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A U.S. marine watches children play in Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad. (AP File Photo/Todd Pitman)(CNSNews.com) – American heroism has been ignored and overlooked by networks at home and overseas for the duration of the Iraq war, while insurgents and terrorists have used willing media outlets to score public relations wins. That bleak assessment comes from U.S. soldiers who served in Iraq during the pre-surge time frame, when the insurgency was its height. A collection of graphs and charts made available through the public affairs office of the Multi-National Corps in Iraq indicates that the media has pulled back...

There is an interesting piece of graffiti on a bridge near Basra. A fleeing militiaman has scrawled “We'll be back”; underneath an Iraqi soldier has scribbled in reply “And we'll be waiting for you”. The Shia militias, the Jaish al- Mahdi, who controlled large parts of Basra until March this year, has now gone and instead the city is firmly under the grip of Iraq's new security forces, in whom the coalition has invested so much training. They re-established control in April, in an operation romantically named “The Charge of the Knights”, systematically clearing the city with British and American...

Just some of the unreported progress in Iraq that the media is not telling you about courtesy of Sgt. Freedom: 1. 47 countries have re-established embassies in Iraq. 2. Over 1 million new cell phone subscribers in Iraq. 3. Jan. 2005 - 25 Iraqi students came here to re-establish the Fulbright Scholarship program for Iraq. 4. There are 1.2 million Iraqis now employed by the Iraqi government. 5. There are 3,100 schools that have been renovated. 6. There are 364 schools under rehabilitation. 7. There are 4 research centers that have been built. 8. There are 263 new schools under...

I am pretty sure this is the longest period of time without a fatality since the war began. God Bless our Troops, our President, and the United States of America. I'm going to go pick up the NY Times to read the front page article they surely must have written about the fantastic success of George W. Bush and his policy of establishing a stable democracy in Iraq.

A Canadian court has ordered the country's refugee board to re-examine an American deserter's rejected attempt for asylum in Canada.The court ruled that the board made mistakes when it turned down Joshua Key's claim for asylum. Mr Key served in Iraq in 2003 before deserting to Canada with his family while on leave in the US. The ruling could affect scores of other US soldiers sheltering in Canada who have refused to fight in Iraq. Possible deportations Joshua Key served in Iraq as a US combat engineer in Iraq in 2003. He claims that he witnessed several cases of abusive...

WASHINGTON: Barack Obama's political success might claim an unintended victim: affirmative action, a much-debated policy that he supports. Already weakened by several court rulings and state referendums, affirmative action now confronts a challenge to its very reason for existing. If Americans make a black person the leading contender for president, as nationwide polls suggest, how can racial prejudice be so prevalent and potent that it justifies special efforts to place minorities in coveted jobs and schools? "The primary rationale for affirmative action is that America is institutionally racist and institutionally sexist," said Ward Connerly, the leader of state-by-state efforts to...

The baby they said would never be born         SO SPECIAL: Catherine Kent and Kevin Gray with baby Leona-Lee. Proud parents Kevin Gray and Catherine Kent cradle the daughter they were told would never be born. Three months into Catherine's pregnancy, doctors told the 27-year-old that her baby had died inside her. Turning down surgical treatment to remove the baby, she spent a month carrying what she believed was a dead child until a check-up at Sunderland Royal Hospital revealed a mistake had been made and her baby was alive. Six months after the devastating news,...

Late-Term Abortion Facility in Dallas To Close - Eighth Closure Since Bishop Began Prayer at Clinics 24 hours a day, 7 days a week ecumenical effort was organized, with more than 800 people from 89 churches and several denominations The Catholic Pro-Life Committee, the Respect Life Ministry of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas, has reported that Aaron Women's Health Center, a late-term abortion facility in Dallas will be closing its doors on June 28. Aaron's was one of three abortion clinics in Texas authorized to perform late-term abortions on unborn babies older than 16 weeks gestation.  When Bishop Charles Grahmann...

There is a reason progress in Iraq is not receiving more attention. It isn't that Americans are "bored" or "tired" or have "moved on" or "don't care" or "have already made up their minds that the war was a colossal mistake." All of these are variations on themes articulated by certain liberals, Bush-haters, Barack Obama supporters (but I repeat myself) inside and outside the big media. The main reason progress in Iraq is not receiving more attention is that the progress is considerable and the big media are not paying attention because they don't like the new storyline. They prefer...

(CNSNews.com) - Deploying more U.S. troops in Iraq has resulted in a dramatic decline in the number of U.S. troops being killed by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in that country. IED-caused casualties have dropped 89 percent since the surge went full force last June, according to a Cybercast News Service database of Iraq casualties. IED-caused casualties spiked in the early part of last year as the surge began. In January 2007, the U.S. started deploying an additional 30,000 troops to the country. The surge in forces was completed in mid-June. Click For Larger Image On June 17, Gen. David Petraeus,...

HABBANIYAH — Two years ago, al-Anbar was said to be the most violent province in Iraq. It was a place where the insurgency in Iraq had begun and where the bloodiest battles took place. Today, thanks to the hard work and sacrifices made by the Marines, Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen who served in the area, it has become a model for the rest of Iraq. Marines of 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 1, have put in countless hours and have risked their lives every day to ensure their area of operations within al-Anbar Province stays that way...

SAN DIEGO – Presidential candidate Barack Obama will travel to San Diego next month to join opponent John McCain in speaking at the annual convention of the National Council of La Raza, the nation's largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization. Both senators are expected to address immigration and other issues pertinent to Latino voters, NCLR President Janet Murguía said during a visit to San Diego promoting the convention. Obama's plans were announced yesterday; McCain had agreed earlier to address the convention. The fact that both candidates will attend “speaks to a number of things, not only to the importance...

The United States has quietly informed Western allies of its intention to walk away from the U.N. Human Rights Council, diplomatic sources said on Friday. The U.S. delegation has observer status, with the right to speak, in the 47-member state forum, which meets in Geneva, and has never stood for election to the Council since it was set up two years ago. Diplomatic sources and rights activists said that U.S. officials had informed the European Union on Friday morning of its intention to halt its involvement in the Council. "They said they were going to disengage totally," said one representative...

US walking away from U.N. rights forum -diplomats 06 Jun 2008 15:50:07 GMT Source: Reuters GENEVA, June 6 (Reuters) - The United States has quietly informed Western allies of its intention to walk away from the U.N. Human Rights Council, diplomatic sources said on Friday. The U.S. delegation has observer status, with the right to speak, in the 47-member state forum, which meets in Geneva, and has never stood for election to the Council since it was set up two years ago. Diplomatic sources and rights activists said that U.S. officials had informed the European Union on Friday morning of...

Sources: US to halt its involvement in oft-criticized body, controlled by Islamic bloc The United States has quietly informed Western allies of its intention to walk away from the United Nations Human Rights Council, diplomatic sources said on Friday The US delegation has observer status, with the right to speak, in the 47-member state forum, which meets in Geneva, and has never stood for election to the Council since it was set up two years ago. Diplomatic sources and rights activists said that US officials had informed the European Union on Friday morning of its intention to halt its involvement...

US military deaths in Iraq are said to have fallen to their lowest monthly level for four years, after about 20 soldiers were reported killed in May. The figures for Iraqi civilian deaths vary according to different sources, but have also dropped. Most accounts put them at about 530 - or about half the levels seen in March and April. Meanwhile, Australia has begun withdrawing its contingent of about 500 combat troops from Iraq. The pullout honours a pledge made by the Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, when he was elected last November. The Australian troops had been mainly playing...

Nineteen American heroes died in service to their country in Iraq in May 2008. The previous low was 20 in February of 2004. Of the 19, 16 died in combat and three were non-combat related. I wonder if we will here this anywhere else.

May 2008 had the lowest number of American casualties in Iraq, for any month since the start of the war. http://icasualties.org/oif/ For the next lowest month for casualties you have to go all the way back to February 2004.

The George W Bush administration plans to launch an air strike against Iran within the next two months, an informed source tell, echoing other reports that have surfaced in the media in the United States recently. Two key US senators briefed on the attack planned to go public with their opposition to the move, according to the source, but their projected New York Times op-ed piece has yet to appear. The source, a retired US career diplomat and former assistant secretary of state still active in the foreign affairs community, speaking anonymously, said last week that the US plans an...

FORMER US president Jimmy Carter has said Israel holds at least 150 nuclear weapons, the first time a US president has publicly acknowledged the Jewish state's atomic arsenal. Asked at a news conference at Wales' Hay literary festival yesterday how a future US president should deal with the Iranian nuclear threat, Mr Carter put the risk in context by listing atomic weapons held globally. "The US has more than 12,000 nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union (Russia) has about the same, Great Britain and France have several hundred, and Israel has 150 or more. We have a phalanx of enormous weaponry...

WASHINGTON — This is not your economy. It's not even your parents' economy. To a surprising degree, this is your great-grandparents' economy. Quietly, while attention has focused on the technology, finance and service sectors, businesses that stood astride 19th century industrial America but then collapsed have been resurrected to meet the needs of a feverishly industrializing world. In the process, much of what Americans think they know about their economy is being upended. Steel makers, railroads, mining concerns and agriculture, long considered part of a fading past, suddenly have bright futures. And segments of the economy long lauded as the...

Mileposts: As President Bush's term winds down, signs are there that the war on terror is being won. The conflict in Iraq is ebbing, and worldwide terror attacks are down. When will someone call it what it is? VICTORY.Back from the front, Gen. David Petraeus called on Congress Thursday to begin considering a drawdown of U.S. troops after five years of war. Violence in Iraq has plunged to its lowest levels since 2004, and al-Qaida is a tattered shadow of its formerself — key leaders dead, successors weak and recruiting down. "My sense" Petraeus said, "is I will be able...

Update:  The BBC (no less) is wondering if Bin Laden’s recent statements focusing on Palestine and ignoring Iraq mean al-Qaeda is admitting defeat in Iraq and moving on to try to make gains against democracy and the West elsewhere: The two latest messages believed to be from Osama Bin Laden emphasise the centrality of a struggle against Israel and raise the question as to why he did not concentrate on Iraq.…The two new statements contrast with the importance given to Iraq in another message in March: “Iraq is the perfect base to set up the jihad to liberate Palestine. Palestine...

“Why aren’t we hearing about this in the news?” asks Alisyn Camerota. Well, increasingly we are, most notably in the pages of the righty blogosphere’s favorite whipping boy. CNN traditionally has been good about reporting gains too, including having Yon himself on to explain them. As I write this, this story is beaming out to AP affiliates worldwide. The problem with the coverage is that it takes spectacular gains, like the Iraqi army rolling onto Mookie’s home turf in Sadr City, to break through the media narrative while even minor setbacks, which fit the narrative, are easily assimilated and thus...

Senior U.S. and Pakistani officials tell NBC News that Wednesday’s Predator attack on a village in northwest Pakistan was not insignificant, that a “high-value target … an Arab” was among those killed. U.S. officials believe the unnamed target was planning attacks outside Pakistan, “so we nailed him,” in the words of one.

The White House's top economist said he's confident the U.S. economy hasn't dipped into recession, and expressed optimism that stimulus checks could bolster growth in the current quarter, earlier than expected. "The data are pretty clear that we are not in a recession," Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Edward Lazear told a meeting of editors and reporters from the Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. Battered by the housing crisis and rising energy prices, the economy grew at an anemic 0.6% rate in the first three months of the year, the same pace as in the fourth quarter of...

<p>Sean Bell's fiancée, her mother and the Rev. Al Sharpton were arrested today along with dozens of demonstrators who blocked traffic throughout Manhattan to protest the acquittals of three police officers in the fatal shooting of an unarmed groom just hours before his wedding.</p>

Fairfax, VA-The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act proved the basis for today’s dismissal of a lawsuit by the City of New York against the American firearms industry. This lawsuit by the City of New York and Mayor Michael Bloomberg sought to hold manufacturers responsible for the criminal misuse of firearms. “Today’s dismissal of this bogus lawsuit against America’s firearm industry is an important victory,” declared Chris W. Cox, executive director for the National Rifle Association (NRA). “New York City’s lawsuit was a politically motivated attack by an anti-gun mayor to bankrupt a lawful industry.”

Two Recent Success in WoT You Didn't Hear About by Warner Todd Huston, Featured Writer April 29, 2008   The Taliban suffered a big loss in Pakistan/Afghanistan this month and so did al Qaeda in Iraq, but the MSM has been practically silent on these great successes. It only goes to show that the media is so completely sold on the claim that the war is lost that they aren't interested in doing any real reporting on the war. Not only has Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki headed up a brilliantly successful attack on rebel leader and Iranian backed...

Bush: Progress in Iraq is real By JAMES HANNAH, Associated Press Writer DAYTON, Ohio - President Bush on Thursday promoted his war policies, a possible focal point in the presidential campaign as the November election approaches in politically pivotal Ohio. The troop surge in Iraq has resulted in significant security gains for the country, he said at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The number of sectarian attacks in the volatile Anbar province have plummeted since the surge, he said. "The progress in Iraq is real, it's substantive," he said. Recent news...

BAGHDAD — Following months of renovations, two schools in the western Baghdad neighborhood of Ameriyah officially opened their doors on March 16. With Dr. Nehad, the deputy minister of education, present, the Firdous and Al Rawadan schools held ceremonies to commemorate their openings. Laughter and excitement filled the air as children danced and sang to the beat of musical instruments. The boys – some dressed in soccer jerseys and dress shirt and tie – chanted in celebration and waved the Iraqi flag. The girls wore their best spring dresses, read poetry and danced throughout the day. Though the schools were...

The “dismal science” of economics typically focuses on “bad” news. However, there are many favorable developments taking place within the U.S. economy. We do face major challenges…no question. Recessionary pressures are intense…no argument here. This is our semi-annual update of “Happy Talk.” This Tea Leaf focuses ONLY on the “good” news… U.S. exports to the world of goods and services are at record levels A year-end 2007 Gallup Poll noted that “more than 8 in 10 Americans say they are satisfied with their personal lives at this time, including a solid majority who say they are ‘very satisfied.’” During the...

(Marines return to calm in Iraq's Sunni Triangle) Third of three parts Hamimiyah, Iraq - It's midday as the Marines of Fox Company move out on a foot patrol under a sun obscured by swirling dust. Clad in body armor and carrying M-16 rifles, they fan out to look for bombs and other weapons that insurgents may have buried in the countryside skirting the Euphrates River, which breathes life into the neighboring farm fields and olive groves. Cpl. Jose Gonzalez, a 24-year-old carpenter from Kenosha, WI, motions for his men to spread out and wait. On this day and this...

3/14/2008 - BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- For Airmen stationed at Balad Air Base and Soldiers at the co-located Logistics Support Area Anaconda, staying hydrated is crucial in the desert heat of Iraq. In order to keep hydrated, servicemembers here need to have the confidence the water available to them is safe, so the water undergoes extensive testing by multiple sources to ensure its safety. "Not only is the water safe for personal use, but we even ensure that the bottled water and ice meet the same standard," said Master Sgt. Anthony Dudley, the Logistics Support Area Anaconda Mayor's...

WASHINGTON, D.C., MARCH 11, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Tens of thousands of Americans will join the Catholic Church this Holy Saturday through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. Many of those in the RCIA program participated in the Rite of Election with their bishops at the beginning of Lent and will be baptized, confirmed and receive Communion for the first time this Saturday. More, who already have been baptized, will embrace full membership in the Catholic Church. The numbers vary across dioceses. The Diocese of Orange, California, for example, will baptize more than 650 people and welcome more than 500 others...

BAGHDAD – Coalition forces killed five terrorists, detained 26 suspects and found several weapons caches Saturday and today during operations to disrupt al-Qaeda networks operating in central and northern Iraq. Coalition forces conducted an operation northwest of Samarra today, targeting an alleged al-Qaeda in Iraq leader involved in propaganda operations for the network in al-Anbar province. The suspect is believed to be associated with several AQI leaders, including foreign terrorists operating outside of Iraq. As Coalition forces arrived in the area, they received enemy fire from four individuals they observed departing the target building and moving into a nearby field....

HADITHA, Iraq – A two-year-old Iraqi girl returned to Haditha March 7 after undergoing open-heart surgery at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt University. Ala Thabit Fattah, the girl’s father, and several family members traveled with Marines to Baghdad International Airport to meet Amenah, who departed Iraq Jan. 22 with his wife. “I am very happy. I was very worried that my daughter would not come home alive,” Fattah said. “I am very grateful for the great treatment the American people gave to my family.” The family then flew to Al Asad Airbase in Al Anbar Province, where...

The nation's third-highest medal for valor. Texas girl (Lake Jackson, near Houston). A nineteen year old kid (I'm allowed to say this at my age and I am not objectifying her). Under gunfire and mortar fire, she helped move wounded comrades to safety, at times shielding them with her own body. Brown, of Lake Jackson, Texas, is scheduled to receive the Silver Star later this month. She was part of a four-vehicle convoy patrolling near Jani Kheil in the eastern province of Paktia on April 25, 2007, when a bomb struck one of the Humvees. "We stopped the convoy. I...

FOB KALSU — Based on a tip, Coalition forces found a weapons cache containing (20) 100 mm guided Cobra missiles near Babbahhani, March 4. Soldiers with Company B, 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, currently attached to the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, made the discovery. “We have to continue to take steps to create a better environment for the Iraqi people and Coalition forces,” said Sgt. 1st Class Xavier Perdue, from Philadelphia, 2nd Platoon sergeant. The old and unserviceable missiles were disposed of by an explosive ordnance disposal team via controlled detonation.

WASHINGTON — Ten terrorists were killed and 16 captured in operations across Iraq Friday, military officials reported. Northeast of Samarra, Coalition forces targeted an alleged al Qaeda in Iraq leader for the Kanan village. In the raid, forces killed eight terrorists, including the wanted individual. Seven suspects were detained. Also in Samarra, forces captured three suspected terrorists. One of the suspects allegedly is a leader for the al Qaeda in Iraq network in Samarra. Another is believed to be a direct associate of al Qaeda in Iraq senior leadership. North of Tarmiyah, forces captured an alleged associate of the al...

FOB HAMMER — Coalition leaders from the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team (HBCT) met with leaders of the Iraqi security forces (ISF) in the Mada’in Qada, March 5, at Forward Operating Base Hammer. Col. Wayne W. Grigsby, Jr., commander of the 3rd HBCT, hosted the meeting to discuss security in the qada, the brigade’s area of operation, and to welcome Maj. Gen. Kassim, commander of the 9th Iraqi Army (IA) Division. “From this day on, you are part of this family,” said Grigsby, from Prince George’s County, Md. “We are all working together to support the mayor and the good...

Voters from Southeast Rashid raise their hands in favor of a candidate during elections at Joint Security Station Doura in southern Baghdad, March 5. The elections were the first of their kind, providing the people with seven representatives to the Government of Iraq. Photo by Pfc. Nathaniel Smith, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. BAGHDAD — In the United States, “Decision ‘08� is getting into full swing with political parties holding primaries and caucuses in states around the Nation. In southern Baghdad, the story is no different as the people of East Rashid held elections this week to determine...

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2008 – A military spokesman in Iraq today praised soldiers of an Army brigade that will soon redeploy to the U.S. and mark the first reduction in the number of surge forces sent to stabilize Iraq last year. Multinational Force Iraq officials announced March 6 that some 2,000 paratroopers from the 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, will return to Fort Bragg, N.C., in the next several weeks, reducing the number of U.S. combat brigades in Iraq from 19 to 18. “On behalf of the men and women of (Multinational Force Iraq), I want to thank the 2nd...

CAMP SALERNO, Afghanistan — A 19-year-old medic from Texas will become the first woman in Afghanistan and only the second woman since World War II to receive the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest medal for valor. Army Spc. Monica Lin Brown saved the lives of fellow soldiers after a roadside bomb tore through a convoy of Humvees in the eastern Paktia province in April 2007, the military said. After the explosion, which wounded five soldiers in her unit, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away, the...

CAMP SALERNO, Afghanistan - A 19-year-old medic from Texas will become the first woman in Afghanistan and only the second woman since World War II to receive the Silver Star, the nation's third-highest medal for valor. Army Spc. Monica Lin Brown saved the lives of fellow soldiers after a roadside bomb tore through a convoy of Humvees in the eastern Paktia province in April 2007, the military said. After the explosion, which wounded five soldiers in her unit, Brown ran through insurgent gunfire and used her body to shield wounded comrades as mortars fell less than 100 yards away, the...

<p>With the end of the first week of March, there has so far been only a single American fatality this month (incurred in a non-combat Iraqi helicopter crash). If that were to continue (and it could change tomorrow), we are in a period in which the entire war could be redefined as something analogous to ongoing operations in Afghanistan or even the Balkans. And that, coupled with Iraq’s strong economic performance and political improvement, would radically change the Obama message of Iraqi as an ungodly horror worthy of abject withdrawal.</p>

The perception that the U.S. troop surge in Iraq has succeeded is changing some public views of the war, potentially blunting Democrats' political edge on the issue.

In a very surprising thread posted tonight on Ekhlaas terrorist forum, the largest terrorist forum on the internet, the author of the thread was calling for urgent help to the terrorists in Iraq. He said that the last bastion controlled by the terrorists in Baghdad has fell in the hands of the US and Iraqi forces. He described the situation in Iraq as very dangerous and very difficult. He said that weapons are few but men are even fewer.This thread on Ekhlaas terrorist forum is a very surprising admission of defeat and confirms without any doubt that they are running...

American TV networks have lost almost a quarter of their audiences because of the Hollywood writers' strike, according to new figures, and executives fear that “orphaned” viewers may never return. The Nielsen ratings organisation found that US viewership for last week's opening of the 2008 TV season was down 21 per cent compared with the same week last year, when new episodes of hit shows such as Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy were aired. Because the strike has shut down production of all scripted shows, the networks are now almost completely out of fresh material to broadcast, instead relying on...

The Supreme Court said Tuesday that a Muslim inmate cannot sue the government over the disappearance of the prisoner's copies of the Koran and a prayer rug.Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia joined Thomas. The dissenters were Justices Stephen Breyer, Anthony Kennedy, David Souter and John Paul Stevens.