Al-Zarqawi Killed: Milestone or symbolic victory?

For those who don't believe a word on Faux news:

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/13197560/
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L08150614.htm
...
just check news.google.com

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.

Edit: I think this means -- or at least would lead me to believe -- that some indigenous element/person/mood wanted him gone. When you consider that -- for years -- that all anyone who knew of his whereabouts needed to do was pick up a phone, it's pretty impressive that he lasted as long as he did.

To make room for the next leader?

The prob is the WH will say for eternity that this was a major victory, but in reality it probably didn't do anything and is actually doing exactly that which we are angry at him for doing: killing.

We killed him. We're no better than the terrorists!

That's why I think the only way that this could be an important event is if his own people/community turned him in. There are plenty more where he came from.

Ah they finally took his body out of the freezer, I was wondering when they were going to plant him. I guess they had nothing else to distract us with after the gay marriage debacle. We'll probably see Bin Ladens body in the Autumn.

Clearly the US military is intolerant of Zarqawi's religious beliefs.

What the hole thou shalt not kill thing.

Well, I guess someone had to say it. My money was on SJO...

He he, yea me to but I'd thought since no one else posted it I'd start the conspiracy giberish.

Good morning children.



I guess killing a militant is something that is easier for BushCorp drones to justify, than walking into houses and murdering Iraqi families in cold blood. But I was only obeying orders. *Clicks heels*

Anyone know which Zarqawi is dead?

This one:



This one:



Or this one:



Or maybe even this one:



How many are still out there? Maybe Moe was right - looks like there still are thousands to go.....

I hope that this helps gas prices a bit, I need to fill my tank and $2.94 is not what I want to pay. In my econ class today we were forced to watch Fox News, I wish we would have been able to choose some other station, but it seemed as if the government was really playing this "victory" up. What kind of victory is it if another leader just like him is going to most likely take his place?

You all are pathetic, this guy has beheaded people, murdered over and over and over and you act like the U.S. was the bad guys and he was a good guy. You guys are screwed up big time. Im glad they taught him and his fanatics a lesson. You want to live by the sword then you are going to die by the sword. He was just another murdering bastard.

Victory for totalitarianism and the forces of fascism on the home front?

I have never really understood the logic of this kind of argument. It is used in the movie "Munich" too.

I actually think this looks like the same guy. same lips, eyebrows and scar on the cheek.

Me too actually - I realized it was the same guy after I posted it.

Pretty amazing how different he can look (at a casual glance) though.

I agree with both you and Chris. I do think that this was a good thing that happened, but as I was watching the news the commentators were saying that this was a huge and great victory. What I don't understand is how can this be a great victory, if he will be replaced? Maybe I just wonder this because I was watching Fox, and by no way was it even close to objective news.

Pulling him out of the freezer... heh, as devious as our government may be at times to promote, extend or cover up it's activities, I believe they probably nailed Zarqawi on this mission.

Later on this evening, I will toast to his death, with a shot of good single malt, as if it were his blood.

A great victory? Bullsh*t... Another religious fanatic buttwipe will step into his sandles.

It doesn't change my opinion that the Bushites chose the wrong war at the wrong time. Remember, we KNOW where the WMD are, they are north and south and... ah, what a load crap has been layed on us. Just as I have been harping on from the beginning of the Iraq invasion, we never finished up in Afghanistan.

This is completely meaningless.
Just more death in a cycle of death this will neither stop nor curtail.

I'm not upset that he's dead, but I really don't give a damn.

Also, where is the guy responsible for killing 3000 US civilians? Where is he? Why the hell don't we have him?

my intellect recognizes the importance of having this guy dead, as does my instinct for revenge. iraq is a mess, but i can't imagine pulling out at this stage (i'm for drastically increasing troop numbers, but that's another story).

but. but. it sickens me to see what we've got ourselves into and that we, a civilized country, celebrate murder. yes, even if we murder the most wretched guy on the earth, it seems like the path his life took is something to mourn, and his death not something to celebrate.

One of the side-issues here is that there have been a lot of reports just in the past few days about how Zarqawi was pissing off al qaeda and Iran and they had a hit out on him. Example.

I wonder if the other whackos whacked him by tipping off the US military.

It's not so much death conceptually, it's the picture of a dead face everywhere that has people frothing with joy. It's bizarre and disturbing.

We haven't won anything. We haven't really made the world a better place. This isn't Hitler, this is some jack-ass terrorist type who will probably be replaced without a sweat, it's not like his underlings are only loyal to him and not the insane cause for which they fight.

Sound and fury, signifying nothing.

Remember when former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright predicted that Bush would "unveil" Bin Laden's capture right before the Nov 2004 election? I cannot bring myself to believe that such a thing would happen.

More than 75 insurgent groups have been recognized in Iraq, yet we hear of it as "the insurgency" as it they are all marching in lockstep. This is not the case at all, but just more typical "black n white" type of portrayal by the media, to present an oversimplified, inaccurate but 'unified message', exactly as the Bush crew would want. Zarqawi was but just one honcho in one group amongst many. His death is no huge deal as regard political stability in Iraq.

This is about political capital and investment in Zarqawi as a threat, whether real or imaginary.

(1) publicize the presence of "al Qa'ida in Iraq",
(2) select a honcho who's involved in that group
(3) amplify both man and group way out of all proportion to their actual status either as a terrorist threat, or having influence in Iraqi affairs, by judicious use of the media.
(4) bogeyman is created.
(5) continued media attention, regular reference to his name, he assumes some kind of legendary status
(6) suddenly he's killed in a "long planned operation". Kudos to the US military and the Bush Administration for a job well done.

Political capital generated, political capital spent. It has been spent at an opportune time, diverting attention away from gnarly items in the recent forefront of public scrutiny.

Incidentally, there have been some 1400 civilian deaths reported by the Baghdad Morgue alone in the past month alone. Zarqawi and associates probably have had but a very minor part in this ongoing killing spree; Zarqawi himself has probably been holed up for a long time in 'safe houses' etc. spending most of his time avoiding capture or being killed.

His death is going to make no difference to anything much of importance in the Middle East.This is fluff. Anyone recall how BushCorp and their media drones announced that "the insurgency" would fall apart following the capture of Saddam Hussein?

I shed no tears regarding the death of this extremist rightwing religious fundamentalist jerkwad. There are quite a few more of a similar mindset who, if removed from society, the world would be a safer and more stable place.

I think many underestimate the difficulty in replacing a leader like Al-Zaraqawi. They don't just fall off the truck. Getting people to risk their lives for you is not easy and people underestimate the impact of individuals.

If you're thinking of Osama bin Laden, he's almost certainly DEAD. Fox reported on his death shortly after 9-11, which was a definite blooper, since a dead bin Laden cannot be promoted as the big boogeyman who's "out to get us".

it's all our (the usa) fault....it's always our fault we are the great evil and we should be ashamed of our selves.....

as far as being better or no better let's try making another thousand of these terrorists martyrs. hmmm lets make some more magic.

But then when necessary it could also be "kamikaze terrorists are everywhere - they all want to die and get 72 virgins and they're in your neighbourhood NOW sucka.....".

Depends on what facts you're trying to refute I suppose.

At the end of the day they'll hype another badman. THese bogeys have limited shelf-life - need someone new to keep the prolls in line.

Even sheep need another threat than just 'wolf, wolf' from time to time.....

Stop making shit up.

Sarcasm flies over one's head.

Since we've hung Clinton out to dry for not killing BinLaden when he had the chance, don't you think we ought to apply the same to Bush for not taking Al-Zarqawi when he had the chance *before* the start of the war?

I'm just askin'.

Apparently they had him under surveillance for 6 weeks this time so there was a good chance they could have messed up again - of course no-one would have heard anything if so but......

And that brings up another point - in 6 weeks, why did they not send ground troops to arrest him? US justice I guess......

No no no. Clinton, as Rush Limbaugh said a number of times, bombed an aspirin factory in an attempt to distract attention from Monica.

Sheesh.

Might be the same reason we didn't let the Nazis know the instant we broke the Enigma code.

So the Nazis couldn't move to a more secure encryption system?

That's why they didn't arrest Zarqawi