Diatribune

Baghdad: City of Walls
I watched "Baghdad, City of Walls" on the Real News Network today. I was impressed by the journalist that made the documentary and I wished that the MSM would carry the video. No sooner had I sat down and watched CNN for Barak Obama’s speech, than they broadcast what I had so recently seen on The Real News. City of Walls Part 1
And City of walls Part 2

It’s time that Americans were told the truth about what’s happening in Iraq. Somehow, I had already known about the walls that separate the ethnic neighborhoods in Baghdad, I had read about them on the internet. Nothing surprised me about the video except that CNN had chosen to air it. The story told about the sectarian violence that makes Iraqi’s virtual prisoners inside their enclaves. Sunni and Shiite no longer live together there. To walk outside your "zone" is to invite a bullet to the head or to be taken prisoner and ransomed or killed. In Baghdad there is no "surge".

The situation in the southwest in Al-Anbar Provence is only better because of the huge presence of American troops and the Sunni Militia that are 60% paid by US Forces there. Since most Shiite’s have left the area, the fighting is between Iraqi Al-Qaeda factions of Sunni’s and the Sunni’s that are being paid to fight Al-Qaeda by the US. Many times I have heard journalists such as Pepe Escobar say that when America stops the Sunni Militia funding and leaves the area, the focus of those militias will be on the government in Baghdad. Of course, this would mean a general civil War between the Iraqi Government, and Sadr’s Mehdi Militia, and the Sunni’s from the Basra region and Al-Anbar.

How the government could stand there and lie to the American people and proclaim that things are better in Iraq is beyond me. Then again, this is the same government that told us they were going to bring "freedom and democracy" to the place. Instead, we brought death and destruction, not only to people and property, but to the fragile relationship between Shiite, Sunni and Kurds. Iraq is split between two warring parties and a Kurdish section of Iraq that operates almost autonomously in the north of the country.

The real test of the surge’s success should be in restoring the people’s faith in the Iraqi government to give the people of that country real security. Since there is no such security in the country, the surge should be looked at as just a temporary lull in the violence which is to come. This country has done nothing good for Iraq and the people should understand that. Most Iraqi’s that I have seen interviewed say that they would rather have Saddam than the American Military presence and live amidst tribal warfare.

Bush lies; People die.
American soldiers died at a pre-surge level last week. Civilian terrorist bombings are at an all-time high. There are no really "safe" places in Iraq beyond the Green Zone. The government would like you to believe according to Cheney and McCain that visited there yesterday that everything is going splendidly. This is a lie, and a damned lie at that. The Republicans are experts at lying with a straight face to the American people and it’s about time the American people called them on it. The situation is no better or worse than the way this "surge" found it.

According to veterans at the Winter Soldier event in Washington, the Army indiscriminately fires on unarmed Iraqi civilians. They use torture and fear as a weapon. Our troops are not bringing stability to that country, they are making things worse. Bush needs to be held accountable, and the candidacy of John McCain should be seen as what it is, another term of Bush politics in the Middle East. This war has been going on for five years too long. It’s about time we canceled our subscriptions.

That’s the way I see it.

__________________________

Timothy V. Gatto