The Candy Man Can
Who can take tomorrow, dip it in a dream? The candy man, baby:
The commander of U.S. troops in Iraq wanted some sweets, and nothing was going to stop him. Not even the fact that he was tramping through a neighborhood that only days ago had been teeming with snipers and Al Qaeda fighters who would love nothing better than to say they just shot Gen. David H. Petraeus.With soldiers casting anxious glances along the desolate dirt road, the four-star Army general made a beeline for a tiny shop and helped himself to a bite-sized, honey-coated pastry proffered by the owner.
Oblivious to the flies buzzing around his head, Petraeus chatted briefly with a man who said his cafe had been damaged in recent battles between U.S. forces and insurgents.
Then, after promising compensation for the cafe owner, Petraeus hiked on. "Tell him the next time I come back to Ramadi, we'll eat his chow," Petraeus said as he headed into the blistering sun.
Days ago, this might not have been possible, but in an effort to show off what they say has been a shift of allegiance among residents in Sunni Arab insurgent territory, U.S. and Iraqi officials Tuesday brought an all-star cast of military and political figures to Ramadi.
General Petraeus has a flair for the theatrical -- which shows he understands his mission well. It will not be enough for Petraeus to quell the violence momentarily. He has to show that he has changed the paradigm on the streets of Baghdad, and he has to demonstrate it publicy and boldly in order to build confidence that the city has turned a corner in securing itself.
Petraeus wants to show support for the Sunni tribal leaders and community as well. Ramadi, as the capital of Anbar, sits in the center of a storm of Islamist violence. In that sector, al-Qaeda and foreign terrorists play a much larger role in the insurgencies. Lately, the Sunni tribal leaders have shunned AQI and their foreigners and aligned themselves with the Iraqi government and the US, hoping to rid Anbar of the terrorist plague. These sheikhs need affirmation of the risk they took in doing so, and Petraeus' bold visit gives then a very public endorsement.
Posted by Ed Morrissey on March 14, 2007 7:49 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)
