Who said there is nothing of importance to be gleaned by surfing the Internet?

Tonight I learned the difference betweeen a cartridge and a bullet.

The Dissident Frogman took time from his busy schedule to present a quick lesson in the difference between the two and the humiliation of a certain AFP reporter is an added bonus.

 The concept of blogging the surge was developed by a fellow Philadelphia blogger - Bill T - who states: I'll be blogging the surge daily beginning today. The war in Iraq is finally beginning to create good headlines and the people of the United States are beginning to see progress.

I strongly agree with this philosophy so I've decided participate in blogging the surge with posts here and on my blogs. So, let's start with the man in charge of the surge strategy - General Petraeus - a man loved by the troops and and feared by his opponents in Iraq and abroad. What talents and strategy does General Petraeus bring to the table? Below is a biography of the General, taken from Operation Iraqi Freedom:

General David H. Petraeus assumed command of the Multi-National Force-Iraq on February 10th, 2007, following his assignment as the Commanding General, U.S. Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth. Prior to assuming command at Ft. Leavenworth, he was the first commander of the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq, which he led from June 2004 to September 2005, and the NATO Training Mission- Iraq, which he commanded from October 2004 to September 2005. That deployment to Iraq followed his command of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), during which he led the “Screaming Eagles” in combat throughout the first year of Operation Iraqi Freedom. His command of the 101st followed a year deployed on Operation Joint Forge in Bosnia, where he was the Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations of the NATO Stabilization Force and the Deputy Commander of the US Joint Interagency Counter-Terrorism Task Force-Bosnia. Prior to his tour in Bosnia, he spent two years at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, serving first as the Assistant Division Commander for Operations of the 82nd Airborne Division and then as the Chief of Staff of XVIII Airborne Corps.

 General Petraeus was commissioned in the Infantry upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1974. He has held leadership positions in airborne, mechanized, and air assault infantry units in Europe and the United States, including command of a battalion in the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and a brigade in the 82nd Airborne Division. In addition, he has held a number of staff assignments: Aide to the Chief of Staff of the Army; battalion, brigade, and division operations officer; Military Assistant to the Supreme Allied Commander - Europe; Chief of Operations of the United Nations Force in Haiti; and Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

 General Petraeus was the General George C. Marshall Award winner as the top graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College Class of 1983. He subsequently earned MPA and Ph.D. degrees in international relations from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and later served as an Assistant Professor of International Relations at the US Military Academy. He also completed a fellowship at Georgetown University. Awards and decorations earned by General Petraeus include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, two awards of the Distinguished Service Medal, two awards of the Defense Superior Service Medal, four awards of the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal for valor, the State Department Superior Honor Award, the NATO Meritorious Service Medal, and the Gold Award of the Iraqi Order of the Date Palm. He is a Master Parachutist and is Air Assault and Ranger qualified. He has also earned the Combat Action Badge and French, British, and German Jump Wings. In 2005 he was recognized by the U.S. News and World Report as one of America’s 25 Best Leaders.

This biography might well explain why the surge is going so well.

The combination of a precision fighting force and a capable leader will result in stupendous results. Results that we have caught glimpses of in the main stream media - even they are  begrudgingly admitting to this universal truth.

Iraq's soccer team surged to victory upsetting three time champions Saudi Arabia to capture the Asian Cup.

Iraq The Model sums up the Iraq response to this victory: 

Today I received an email from the organization Vets for Freedom  detailing their grass root effort called '10 Weeks to Testimony'

Veterans from across the country will gather in DC this Tuesday, July 17th, in order to meet with a number of senators to discuss the importance of their support of the Iraq war strategy - better known as The Surge.

They are asking for the senators to consider these three commonsense approaches to victory in the War on Terror.

   1. General Petraeus deserves enough time to implement a winning counter-insurgency strategy in Iraq.
   2. Retreat means a failed state in Iraq and a safe haven for Al Qaeda to plan future attacks against America and her allies.
   3. Decisions about Iraq should be made by military commanders and generals on the ground-not politicians in Washington, DC.

This is a noble effort made by those who put everything on the line to protect our precious freedom. Ironically, they now have returned home from duty only to find their fight is not yet over. The only thing that's becoming clearer by the day is that America's main opponent in Iraq is really in Washington DC.

Those of us who support Winning in Iraq can reinforce this message by taking a few minutes out of your day tomorrow to contact your home state Senators to express your support of the Surge and the Vets on the Hill.

 X-Posted at MidnightBlue 

In the Halls of Congress:

Madame Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) are expected to announce a new coordinated effort to force votes in July to end the Iraq war, according to Democratic insiders.

 In the Real World:

Dr. David Kilcullen, an authority on counterinsurgency, was appointed to advise the MNF-Iraq commander, Gen. David Petraeus. Dr. Kilcullen visited Soldiers with the 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade out of Fort Drum, N.Y., to take stock of the "Commando" brigade's progress June 2 and 3.

"They've done a great job just setting it up," said Dr. Kilcullen of the JSS. "They've got the Iraqi army and Iraqi police working together, which is a great start, it's a good setup with the IPs doing municipal law and order, and the Iraqi army doing rural security. The next step is to set up a joint-operations room where they can plan operations together.

Dr. Kilcullen also discussed ways to improve combined U.S. and Iraqi operations with Brig. Gen. Ali Jassim Al-Frejee, commander of the 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division.

"What makes a local sheikh respect coalition forces more than terrorists?" Dr. Kilcullen asked. "Is it a case - like the Indonesians say - 'either silver or lead'?"

"Either way is difficult," said Brig. Gen. Ali. "People are getting tired of Al-Qaeda in Iraq - they're tired of the ideology and killing. In Anbar, many tribes are fighting terrorism. We just need time to re-culture the people."

"I'm very impressed with your progress here," Dr. Kilcullen told him. "The last time I came to this area, we couldn't even drive here. It's very impressive."

"Everybody knows that July and August are going to be bad months," said Dr. Kilcullen, reminding several company commanders and other officers that Petraeus' plus up report, expected in September, will be a target for insurgents. "You should expect a spike in enemy activity. Civilian and U.S. Soldier deaths will look bad - I think we'll have a hot summer. But if we break (terrorists') backs, it might drop right after. You guys are an important reality check for what's going on, and you know things before division or corps-level people."

It looks as though the terrorists and the DNC leadership will join forces in July in an attempt to evict  US troops from Iraq.   It truly is becoming more difficult to differentiate between al-queda and the DNC leadership these days. 

 Freedom Fact:  Via the men and women who support OIF

In Iraq, approximately 270 km of village roads have been completed. These projects are directly contracted with local firms and assist in the economic development of smaller communities. The Village Roads program is expected to be completed in July 2007 and will provide 424 km of improved roads.

What has al-queda and the DNC done to improve Iraq - The True Face of Our Enemy