Take a look at the nice Iraqi family the U.S. is intruding on.
"Weighing the surge: putting troops among the people; Markets, outposts seen as progress, but doubts remain" by Sudarsan Raghavan/Washington Post September 5, 2007
BAGHDAD - Nearly every week, American generals and politicians visit Combat Outpost Gator, nestled behind a towering blast wall in the Dora market. They arrive in convoys of armored Humvees, sometimes accompanied by helicopter gunships, to see what US commanders display as proof of the effectiveness of a seven-month-long security offensive, fueled by 30,000 US reinforcements. General David H. Petraeus, the top US military leader in Iraq, frequently cites the market as a sign of progress.
Staff Sergeant Josh Campbell, 24, of Winfield, Kan., as he set out on a patrol near the market on a hot evening in mid-August: "This is General Petraeus's baby."
Is the "surge" working?
This year, more than 100 joint security stations and smaller combat outposts have been erected in neighborhoods and villages across the country, which generals say is an indicator that US and Iraqi troops maintain control.
If there is one indisputable truth regarding the current offensive, it is this: When large numbers of US troops are funneled into areas, security improves. But the numbers only partly describe the reality on the ground. Visits to key US bases and neighborhoods in and around Baghdad show that recent improvements are sometimes tenuous, temporary, even illusory.
In many areas, US forces are now working at cross-purposes with Iraq's elected Shi'ite-led government by financing onetime Sunni insurgents who say they now want to work with the Americans. The loyalties of the Iraqi military and police - widely said to be infiltrated by Shi'ite militias - remain in doubt.
Even US soldiers assigned to protect Petraeus's showcase remain skeptical.
Campbell said, referring to the portrayal of the Dora market as an emblem of the surge's success:
"Personally, I think it's a false representation. But what can I say? I'm just doing my job and don't ask questions."
[And who is going to hear you, soldier? Not Katie Couric, that's for sure!]
While none of 18 benchmarks for progress set by Congress specifically addresses markets, security in neighborhoods such as Dora is viewed as essential for political reconciliation. Under Petraeus's counterinsurgency strategy, US troops have left their fortified bases and moved into the smaller stations and outpost from which they can regularly interact with Iraqis.
Hours before Campbell spoke, a delegation led by an American general, with several reporters in tow, filed through Combat Outpost Gator. Scores of Iraqis were milling inside the fortified market, where shopkeepers were selling clothing, shoes, and other consumer goods.
After the delegation left, Major Ron Minty, 36, said that the generals had wanted 300 shops open for business by July 1. By the day of the delegation's visit, 303 had opened.
Minty, the acting commander of the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment:
"It took us until August 1st - not bad."
The goal by Sept. 1 was 500, he said. (By Monday, 349 stores were open. Before the US-led invasion, the market had more than 850 shops.)
Still, the Dora market is a Potemkin village of sorts. The US military hands out $2,500 grants to shop owners to open or improve their businesses. The military has fixed windows and doors and even helped rebuild shops that had burned down, soldiers and others said.
[And they can't even fix up New Orleans.
That is YOUR TAX DOLLARS, folks!
Hey, I love the Iraqis, and they would be taken care off for our crimes, but AMERICANS NEED THAT MONEY!]
A 36-year-old Iraqi interpreter at the outpost whom US soldiers call Jimmy for security reasons, and who asked that his real name not be used:
"We helped them a lot. We gave them money, security, even the locks on their doors. Everything we gave them. That's why the violence has stopped. That's why they cooperate with us."
Some shopkeepers said they would not do business in the market without US support.
Falah Hassan Fadhil, 27, who sells cosmetics: "The Americans are giving money, so they're opening up stores."
First Lieutenant Jose Molina, who is in charge of monitoring and disbursing the grant money, said the US military includes barely operating stores in its tally.
Molina, 35, from Dallas: "Although they sell dust, they are open for business. They intend to sell goods or they may just have a handful of goods. But they are still counted."
Security measures in the market are rigorous. Vehicles are not allowed inside for fear of car bombs. Customers are body-searched at checkpoints. Humvees constantly patrol the area, which is the sole focus of the 50 or so soldiers of Combat Outpost Gator.
But the Dora market has not regained its former cachet as one of southeastern Baghdad's most vibrant commercial centers. Before the invasion, many of its stores stayed open past midnight. Today, they are open for just a few hours, and by noon the market is mostly deserted.
The shopkeepers, who are mostly Sunni, said they rarely see customers from outside Dora because it is too dangerous to travel here.
Alaa Hussein Mahmoud, 32, a shopkeeper: "If the Americans were not here, we would close earlier, maybe one or two hours. I'm always scared about the militias."
[So even the "surge success" is a FUCKING GOD-DAMNED LIE!!!!!!!!!!!
I am SO SICK of BEING LIED TO BY THIS SHIT GOVERNMENT and SHIT PENTAGON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]
