THE CHANGING ENEMY

My opinion is the significance of this is lost on those who stopped paying attention some time ago...especially those who thought the war was over.

As I've said before...this is a different battle, against a different enemy than the one fought so well by the 3rd Infantry Division and the 1st MEF.

We defeated the Iraqi Army...that battle is over.

This battle is about the future of the Arab world, whether it will join with free nations around the world, or it will continue to sit on the political and economic sidelines as it has done for the better part of a couple thousand years now.

U.S. intelligence officials now believe that some foreign Islamic fighters are cooperating with remnants of Saddam Hussein's regime, surviving members of a Kurdish Islamic militant group, a new crop of foreign Islamic militants and a smattering of Iraqi nationalists and angry Shiite Muslims to mount terrorist attacks in Iraq.

In his Saturday radio address, parts of which reflected the intelligence analysts' latest assessment, President Bush acknowledged that the groups "have different long-term goals," but he said they "share a near-term strategy: to intimidate Iraqis from building a free government and to cause America and our allies to flee our responsibilities. … The terrorists grew to believe that if they hit America hard - as in Lebanon and Somalia - America would retreat and back down."

The intelligence officials, who all spoke on the condition of anonymity because intelligence assessments are classified, said they have no evidence that the attacks are centrally directed. They said many of the attacks appear to be carried out independently by small groups using improvised explosive devices, rocket-propelled grenades and small arms.

But they said the groups have begun to lend what one official called "some significant support" to one another:

The land of the fertile crescent, the very cradle of civilization, the birthplace of mathematics and sciences - this legacy has been squandered by theocrats and thugs and illegtimate potentates to the extent that the only things exported by the Arab world lately is oil, opium, angry young men and terror.

Where is the Arab Lincoln, who will refuse to let their house divide against itself any longer? Where is the Arab Bismarck who can visualze a greater future than that of wasted opportuniity and resources?

Can the greatness of Arab culture be strictly and entirely in the past? What a sad thing to admit...but admit to it they do everytime they murder in the name of Allah and their bullshit jihads...everytime a so called "cleric" urges his congregation to rise up and kill...everytime they allow some murderous jackass...or 19 murderous jackasses to be the only face of Islam visible to the rest of the world.