It was supposed to be the centerpiece of our effort to maintain a presence in Iraq. Instead, it is likely to become another example of our incompetence in dealing with the Iraqi government. They don't want us. The program isn't working, It has cost a billion dollars and has been scaled back to nothing. To top it off, this from the New York Times story appears to be indicative of our efforts: A lesson given by an American police instructor to a class of Iraqi trainees neatly encapsulated the program's failings. There are two clues that could indicate someone is planning a suicide attack, the instructor said: a large bank withdrawal and heavy drinking. The problem with that advice, which was recounted by Ginger Cruz, the former deputy inspector general at the American Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, was that few Iraqis have bank accounts and an extremist Sunni Muslim bent on carrying out a suicide attack is likely to consider drinking a cardinal...(Read Full Post)