Da Surge

The pro-war blogosphere, credulous congresspeople, and opinion spitters like Bill Kristol have been chipper of later, bolstered by their claims that the 'surge' is having marvelous effects and we're finally winning the war.

Their first big talking points is that security is better. Better compared to what? The Washington Monthly has this enlightening table:

June/July 2006 June/July 2007 Change
Iraqi Military and Police Killed 349, 429 Up 23%

Multiple Fatality Bombings 110, 82 Down 25%

# Killed in Mult. Fatality Bombings 885 1,053 Up 19%

Iraqi Civilians Killed 6,739; 5,300 Hard to say
(All violent causes)

U.S. Troop Fatalities 104, 187 Up 80%

U.S. Troops Wounded 983, 1,423 Up 45%

Size of Insurgency 20,000+, ~70,0002 Up ~250%

Attacks on Oil and Gas Pipelines 8, 14 Up 75%

So maybe 'better' compared to what it was in April and May (possibly: i don't have those stats), but not better than a year ago. Some surge.

Two, al-Qaeda has been weakened in Anbar province. While this is certainly good news, it has nothing to do with the surge. it has to do with the US allying itself with radical anti-Shia, anti-Iraqi government militias, who up until recently were fighting us. And it may be in bad taste to point out that al-Qaeda was not a force anywhere in Iraq before the war.