How many "concerned citizens" in Iraq? The audience determines the answer.
Yesterday, we got a number of 77,000 "concerned citizens" in Iraq, the euphemism for the local Sunni tribal militias the US is building/bribing, with a stated goal of building that to 100,000.
Today we get a new, downwardly revised number, "Senior military officers said they had reduced the nationwide total from 77,000 to 60,321 — most of them Sunni Arabs."
Reading both of these, the difference of 17,000 is largely definitional, but it does play into the the larger conflict of trying to provide a US narrative of "progress" vs., you know, actual progress.
The first number was released by a "military spokesman" targeting the US audience through US reporters with the idea of "success."
The second, lower number was released as a correction by "Col. Martin Stanton of the military's reconciliation and engagement office" who is far more concerned with the effects and politics of these numbers within the conflict that is Iraq.
And, there are effects, (McClatchy) "U.S. sponsorship of Sunni groups worries Iraq's government."..... (AP) "US weighs Sunni help with Shiite fears."
To me, it all sounds like body counts, you know?
Today we get a new, downwardly revised number, "Senior military officers said they had reduced the nationwide total from 77,000 to 60,321 — most of them Sunni Arabs."
Reading both of these, the difference of 17,000 is largely definitional, but it does play into the the larger conflict of trying to provide a US narrative of "progress" vs., you know, actual progress.
The first number was released by a "military spokesman" targeting the US audience through US reporters with the idea of "success."
The second, lower number was released as a correction by "Col. Martin Stanton of the military's reconciliation and engagement office" who is far more concerned with the effects and politics of these numbers within the conflict that is Iraq.
And, there are effects, (McClatchy) "U.S. sponsorship of Sunni groups worries Iraq's government."..... (AP) "US weighs Sunni help with Shiite fears."
To me, it all sounds like body counts, you know?
posted by mikevotes at
8:51 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home