Transfer of military control completed in Iraq

Iraqis celebrate the withdrawal of American troops from the country's cities and towns in Baghdad on Tuesday. (Joseph Sywenkyj for The New York Times)

Transfer of control of all Iraqi cities and towns from U.S. forces to Iraq's government and security forces has been completed, marking an "important milestone that we've reached in Iraq," President Obama said Tuesday.

Obama, who made the announcement at the White House during a ceremony to honor entrepreneurs committed to social justice, noted U.S. forces had met a June 30 deadline to complete their withdrawal from urban areas and hand over full control to Iraqi security forces, warning of "difficult days" ahead.

“Now make no mistake. There will be difficult days ahead. We know that violence in Iraq will continue. We see that already in the senseless bombing in Kirkuk earlier today,’’ he said referring to the car bomb that killed some 30 people and wound 65 others in Iraq Tuesday.

Iraq's Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish leaders will have to make some hard choices to resolve disputes that have hindered political reconciliation, he said.

“This is an important step forward, as a sovereign and united Iraq continues to take control of its own destiny. And with this progress comes responsibility. Iraq’s future is in the hands of its own people and Iraqi leaders must now make some hard choices necessary to resolve key political questions, to advance opportunity, and to provide security for their towns and their cities,’’ he said, promising the U.S. would be ‘’a strong partner for the Iraqi people.’’

The President praised U.S. troops and said he's confident that those who test Iraqi security forces and the resolve of the Iraqi people through more sectarian bombings will fail.

There's more work to be done to support a sovereign, stable and self-reliant Iraq, he said. "And everyone who has served there, both in uniform as well as our civilians, deserves our thanks."

Obama has made ending the six-year Iraq "war" a top foreign policy priority, with plans to withdraw all U.S. troops by the end of 2011.

The country has been almost torn apart by sectarian attacks (countless bombs) that have killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions more.

The Iraqi government celebrated the final withdrawal of American troops its cities Tuesday with parades, fireworks and a national holiday, marking a political milestone to trumpet what the prime minister called sovereignty from foreign occupation.

“The Iraqi people are rightly treating this day as cause for celebration,’’ Obama said.

Better late than never...still...

What percentage of the Iraqi population either favored or opposed the presence of U.S. forces in that county still is--and probably will always be--up for debate. But we know that many suffered throughout this six-year occupation, and their troubles are hardly over.

In the meantime, people in this country--Americans--are suffering at the hands of a broken economy--losing their homes, jobs, savings, healthcare insurance, even their hope.

Contributing (greatly, in my opinion) to the current state of affairs is a pseudo war launched by former President George W. Bush et al whose price tag has reached $683 billion--yes, billion. Add another $191 billion spent in Afghanistan, and you have some $874 billion, nearly a trillion dollars my friends, spent as of today.

According to the Brooking Institution's Iraq Index, the U.S. has spent $12 billion per day on the so-called this fake war--that's $5,000 per second. A significant portion of the money--billions of dollars--is unaccounted for as per multiple news reports and Congressional hearings.

Bush and his fan club--a brilliant group of good old boys from Ivy League schools--thought draining our economy with an unnecessary so-called "War on Terror" against a country that did terrorize the U.S. on 9/11 would be a good idea, as it would make W look "presidential" and boost his chances at re-election. Sigh.

There were no weapons of mass destruction, and (as far as we know) Osama Bin Laden along with his al-Qaeda posse are still plotting our destruction under the stars somewhere in the mountains of Afghanistan.

As of today, U.S. troop casualties add up to 4,318, with another 31,368 wounded, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries and not counting psychological injuries.

The price we have paid for this pseudo war, or occupation, is high--in U.S. dollars, resources, time wasted, and lives abruptly ended or forever shattered (literally).

I'm no political pundit, war correspondent or White House reporter. My thinking can be--and probably is to a certain degree, just like everybody else's--flawed in some way due to a lack of information, education and/or an excess of ignorance. Whatever. No one knows everything.

Yet, I still gotta call it as I see it because that's what I do. And Iraq was a BIG mistake, if you ask me.

Sources: AP, Reuters, New York Times, Me
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