

How do you know if you’re winning or losing? Football fans check the scoreboard, clock and field position, and if they know the inside game, estimate team morale. In a political campaign, polls clue candidates.
Gauging success in war — as the battle progresses — is iffy, more art than science. Measures of Effectiveness (MOE) is military jargon for assessing an operation’s success. After an air strike, the USAF conducts Bomb Damage Assessment. The basic metric: Is the target smashed? If the target is a bunker and the recon photo reveals concrete chunks and a hole, good job. If the target is the command team in the bunker (e.g., Saddam), then it may take many uncertain months to score the attack.
How to measure the effectiveness of Free Iraq’s flickering battle with the Ba’ath and al Qaeda fascist opposition?
At the conflict’s “operational level,” security and cash are key — and closely related — issues. In each category, the Free Iraq coalition gets an interim and very speculative grade.
Measuring security:
The number of Free Iraqi police and paramilitary personnel in the field is a rough yardstick, but ultimately Iraqi security is their job. The major U.S. mistake prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom was failing to create a functioning Iraqi constabulary. The United States had 3,000 exiles training in Hungary, but that simply didn’t cut it. Interim coalition grade: D.
The number of violent incidents involving the Ba’ath or “foreign” terrorists is a gauge. This figure can also mislead. The paradox: Incidents can increase due to coalition success. Bet that incidents will spike prior to Iraqi elections, but that will be desperate violence by vicious losers. Interim Grade: C
The geographic distribution of violent incidents. Most are confined to the “Sunni Triangle.” Interim Grade: A-
Prisoners and casualties. If the 5,000 Ba’ath fighter estimate is accurate, arresting or killing them is an MOE. Dare call it “body count?” The analog isn’t Vietnam, it’s the Untouchables breaking Al Capone. Interim Grade: B-; Capture or kill Saddam? A-
Implementing “Rule of Law.” War crimes trials recommended by the Iraqi Governing Council are a key milestone. Grade: Incomplete
Measuring cash (economic capability)?
A crude indicator (literally) is Iraqi oil exports. Oil makes money. Electric power generation is a “macro” measure of restoring economic infrastructure. Interim Grade: B
Fascist funding. The battle for Saddam’s bank stashes matters, since his bucks buy car bombs. Grade: Incomplete.
Jobs for Iraqis. USAID business projects and the Pentagon’s Commanders’ Emergency Response Program are critical economic kickstarts. Interim Grade in Kurdistan: B; South Iraq: D; Baghdad: C+
View Entire StoryBy H. Leighton Steward
Fantasy replaces reality in Obama's green economy

By Tom Howell Jr. - The Washington Times
A 29-year-old Moroccan man was arrested Friday on accusations he planned to detonate a suicide ...

By David Hill - The Washington Times
The House voted Friday night to approve Gov. Martin O’Malley’s same-sex marriage bill, sending the ...

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times
Acting with striking bipartisanship, Congress on Friday passed a full-year extension of the payroll tax ...
Independent voices from the TWT Communities

A collection of Entertainment News and Reviews from Washington, D.C. to the beyond

Not your typical discussion, writer Conor Murphy writes about the cons, and pros, of politics

Children around the globe are too often silent. From victims of abuse - physical, mental, and sexual to those whose lives embrace joy, their stories are many and need to be heard.