From a NYT Article today describing a 3 block stretch of central Baghdad:
". . .In 2004 alone, Haifa Street, once a coveted address for the middle class, was the bloody venue for more than 400 attacks on American and Iraqi security forces. . .
. . . On Feb. 6, the American command handed over a cut of north-central Baghdad, including Haifa Street, to the First Brigade, Sixth Division, of the Iraqi Army. . .
. . . Though the pacification of the area began last year under American auspices - and it is possible that the insurgents simply moved their operations elsewhere - soldiers and residents contend that the sustained peace is attributable in large part to the community's acceptance of a homegrown security force; in contrast, many residents regarded the American soldiers as interlopers and invaders.
"We feel the difference between the two forces," said Alaa Khadem, 41, the owner of a small store on Haifa Street. On a recent afternoon, the sun and heat had turned his store into an oven and he was standing out front seeking a forgiving breeze.
He said that the American forces would rumble down Haifa Street with their enormous firepower and threats of death, while their Iraqi counterparts have adopted a more sensitive and effective approach. "The Iraqi forces have the power of listening and communicating," he said. . ."
So, my take on this is: it's good the locals are on the ground. It's bad that our army feels the need to point its guns. We should learn from the samurai, who carried deadly force...yet kept it under wraps.
