Quote:
Originally Posted by saden1
History has shown time and time again that a nation can not defeat radical insurgents long term. The examples you gave are very poor examples. I can't believe you used Germany of all places as an example (tell me all about their successes). As for us in South America, I can't count the many disasters and failures we have had over there. We are so loved over there aren't we? Malaya? Are you talking about during Colonial times or the internal conflict that occurred in the late 60's?
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Obviously I did not intend to say we should emulate the Nazis in our occupation of Iraq. I cited them for the proposition that insurgencies can be defeated. The Germans kept a lid on insurgencies in their occupied territories; they were beaten by external forces. As for Malaya, I'm talking about the post-WW II defeat of the insurgency. Finally, with regard to Central America, we managed to clamp down pretty effectively on leftist insurgencies, even if there was blowback.
Also, I think Iraq pretty much proves you can defeat radical insurgents. While Iraqi nationalist insurgents are quite strong, they've helped us defeat the super-radicals (i.e., AQI). Moreover, we've seen more and more Iraqi groups turn to work in concert with U.S. forces. By no means do I mean to say things are peachy, but to say it is impossible to defeat an insurgency is wrong.