(2004-09-22) Lind Sunni Triangle

William Lind on the continuing slide into FourGW chaos in the War On Iraq. The war in the Sunni triangle is shifting its base from the Ba'ath Party, which still operates within the framework of the state, to religious elements which do not... Last spring, the Marines made a deal with the Ba'ath Party in Fallujah: Keep the place quiet and we'll let you run it while keeping our hands off it. As has so often been the case in the history of war, it was the right move, too late. Throughout Iraq, the balance had already swung away from the Ba'ath and any other forces that might have been able to re-create an Iraqi state, to non-state, Fourth Generation elements... Instead of the Ba'ath, what we now face in Fallujah is a genuinely dangerous opponent. Its idol is not Saddam, but Allah... By invading Iraq, the United States in effect took Fallujah and much of the rest of Anbar Province from Saddam Hussein and gave it to Osama Bin Laden. If that is George W Bush's definition of victory, it would be interesting to know what he would consider a defeat.