The fact a young man from a certain area will not speak to an army officer in daylight says more about the hold violent men have over that area than the failure of the army. Until communities reject these men, as the Iraqis have done, this young man will continue to dwell in darkness.

The question is, why did the Iraqis reject their violent men, when Belfast hasn't? Is the US Army doing something in Iraq that the British Army didn't do in Belfast?

Exactly, Michael. According to the reports, the answer to your second question is a big fat yes.

For the last few years, we've heard quite a bit of bleating about how British troops are fundamentally better suited to the Iraq War than them lumbering Yanks, what with our lads' experiences of having nice cups of tea in Northern Ireland and their thugs' basic idiocy and inability to do anything other than kill.

Your media actually says that about American troops? Amazing!

Is that from the BBC? Or someone else?

James

It's not the media so much as just everybody.

It's not the media so much as just everybody.

If that is what passes for military wisdom over there, then it is no surprise that the British Empire is no more.

James

Quite.

Well, on the way to becoming the new Athens to America's new Rome, there have to be a few accidental Corinths.

Oo! We could write letters!