I am tempted to side with Peters on this question. Lord knows I've expressed my frustration with the Sunni Arabs of Iraq many times in the last several years.
But I can only agree partly with Peters. Yes, we should side with the Shias very clearly. And we should make sure the Sunni Arabs know we are on the Shias' side.
But we must continue to talk to the Sunni Arabs who provide the backbone of the insurgencies and terrorism plaguing Iraq. Ending insurrection must include getting as much of the enemy to defect or quit as possible and not simply killing them all. Killing them all certainly isn't simple, and if the Sunnis think their choices are victory or death they will fight all the harder and require the Shias to kill all the Sunni Arabs.
Still, talking is not the answer to all our problems. We must fight while we talk and never ever halt fighting to talk. We fight until the enemies agree to give up their fight:
Let the enemy and their supporters talk to us. But make sure the sound of gunfire as Iraqi and American troops kill the enemy and the sight of Sunnis fleeing central Iraq are always present in the talks. The enemy needs to know that the longer they drag out the talks, the worse the future will be for them--not that buying time will allow them to weaken us and emerge victorious. Make sure that we are all clear that talking is about how the enemy can avoid complete destruction and not about who wins the war.
Talking is fine--necessary even. But fighting is necessary, too.
Still, whether we side fully with the Shias and abandon efforts to bring the Sunnis in may not even matter. The jihadi strategy of provoking the Shias to hit Sunnis in order to get Sunni Arabs to turn to the insurgencies for protection may be working in at least one area:
Meanwhile, the commander of U.S. forces in the strife-ridden Iraqi province of Diyala said Friday that tribal leaders and some political groups in the province are turning to terrorists and insurgents for protection rather than trust Iraqi soldiers and police.
The Sunnis have little time to avoid their annihilation. Turning to the terrorists and insurgents will buy them a little time before they are destroyed. Only abandoning the terrorists and insurgents can save the Sunnis in the long run. Lord knows I don't expect much from those idiots. Their track record isn't very good, now is it?
Oh, and it is good to see that Peters is back to working the problem. I thought he'd gone loopy on the war there for a while.
