On Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:21:48 -0400, "Eisboch" wrote:



"jps" wrote in message ...


Let's let the man speak for himself...

"Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq,
the United States and our allies have prevailed." —speaking underneath
a "Mission Accomplished" banner aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, May 1,
2003

Were the rest of combat operations in Iraq non-major? That's not my
impression nor do I believe that most soldiers that did 3 or 4 tours
over there would subscribe to that notion.

Was the "surge" a minor operation? Why did we need the surge since
the US and allies had prevailed?
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With due respect (and I have a *lot* of it) to those who fought, died and
were injured in Iraq following the
initial, US led attacks ..... you have a different idea in your mind as to
what "major" combat operations are
when compared to a military definition. What happened after the invasion
and conclusion of the military
major operation was basically a civil war in which we .... having sparked
the fuse .... were obligated to
remain involved in.

What ended was massive, around the clock air sorties and the overwhelming
ground invasion and penetration
into Bagdad and other major Iraqi cities which forced Saddam and most of his
henchmen into hiding.
Over 9,000 air sorties by American warplanes were conducted during this time
frame.

In military circles *that* was the major combat operation.

Your definition may be different, but Bush was referring to the military
definition and not what happened
after ... much of which was not anticipated or even planned for.


Shock and awe was certainly the big show but the real war didn't start
until our troops went into Bagdhad.

Major combat operations resulted in how many American deaths? Minor
combat operations cost over 5,000 lives, tens of thousans of injured
and over a million Iraqis dead or displaced.

Semantics may be skillfully used to frame an argument but they don't
make the argument either accurate or truthful.