Had to dig it out of the millions of GAO reports, Mike. But here’s the link to the full 94 pg report.

While we’re at it, I spotted a a June 08 report on Afghanistan Security that I want to read. Perhaps others might as well.

And for anyone as anal about bookmarks as I am…. here’s the the search page for GAO reports and testimonies.

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If anyone can find the report that Ambassador Ryan Crocker and our embassy in Baghdad prepared at the request of Congressman McIntyre, drop a link here would you?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/01/AR2008070102860.html

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Doug has shown himself to be exactly the type as Mata described. Glass half empty. From reading his many comments there will never be a day that he calls Iraq a success. But taking his liberal bent into account I could consider a debate post like Scott had with a well informed reader last year:

Part I
Part II
Part III

Now granted, I parsed their comments into posts but if Doug wants to submit his argument for each benchmark and one of us is allowed to answer that argument for each post I see nothing wrong with that. Flopping Aces has never pretended to be anything other then a conservative blog (even tho there are two authors who are registered Democrats….you don’t have to be Republican to be conservative, just have some common sense) so I feel no need to allow posts from liberals. Debates in the comments are encouraged tho and its the rare commenter who has been banned (the few that have been banned we’re banned after repeated warning about their behavior).

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Did someone mention benchmarks?

Iraq’s efforts on 15 of 18 benchmarks are “satisfactory” — almost twice of what it determined to be the case a year ago. The May 2008 report card, obtained by the Associated Press, determines that only two of the benchmarks — enacting and implementing laws to disarm militias and distribute oil revenues — are unsatisfactory.

Check out this piece from Der Speigel on the good news coming out of Iraq.

It looks like the European press hacks are doing a better job reporting the good news out of Iraq than our homegrown hacks.

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Can fully understand the frustration of starting from the “glass half full” perspective on an FA post, Mike’sA. Would feel down right alien to read so to speak. Not to mention Doug is talking about a subject where we really have no credible “source” data… just journalists making it up as they go along. Afterall, there’s no C-Span in the Iraq Assembly, and none of us speak the language. It’s a no man’s land, open to propaganda.

‘Personally I think what Doug suggests as a subject is an exercise in futility, as it’s a time sensitive subject, and our sources questionable and limited. So, for myself, I have no personal interest in such a series. Why Doug thinks he has such an absolute on the complex differences between Iraqis on each benchmark is beyond me.

But then, the decision of whether this is a worthy subject is not up to me. I defer to Curt’s judgment.

But Doug… just so you know. I am an invited guest author here, as are other authors. Curt has actually broken new ground by dabbling in the experiment of “reader posts” here most recently. It’s a step above, for example, DailyKO’s “diaries” as it appears along side the authors’ pieces.

But I don’t know if he wants to advance into the “reader counterpoint posts”. Curt has worked long and hard to establish a well known conservative blog in cyberspace…. not an easy thing to do. And let’s get serious… there’s little about you that’s conservative.

Therefore he owes you and your counter viewpoints,… or even me, Mike and others… absolutely nothing. If he decides that having opposition view points for reader posts” is counterproductive to his current promotion of Flopping Aces, I really don’t want to hear one snippet of criticism or cries of foul from you. This is, afterall, his blog. The rest of us are privileged guests.

So I suggest if you have a viewpoint that he prefers to not be posted here with you as an author, then get your own blog, and link it here thru your signature, as the rest of us do. The Google blogspots are free to start. You can be blogging in minutes.

However if Curt really goes out on a *totally* unique limb, offering a reader “counterpoint” submission as part of the FA format – you should feel honored and do what you can to be worthy of his gift of exposure. His work and creation deserves respect. I certainly feel honored, and quite responsible for fairness with my own gift of author’ship privileges. Do any less, or bad mouth him in anyway, and I’ll haunt you in every corner of cyberspace myself! LOL

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Ugh! Do we really have to read Doug’s cherry pickings on the main page? I already have enough of his cherries to bake a pie!

It’s clear Doug prefers the filter of defeat over the facts of progress. It’s a state of denial that refuses to accept what even the most ardent anti-war elected Democrat, perhaps even the great Obama himself, are coming to realize is that the perception of Iraq has changed from the picture of doom and gloom they succesfully painted for so many years.

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[...] at least he stands by them. With Obama, I get a chameleon whose keyword is,

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Doug, Curt has a FA “reader post” system. (see the top right corner for Reader Post Submissions). You see many of these from Dupray, Buffoon, nocommie, etal.

Curt, the “founding father of FA”, so to speak, is one fair guy. I suspect if you submitted a cogent post for submission – even tho he doesn’t agree with it – you could do this “series” and start the cyber dialogue.

Then again, I can’t speak for Curt. It is his site. But knowing who he is, and his belief in the 1st amendment and the value of reasoned debate, all you can do is offer it up. I suggest you do so.

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…just passing on reports and reporting that you all have not posted.

You want to do something interesting? Let’s look at just one benchmark at a time. There’s only 18.

How about us taking a hard look at all of them; say one per week?

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Dang, Doug… you must be one really tough guy to buy Christmas presents for…. :0)

Repeat after me… glass half full, glass half full, glass half *full*. Try cheering on the Iraqis for a change. They want to be stable and sans US troops as much as we want our warriors home.

BTW, sorry for the delay in getting your post to appear. Found it in the “spam” batch and got it released. But remember, spam filters are bi-partisan….

Added thoughts… last year it was all about whining about benchmarks. Now that the same benchmarks have more measure of success, it’s about the “illusions” of benchmarks – i.e. not “benchmarked” to the DNC satisfaction.

Just how does one score with the anti-free-Iraq crowd when you keep moving the goal posts?? Is there any situation and instance where you would look at Iraq and say “hooo ya” to both the troops and Iraqis for a long fought battle for an elected Arab democracy? In which case, do define that “moment” for us. At least everyone will know what pleases your side of the issue.

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