TK,

Good news, if it’s true. I have no way of knowing, but would give it credence if corroborated by multiple sources. Like KK says, I too think it’s the wrong war, wrong place, and wrong time, but neither have I advocated withdrawal. This seems to be an opinion common to critical thinkers. I don’t know what the “free thinkers” think. Now that we’re stuck with a mess in Iraq, perhaps Zawahiri will give the U.S. a greater legitimacy for being there.

Recall that the terrorists, for the most part, were not in Iraq when Saddam was in charge. The U.S. presence seems to have attracted them, mostly from outside Iraq’s borders. However, it could also be that U.S. presence in Iraq has served to create more terrorists than there were before. Maybe “taking the war to the terrorists” has become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

I continue to believe that the most appropriate response to 911 would have been to hunt down anti-US terrorists, wherever they are, and kill them. The public supported it throughout the Afghanistan action and would support it still. To the extent that the public discerns a disconnect between responding to 911 and the war in Iraq, and as that war incurs costs in dollars and US lives with little or no perceived progress, support will wane, and opposition will increase.

If Zawahiri really is recentering Al Qaeda’s actions to Iraq, that’s unfortunate for Iraq and will probably extend misfortune to the U.S. Misfortune I think, because it seems to be nigh on impossible to fight an invisible army, which is what guerilla warfare is. It will be easier for Al Qaeda to win “hearts and minds” because they’re Arab and Muslim and can blend in with the Iraqis. It will be difficult, if not impossible, for the U.S. to win those hearts and minds because we’re invaders, non-Arabs, non-Muslim, and we kill multiple innocent Iraqi civilians for every insurgent or terrorist killed. That part is very reminiscent of why the U.S. lost in Viet Nam.

If Zarqawi heeds Zawahiri’s advice/request, insurgents will become easier targets for US military action. Whether that will allow us to actually win the war remains uncertain, although I think doubtful for the reasons I expressed above.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.