Larry Johnson: How Many Dead Equal Failed Government?

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What would we be saying if another shooter showed up at Virginia Tech on Tuesday and killed 20 more students and another shooter bagged an additional 40 on Wednesday? The President of the University would be lynched, the students would arm themselves, and the police would lose any pretense of control. Why do we think Iraqi Shias and Sunnis should react differently then we would?

When you consider the events of the last week in Iraq there is no reason any sane Iraqi--Sunni or Shia--would have any confidence in the Petraeus plan. Petraeus and U.S forces are in trouble. Desperate trouble. Despite White House flacks and politicians like McCain insisting that things are improving in Baghdad, the continued mass casualty bombings, the stacks of bodies left on the streets, the destruction of key infrastructure (like the Sarafiya bridge), and the bombing of the Iraqi parliament is reality and cannot be casually dismissed as the crazy ravings of a news media intent on reporting bad news.

Hell, compare the conduct of reporters operating in the Iraq combat zones with the nonsense being spewed by every network and cable anchor who managed to buy a seat to Blacksburg, Virginia. Not a single news organization operating at Virginia Tech had to contract body guards and armored cars to move around to report the story. The U.S. based media did not have to find a sand bagged roof in the Green Zone as a background shot for their nightly report. They roamed freely without fear.

That is not the case in Baghdad specifically and Iraq in general. Despite the surge of U.S. troops into Baghdad the violence continues, especially against the Shia majority. Today's attacks on the Shia, coming on the heels of the resignation of Shia cleric Moqtada al Sadr, are particularly worrisome.

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http://noquarter.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/04/how_many_dead_e.html