Qaeda, the joys of kabob and favorite soccer teams. Their open and friendly nature is hard to reconcile with the negative history of American-Iraqi interaction in Fallujah, and most of them chalk it up to a "misunderstanding."
Towards the end of a long conversation with one group, I said, "Well, I wish you luck. And I want you to know, besides the marines and soldiers that you meet here in the city, there are many civilians back in America who hope for Fallujah's success."
The afternoon's joking died down as the interpreter translated and each of them earnestly told me "shukran" ("thank you"). And one young guy blurted out in halting English, "We like you!"

Bill InDC, goodwill emissary to Fallujah. The mind boggles.

Meanwhile, Glenn Greenwald just dashed off a brief 9,000 page critique arguing that Bill is not in Fallujah at all, but rather Muncie, Indiana, and is even lying about the conditions in Muncie, where Americans are despised and we are doomed to fail in our efforts to make Muncie a functioning democracy.

Posted by: Ace at 11:21 AM

Comments

Here's my question:

Where is TNR and why couldn't they have hired Bill or Michael Yon to do some "diaries"?

Posted by: EC at September 05, 2007 11:25 AM (mAhn3)

2 Did he see anyone wearing a piece of skull on his head while running over stray dogs with a Bradley? I heard that happens a lot over there.

Posted by: Warden at September 05, 2007 11:30 AM (rZ5uY)

BillInDC, The US Military, the Administration all say that the situation in Iraq is improving.

Dems and MSM say that situation in Iraq is deteriorating.

Both are right.

One side thinks the situation is improving - for Iraq and America.

The other side thinks that situation is deteriorating, for the Dem election prospects.

Posted by: Tushar D at September 05, 2007 11:38 AM (IlgNp)

4 and a boggled mind is of no use to anyone

Posted by: Dave in Texas at September 05, 2007 11:43 AM (pzen5)

5 Did he see anyone wearing a piece of skull on his head while running over stray dogs with a Bradley? I heard that happens a lot over there.

Yeah, track down that turd. Or, better yet, the turd's friends, if he has any, and ask them what they think of this guy. I've already posted that he's back online with his myspace account. He's cleaned it up a bit. He and Elle have gone public and as she posted, "we're kind of a big deal." She also appears pregnant. Lord, a new baby and a loser husband. Oh, I guess that makes two babies she's responsible for. I guess when he get's discharged, he can be a stay at home husband. It's not like he has any skills to get a job.

Posted by: dave at September 05, 2007 11:44 AM (MjB8L)

6 I was one of the people who thought a few MOABs would've done Fallujah a world of good way back when. I guess I have egg on my face now.

Posted by: cranky-d at September 05, 2007 11:53 AM (5TuJT)

and we are doomed to fail in our efforts to make Muncie a functioning democracy.

Regarding our prospects in Muncie, I would tend to concur.

Posted by: Sticky B at September 05, 2007 11:58 AM (fkkFv)

8 The BK on I-69 just outside of Muncie has, I think, the largest play area around. Or was it a terror training camp? Perhaps Genn(s) can do a deep embed in the box-o-balss and find out.

Posted by: Kevin at September 05, 2007 12:01 PM (jCKHk)

9 It looks like the Shia of Iraq are quickly becoming like the Palestinians...never missing a chance to miss a chance. If Anbar and other Sunni areas decide their future isn't with al Qaeda and continue to get with the program, that means we can work with them and the Kurds in the North. Maybe we should concentrate our efforts in those two regions and let the Shia rot.

Sure the Shia areas have the oil but if they can't get their act together and exploit it, what good does it do them? And who is going to help them? The Iranians? They seem to have problems of their own and if we aren't busy trying to pacify Anbar and the Sunni Triangle forever, we'll have more time and troops to make their life miserable.

Perhaps 2/3 of Iraq is the best we can do and that's not too bad considering where we were a year ago.

Posted by: Drew at September 05, 2007 12:03 PM (hlYel)

10 This is sort of "dog bites man".

Katie Couric going positive on Iraq, though, is serious man bites dog.

Posted by: someone at September 05, 2007 12:05 PM (LS1TS)

11 Problem with that scenario Drew will be that the Sunni and Kurds will have no money unless we keep giving it to them, or in the case of the Kurds, seize oil producing Kirkuk for them. Unless we can help them build a functioning economy that isn't gonna get trashed by terrorists, they'll run out of money and resort back to savagery.

Posted by: sinistar at September 05, 2007 12:10 PM (Pprmm)

>>Problem with that scenario Drew will be that the Sunni and Kurds will have no money unless we keep giving it to them

In the short run, yes. In the long run, a stable society can survive and flourish without a big horde of natural resources. The biggest example is Japan.

The question is whether the Dems will allow a long run. They are getting over-eager for defeat.

Posted by: Tushar D at September 05, 2007 12:14 PM (IlgNp)

13 Good point sinistar but we are going to be subsidizing them for awhile anyway. If the Sunni areas stay in good order and we reduce our commitment to the Shia areas, we'll be saving money over what we are spending now.

In the end a political solution and revenue sharing is the best way to go but maybe we need to let the Shia stew for awhile without us to get them back in the game. Which is oddly what a lot of people were saying about the Sunni areas not so long ago.

I think Bush did a little of that this week by going to Anbar and not Baghdad. The realities shift quickly over there and we need to be nimble in playing the sides against each other while moving them all to the middle.

Posted by: Drew at September 05, 2007 12:19 PM (hlYel)

Through a local interpreter, we talked about their changing opinion of Americans, Iraq's prospects, the misery of living under al Qaeda, the joys of kabob and favorite soccer teams. Their open and friendly nature is hard to reconcile with the negative history of American-Iraqi interaction in Fallujah, and most of them chalk it up to a "misunderstanding."

Hi it is the interpreter for Bill from the INDC computerpaper. I am find that Bill is most pleasant and a man worthy of the name American.

Soon I hope to let Bill know that his promise to let half of the tribal elders have their way upon him so that the news in his INDC computerpaper about the kabob and football teams would be good was said 'yes' to .and I no more need to make this promise.

Bill is talking so I must go now.

Faheem

Posted by: Faheem, Bill's Local Interpreter at September 05, 2007 12:20 PM (UeP9e)

15 True Tushar, but Japan wasn't surrounded by countries with huge populations full of Jihadis, beyond that, Japan is a series of islands, which has big advantages in that its isolated, as opposed to Iraq which is surrounded with open borders.

Posted by: sinistar at September 05, 2007 12:24 PM (Pprmm)

16 Katie Couric going positive on Iraq,

Perhaps I'm just being a cynic, but I smell an ulterior motive here.

Posted by: wiserbud at September 05, 2007 12:25 PM (IHbof)

17 Now that the Baghdad Fabulist has been outed as a liar, does the left have anyone "embedded" in Iraq?

The Rashid Bureau of the MSM excepted, of course.

Posted by: Dave at September 05, 2007 12:32 PM (38EUg)

>>Perhaps I'm just being a cynic, but I smell an ulterior motive here.

Wiserbud, your cynical sinuses have probably smelled correctly. I wonder whether she is angling for a 'centrist & objective' image, giving her better job prospects.

Posted by: Tushar D at September 05, 2007 12:39 PM (IlgNp)

19 Tushar, if she reported good news in Iraq she's no centrist. She's obviously a hard-core, ultra-conservative Republican. Who knew?

Posted by: Sobek at September 05, 2007 12:46 PM (6GK9U)

20 Wiserbud, your cynical sinuses have probably smelled correctly. I wonder whether she is angling for a 'centrist & objective' image, giving her better job prospects.

I think it may be more about where she can place the credit for this incredible turn-around.

Hilllary! voted for the war and has never apologized for it. She has, however, made things as difficult as possible in the execution of the war effort up to this point. (Also, notice how quiet the Hill(!) has been on Iraq lately, other than answering specific questions posed her way, and even those have been answered in a sort of "non-answer" kind of way.)

Now that things are turning around, she is perfectly positioned to be the one who can take credit for "forcing" Bush's hand in correcting his "mistakes" and actually achieving the best possible outcome we could have hoped for and which only could have happened because of the hyper-super-fantastically intelligent and (dare I say it?) Presidential-like pressure from the esteemed Senator Hilllary!

Again, call me cynical.....

Posted by: wiserbud at September 05, 2007 12:53 PM (IHbof)

21 Perhaps I'm just being a cynic, but I smell an ulterior motive here.

You should know better than to smell her there.

Posted by: PattyAnn at September 05, 2007 01:28 PM (8vM5E)

PattyAnn,

making disgusting comments is my job. It does not suit a lady like you.

Nice one, BTW.

Posted by: Tushar D at September 05, 2007 02:09 PM (IlgNp)

23 I'm sorry, Tushar. I should've known you would do a job I didn't want to do.

Posted by: PattyAnn at September 05, 2007 02:26 PM (8vM5E)

16 Katie Couric going positive on Iraq,

Perhaps I'm just being a cynic, but I smell an ulterior motive here.

Maybe she'll go conservative and see her ratings go up. she's gotta do something.

Worked for Michael Savage.

Posted by: pajama momma at September 05, 2007 02:41 PM (Tbl5c)

25 Go Eagles!

Posted by: moviegique at September 05, 2007 03:27 PM (1y5Vr)

26 I thought Bill was in Ann Arbor working on bringing the factions of discord at Big blue back together. His task is ominous

Posted by: lance at September 05, 2007 04:40 PM (gkKZi)

Two things:

1) I don't watch Katie Couric, so I don't give two figs about whether she's really positive on Iraq or just pulling it out of her ulterior.

2) I spent the last five years at Ball State, and the bit about Muncie would have made me laugh out loud if I wasn't at work right now.

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