U.S. Military and Civilian Deaths are Declining in Iraq

[FVZA_Colonel]

Source: Associated Press

By STEVEN R. HURST, Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD - October is on course to record the second consecutive decline in U.S. military and Iraqi civilian deaths and Americans commanders say they know why: the U.S. troop increase and an Iraqi groundswell against al-Qaida and Shiite militia extremists.

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch points to what the military calls "Concerned Citizens" — both Shiites and Sunnis who have joined the American fight. He says he's signed up 20,000 of them in the last four months.

"I've never been more optimistic than I am right now with the progress we've made in Iraq. The only people who are going to win this counterinsurgency project are the people of Iraq. We've said that all along. And now they're coming forward in masses," Lynch said in a recent interview at a U.S. base deep in hostile territory south of Baghdad. Outgoing artillery thundered as he spoke.

Lynch, who commands the 3rd Infantry Division and once served as the military spokesman in Baghdad, is a tireless cheerleader of the American effort in Iraq. But the death toll over the past two months appears to reinforce his optimism. The question, of course: Will it last?

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071023/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_deaths_decline

[Waya]

1. Ferchrisakes.................

............is this another example of 'if we repeat it long enough, it may come true'? Gawd.same shit, different day......

[Benhurst]

2. With over fifty percent of the Iraqis people wanting us to leave their country,

the killing won't stop.

[movonne]

3. That's because we have killed a great deal of them...

[ClintonTyree]

8. And the rest are refugees....

forced from their homeland by sectarian killing. With far fewer people to kill of course the numbers are going to decrease. Lets bring the millions of refugees back to what's left of their country, THEN we'll see how successful the "surge" is. :eyes:

The Bush administration is still selling the same old half-truths and outright lies. They're just packaging them differently.

[Xenotime]

12. true and we have trained them to kill each other.

[phantom power]

4. Last time we had a couple months of "fewer" casualties, it was the same story.

They all threw out their arms patting themselves on the back. Until the casualty rates rose again. BFD.

[Robbien]

5. That is because when we bomb them they are not considered civilians anymore

The Guardian is reporting that our air strikes are increasing dramatically.

[TwilightGardener]

6. Well, I'm glad--let's start demanding that "return on success"--you know, when Chimpy

promised that when the violence decreased, we'd see soldiers coming home. I'll call it victory if they want us to.

[Up2Late]

7. Rubarb-Rubarb-rubarb deaths going down Ribarb-rubarb-rubarb...

Yeah, just like November 2005 to March 2006 and November 2004 to March 2005. Just wait until Spring 2008, when the "Surge" troops start leaving, then well see the real story!

<http://icasualties.org/oif_a/CasualtyTrends.htm>

<http://icasualties.org/oif/>

[D23MIURG23]

9. The graphic pretty much says it all.

Can't you see the brilliance of the millitary solution in there?

I'd laugh if it wasn't so infuriating.

[Traveling_Home]

10. I sure hope it's true!!!! eom

[liberalsoldier5]

11. Good. n/t.

[billyoc]

14. Search and Avoid time, boys.

Get some, get some!(for me, while you're out there...)

[shaniqua6392]

13. So what day shall we have the party??

Everything is so wonderful in Iraq, we should be able to leave any day now!!! Awesome. Rock on. :sarcasm:

[heliarc]

15. There aren't enough left.

Kill a million people and there are fewer around to kill.

[Barrett808]

16. Grim math shows increase not drop in violence in Iraq

RedDan and I have been talking about the games that CENTCOM and the Whitehouse have been playing with the numbers out of Iraq. I couldn't understand why all the press releases about a drop in violence. Tactically it doesn't work like that. It didn't make any sense. A surge wouldn't decrease the level of violence. So we took a closer look at data.

(GIF image won't display here at DU, see link below)

Here you are seeing the real story. A spike that in the Baghdad area and dropping numbers in the south and Al Anbar. A drop to basically 0. Why is this happening?

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown this week announced his plan to reduce the British force around the southern city of Basra from 5,000 to 2,500 by next spring. Drawing less attention, however, is the extent to which American forces have quietly withdrawn from the rest of southern Iraq. By so doing, the U.S. is ceding huge swaths of territory -- time.com

The Brits are basically holed up in a compound with smaller numbers than reported here. From an initial presence in Iraq of 40,000 down to less than 2 battalions.

The Marines have all been completely removed from Al Anbar into Baghdad, which is why they are asking to be relocated to Afghanistan. Working with and for the Army must have them tripping over each others boots.

No, what we are seeing here is a shell game. The violence is not dropping. Its ending. It's ending wherever we withdraw from and spiking were we are digging in. It only appears to drop because violence in Al Anbar, Basra, Najaf, Karbala, Wasit, Dhiqar, etc, etc, has ended. This drop obscures the spike in Baghdad.

(GIF image won't display here at DU, see link below)

This information shows a trend up in the Baghdad region and shows that Iraq does not devolve into civil war when the US pulls out. Does not let al Qaeda take over in their absence. In fact the complete opposite, the local security forces quickly run to ground AQI and end them. It seems once the US forces leave the area the score settling and inter-tribal violence ends. Life seems cheap with tanks and machine guns on every corner. Remove those visual and physical reminders and people work out their differences with something other than a pistol and a power-drill. So when some tells you we have to stay, ask them why. (numbers via iCasualties.org)

Hubris Sonic & RedDan

http://www.groupnewsblog.net/2007/10/grim-math-shows-increase-not-drop-in.html

[ohio2007]

17. Turkey is willing to bump up the body count numbers.

but a better gauge of numbers can be found at this site that actually tracks the numbers

Iraqi Security Forces and Civilian Deaths
Period Total

Oct-07 502
Sep-07 848
Aug-07 1,674
Jul-07 1,690
Jun-07 1,345
May-07 1,980
Apr-07 1,821
Mar-07 2,977
Feb-07 3,014
Jan-07 1,802
Dec-06 1,752
Nov-06 1,864
Oct-06 1,539
Sep-06 3,539
Aug-06 2,966
Jul-06 1,280

Jun-06 870
May-06 1,119
Apr-06 1,009
Mar-06 1,092
Feb-06 846
Jan-06 779



http://www.icasualties.org/oif/

another site;

http://www.iraqbodycount.org/graphs/dbtimeline.php
http://www.iraqbodycount.org/database/


But the numbers are down,not up as the blogger spins it

[Amonester]

18. Neet! So let's all go kill and get killed in Iran now!!

wippee :sarcasm:

...or is it in Kurdistan?? :crazy:



Breaking: they Really STILL think we're all idiots like them...


"Fool me once..." - AWOL king