As The Iraqis Stand Up We'll Stand Down

Fred Kagan Shows Iraqi Soldiers How It's Done

By any objective measure, this is abject failure:

More than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers and policemen either refused to fight or simply abandoned their posts during the inconclusive assault against Shiite militias in Basra last week, a senior Iraqi government official said Thursday. Iraqi military officials said the group included dozens of officers, including at least two senior field commanders in the battle.

But I'll tell you, on a certain level, it's an expected, logical outcome of a policy proulgated by chickenhawks.