BULLETIN TO MEDIA & DEMS: U.S. WINNING IN IRAQ!

I'll be writing over the next month -- generally on Mondays and Tuesdays -- about how Republican candidates and activists should frame arguments in seeking support. Republicans often fail to make statements that are meaningful and memorable, while Democrats are somewhat better at doing so. A column on the subject will appear tomorrow (Tuesday), and I urge you to read and comment. Thanks.

Here's my response to Christopher(see comments) regarding the column below: Christopher: The endless talk about what a "jerk" (supposedly) GWB is regarding Iraq is an exercise in pettiness and demagoguery. The War on Terror is going to cost many American lives, and there's nothing we can do about it other than transform ourselves into ostriches.

One problem is that the Dems (and too many Republicans) have no understanding of who our soldiers are and what motivates them (including courage and love of country). I realize that the American people are disturbed by the signs of casualties they see regularly on TV, but the alternative is to let al Qaeda train and mobilize in the Middle East so they can attack American "interests" (including the civilian population of the U.S.).

They've been here before, and they want nothing more than to kill people here again. Certainly, al Qaeda is not the only group causing problems in Iraq, but the defeat of al Qaeda in Iraq, which is very possible, would be a major blow to terrorists worldwide. We need to get across to voters that a vote for the Democrats is an exercise in denial that will not stand up to reality.

If we don't eradicate al Qaeda and other groups like them, they will eventually get their hands on weapons of mass destruction, and the results would be catastrophic. Anyone who "supports our troops" had better start supporting their efforts to kill or capture followers of bin Laden.

steve maloney, ambridge, pa


Monday, 3:50 p.m.: Octavia Nasser, a CNN Arab affairs expert, has listened to bin Laden's new audio tape, and she interprets it as a "sign of weakness" on the al Qaeda leader's part. She adds that he appears to see al Qaeda's effort in Iraq as "a failing proposition." Steve Maloney

Note: The following column is dedicated to former Army Captain Albert C. Labriola, a professor at Duquesne University, who was awarded the Silver Star for valor in Viet Nam and to Pvt. Track Palin, now at Ft. Benning and a fine representative of a family that symbolizes everything good about America.

Why did Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards say they couldn't "guarantee" U.S. troops would be out of Iraq by January, 2013 (that's four-and-a-quarter years from now)? One reason may be that it's finally dawned on them that the Petraeus Strategy is working -- and the U.S. is winning in Iraq.

The next word we hear from those three, also known as "See no evil . . . Hear no evil . . . and Evil," many be that they've really been For the War right from the start. We may yet see Hillary Clinton on Halloween outfitted in a military uniform.

Of course, the MSM "spin" on Iraq has been that everything is a mess -- and probably getting worse. As the War increasingly goes in the U.S.'s favor, the media is increasingly silent on the situation. The theme seems to be: "If you don't have anything bad to say, don't say anything at all."

For a sane view of the War -- and how America is winning big-time -- check out Jack Kelly's column in today's (Sunday, October 21) Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Forum." You can find it at: http://post-gazette.com/forum. Gp there and scroll down to Jack's column and read both this week's and last week's pieces on Iraq.

Of course, some in the media, unable to find bad news, will make some up. Kelly quotes Qasim Zein of the McClatchey Newspapers, who says last week: "A drop in violence around Iraq has cut burials in the huge Wadi al Salam cemetery [in Najaf] by at least one-third in the past six months, and that's cut the pay of thousands of workers who make their living digging graves, washing corpses, or selling burial shrouds."

Maybe Moveon.org might take up the sad case of the burial workers? Or perhaps the people pushing the big hike in funding for SCHIP might advocate covering them under an enhanced health care plan?

Jack Kelly says the Washington Post and New York Times might consider publishing articles and Op Eds by people who actually know something about how the War is going. He says, "If the goal of the Washington Post were to inform its readers of the situation in Iraq now, one would think its editors would make more an effort to publish the views of soldiers and Marines who are serving in Iraq now." Don't hold your breath, Jack.

In fact, Kelly cites a Marine sergeant writing from Fallujah (!!!) to the milblogger "Blackfive": "Peace is breaking out all over the place, and no one knows what to do. I spent the day with [the regimental commander]. We rode straight through Fallujah without incident and down to Amiriyah to check on a police transition team. The TTs [transition teams] are quickly becoming the main effort."

If this kind of information comes as surprising news to you -- well, you've been derelict in your duty to read people like the on-scene milbloggers and Jack Kelly.

Check out the reports from a Baghdad from a once fiercely-contest neighborhood: "Once abandoned streets are now filled with families and entrepreneurs who continue to open new small businesses every week." Those are the words of battalion commander James Crider, speaking to super-milblogger (and former Special Forces solider) Michael Yon.

The political implications of the rapidly improving situation in Iraq are huge. We might even see the political version of a resurrection from the dead by President George W. Bush. Clearly, really good news from Iraq is not good news for the Democrats, including their presidential candidates.

If you truly want to know what's going on in Iraq, turn off CNN and CBS -- and ditch the Post and the Times. Then, go read Jack Kelly, Michael Yon, and David Petraeus. Also, because you still might be able to get good odds, bet the Republican canidate for President.

(And remember that one candidate for vice-president, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has an 18-year-old son (Track Palin) training at Ft. Benning for service in the infantry.)

Sarah Palin Information: Last Wednesday, Adam Brickley, who founded the Draft Palin Movement was on Political Pistachio radio, a popular Internet-based program. Adam did an absolutely superb job of explaining why Sarah is the best possible candidate for the vice-presidency. If you go to Adam's site: http://palinforvp.blogspot.com/ you can get a link to his "Pistachio" appearance.