General Casey has his whiney moment

The last time I dared to criticize the US Army's role in Iraq I was accused of whining in the comments section by resident wingnut, Mr. K:

Salam, It is you who misses my point, which is, stop whining and go back to Iraq and do something about it. But no, instead, you prefer apparently to enjoy the freedoms of the western world, which no doubt includes a lucrative job.

Now General Casey, commander of all multi-national forces in Iraq is having his whining moment.

From the BBC:

The US military commander in Iraq has accused Iran of providing covert support to Shia extremists in Iraq.

Iran equips and trains Shia militia groups, Gen George Casey said, adding that its influence had risen recently. ...

"Since January we have seen an upsurge in their support, particularly to the Shia extremist groups," Gen Casey said.

"They are using surrogates to conduct terrorist operations both against us and against the Iraqi people.

"We are quite confident that the Iranians, through the special operations forces, are providing weapons, IED [improvised explosive device] technology and training to Shia extremist groups in Iraq," he said.

Training was probably carried out in Iran and possibly in Lebanon, Gen Casey said.

But where is the American army and what the hell is their mission in all this? Casey has them tied up playing war games in a far-off city that has little strategic value. While the same militias that Gen. Casey criticized are making a mockery of the legal and political system in Iraq. Baghdad Connect reported this week, that the Mehdi militia kidnapped a lawyer, paraded him through the streets of Sadr City and publicly celebrated his murder. And in Basra, the Prime Minister's claim to come down like an 'Iron Fist' on militias has had no effect.

Where these militias get their arms and training is not the point. They are there, they are free to do what they like and the American military and Iraqi government seems incapable of stopping them.

So, General Casey why don't you do exactly what Mr. K recommends, "stop whining and go back to Iraq and do something about it." The honest answer may be hard to swallow. You would have to disband the government to remove supporters of these extremists and America has reached its limit in Iraq. Its army is simply incapable of fighting both the insurgents and the militias.