Trust is not a new idea. Ever since the Army took Baghdad, April 9, 2003, the Army has been trying to build trust—sort of. Remember, the army is the most bureaucratic part of government, it’s not meant for garbage collection, fixing sewers, providing jobs or teaching religious fanatics to love their neighbors. On top of that, Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz made sure it was grossly short handed.
Against all odds, many of our troops made heroic efforts to do what they were never trained for and to win the Iraqi’s trust and confidence. But the politicians never gave them the support they needed and bungled the local politics. The good will generated by toppling Saddam has squandered. Most Iraqis now scorn or hate the US and many, if not most want us out sooner rather than later.
But loss of trust in the US is not what seals our fate in the second Battle for Baghdad. To stop the civil war, Shiites must start trusting Sunnis and Sunnis, Shiites. Collecting the garbage and fixing sewers will not pull this rabbit out of the hat.
The day after we took Baghdad, all government ministries except oil were looted. Then weapons caches were looted. The insurgents attacked us. Al Qaeda attacked almost everyone but gradually focused on the Shiites. Their goal was civil war. The Shiites sided with the Americans and Iranians, and with US protection and Iranian funding, they grew strong. When Zarqawi blew up their Golden Mosque, he got what he wanted. The Shiite militias killed over 1,000 Sunnis the civil war was in full swing.
So far this year about 20,000 have been killed and many of these tortured. All of the dead have dozens of living friends and relatives. The Shiites have not forgotten being suppressed and massacred for decades by Saddam, and the Sunnis know they have not forgotten. The recent killing have cemented these hatreds for another generation.
Sending five or six thousand more American troops to Baghdad, on top of the 30,000 US and 30,000 Iraqi troops already there, will change not change much. Neither will garbage collection, and it’s hard to believe Thurman is serious about fixing all the sewers any time soon. All of this is just show for the November elections. Cheney and Bush need it to appear that there’s a plan, we’re making progress, and it just might turn out all right.
