You quoted from the summary of the SIGIR report. I guess you didn’t bother to read the whole thing. If you had, you would have seen that the report was intended to show the status of all the IRRF projects. In the original report (PDF file), one finds a very, very telling stastic on page 12, in the overview graph:
Number of projects planned: 13,112
Completed : 10,869
Ongoing : 1,716
Not started : 527
Sorry, tell us all again about how badly things are going? Yes, things are still in process. Yes, things still need to be completed and some of them are very, very large scale tasks in areas like electricity. Yes, there are problems; there always are, especially in an undertaking of this massive a scale. But 10,000 plus projects completed out of 13,000 is pretty good when all things are taken into consideration.
Tagos, I really hate to burst your bubble, but you need to start thinking for yourself and stop parroting the party line about how gawdawful bad things are in Iraq. Listen to what the troops and civilian contractors are saying - they are the ones over there getting their hands dirty with the job. And they say things are a hell of a lot better than what the press reports or Congressional “factfinders” with a political axe to grind have to say.
Wow, that is telling. Who knew? All we have to do is polish off those last pesky 2,243 projects and everything in Iraq will be great! Only 17% more to go, and the mission will finally be accomplished! Woo-hoo! Let’s celebrate!
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find this portion of the PDF you are talking about. I’ll take your word, however, that the first 5,000 tasks weren’t anything along the lines of one of my task lists, like “Item 1: Make list. Check.”
And of course, some of those ongoing projects must be: “Item 10, 927: End insurgency.” “Item 11,389: Stop the daily murdering of Iraqi civilians.” Oh, and Item 13,111 is a doozy: “Prevent civil war.” Item 13,015 is no walk in the park either: “Minimize destabilizing influence of Shia-based alliances between new Iraq and Iran.”
But hey, it’s good to know that we’ve knocked out 83% of the other ones. You’re so smart, humpster.
The summary by the office says it all, your gleaning of meaningless numbers notwitstanding. Reconstruction has not worked, the money has been stolen or diverted and Bush is cutting off funding. To quote the conclusions from the numbers you cherry-picked.
Numbers mean nothing - it’s the state of the country. As the report shows - in all the key sectors things are not working. And now the money plug has been pulled.
Deal with the facts. All those billions, all the stolen money, all the deaths and that is the result. Still not as good as under Saddam. And you claim that as a victory?
Moron.
Still not as good as under Saddam. Let joy be unconfined.
I’m done with you. You really are the most stupid poster on this board (sorry S.A, you try) and the truly sad thing is, you don’t realise the depths of your uncomprehending idiocy.
And just to enhance the idiocy let’s look at your actual numbers.
The overwhelming bulk of completed projects (6950) is in Security. Nothing to do with rebuilding at all.
now we look at Electricity, Water & Sanitation and Oil.
Completed 700
In progress 333
Not started 354
With oil looking particularly pathetic. 13 completed, 13 in-progess and 333 not started.
Now we can see why the IG has such depressing conclusions - it’s because the crucial reconstruction has not been done and the money is running out - because the efforts and resources have been sidetracked into security. And then you claim this as a triumph.
So even if everything was hunky-dory it’s still only a portion of what’s needed, while the insurgency goes from strength to strength, blowing stuff up.
And no - I pay no heed at all to what soldiers and contractors say. They have no overall picture so they are not valid information sources. Only an idiot would think otherwise.
Honestly - do you have any analytical skills at all? Are you really (a not very bright) 12?
Are these under the Incomplete or Not Yet Started items? Boy, one just gets the feeling that the champaign should be chilling and the confetti better be ready to go!
Which is why I discount ‘security’ items. The report complains about how security costs swallowed the reconstruction budget and the net result is low intensity civil war and crime raging out of control.
Another ‘not as good as Saddam’ triumph.
In the light of the mosque riots let’s hope a lot of those security projects involved helipads in the Green Zone.
For a second I thought you were going to use the “V” word. Everyone knows if you do that the Crapalump flinging monkeys would declare victory and go home.
So, did Monkeystrummer actually admit that he won’t be making any more of his Librul Media whines because trawling just isn’t satisfying anymore?
No - he declared victory by finding and viewing through rose-coloured retinal inserts, the above data. Because clearly, we only have to turn on the news to see how great things are going.
I’d say one blown-up mosque just about negates every bit of good done in the reconstruction in bringing peace to the place, but I’m just a cynic.
No doubt he’ll be back with the straight dope from some unquaotable texas shock-jock ‘proving’ that Iraqi’s live in the best of all possible worlds and we are basking in the eternal light of their undying gratitude.
It’s just typical of the librul media to focus obsessively on one blown up mosque, the burnings of a hundred others, the deaths of 4 imans, the execution of jailed prisoners and 47 workers shot at a checkpoint when there’s a school somewhere that’s just received a shipment of new light bulbs.
Thus, we’ve gone from ONE ready battalion to ZERO.
When are you assholes going to tire of letting this administration make you look like fucking brainless lickspittles for all your running around defending their lies? Don’t you feel ashamed? Lied to? Misused? Gullible? Anything?
It’s easier than thinking for themselves I guess. ZERO ready battalions. Zero. Nice round number. Maybe we oughtta also factor in the various militias and police who have set up death squads, and then “reclassify” them and massage the numbers so we can declare victory again?