Brain Fertilizer

From today's electronic issue of the NRO:

Speed indeed: When Iraqi SWAT commandos hit a target, they hit it hard. Racing forward in white pick-up trucks emblazoned with the unit's emblem — a black scorpion and dagger (an emblem designed by the Iraqis) — the raiders leap from the vehicles and rush toward their objective almost before the enemy has time to panic. The attackers — primarily in their early to mid-twenties — are armed with a variety of personal weapons including AK-47s and SIG Sauer assault rifles, shotguns, pistols, and grenades. They all wear khaki-colored assault suits (similar to zip-up flight suits) with an Iraqi-flag patch stitched on the shoulder. Khaki or black balaclavas cover their heads, concealing their faces. "The Iraqis like wearing balaclavas," says Douglas. "It makes them look fearless, and terrifies the enemy."

And:

The success of the new unit has instilled "great confidence" in both SWAT-team members and regular Iraqi soldiers, says Col. Salaam Abdul al Kathom, the commander of the Iraqi SWAT team. It has also increased pride and a greater sense of security for the Iraqi people.

I'll repeat again: This is exactly what needs to happen for Iraq to become a stable, free nation. The Iraqis themselves must be able to defeat the insurgents and maintain the peace. And like a train pulling away from the station, or an aircraft carrier accelerating from a dead stop, the motion is imperceptible at first as the mass overcomes inertia. In Iraq, they are overcoming the inertia of decades of "keeping their heads down" in the hostile threat environment of Saddam al-Hussein's tyranny. The speed and progress is nearly unmistakeable now, what with stories like this and the Shia insurgents turning in weapons in Sadr City. Things will pick up speed as they move toward the election, as well, I think.

Expect us to be able to withdraw from a stable, independent, free, democratically-run Iraq by January of 2006, less than 18 months from now. It will be a beautiful day.