Such as this one:
February 8, 2007 • In Iraq, improvised explosive devices pose a constant threat to security forces. The makeshift bombs are stashed on the sides of roads, buried in trash or hidden just about anywhere. The U.S. military has sought to train Iraqi security forces to handle them on their own.But things don't always go as planned.
U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Lord hadn't driven his Humvee more than 50 yards out of Forward Operating Base Warrior when he came upon Iraqi police standing in the middle of the road. An IED had been spotted up ahead, they told the Americans.
In most cases, that means a U.S. explosives ordnance team comes in to defuse the bomb. But in this case, an Iraqi explosives team is on the case.
The Iraqi police start shooting at the potential bomb, hoping to set it off. But to no avail. The convoy continues to sit and wait. An hour passes. As Sgt. Lord watches, the Iraqi police move closer to the suspected bomb.
The first IED turns out to be a fake. To the surprise of the American soldiers, this emboldens the Iraqi police, who are now focusing on the second suspected bomb.
"Oh, he kicked it," says an American soldier watching.
"The second one must have been safe," Lord says, "because they went over to it, kicked it over, and then threw it across the road."
An hour and a half after first stopping, the convoy moves on.
That was newsworthy-by-MSM-definition because it showcases the US *failure* to
a. instill a healthy respect for IEDs in the local Iraqi cops *and*
b. teach them the proper method of IED neutralization.
However, take note of the glossed-over facts that
a. Iraqi police have taken on the task that *used* to be reserved for US EOD folks *and*
b. shooting an IED (from a distance, naturally) is an accepted field-expedient method of dealing with one of the beasts.
And now, I'll bet a two-liter plastic bottle of generic agua caliente that you won't see this one:
Kirkuk, Mar 12, [2008] (VOI) - Police forces on Wednesday defused a roadside bomb placed near a bridge in central Kirkuk, north Iraq, a security source said.Kirkuk police forces on Wednesday evening discovered a rocket tied to wires near the directorate of Accounting at a bridge in central Kirkuk,” a security source, who requested anonymity, told Aswat al-Iraq - Voices of Iraq - (VOI)
The source added “the explosives expert defused the rocket.”
Kirkuk lies 250 km north-east of Baghdad.
Heh. Same area, same local cops. But *not* newsworthy, because it shows they've learned the *professional* way to deal with IEDs. They're not still in the learning stage -- now they *know* and they're applying that knowledge.
"B-b-b-but Bill, they're still planting IEDs -- that means The Surge Isn't Working!"
That's like saying NYC's Rodent Control program isn't working because there are still rats in the sewers. I've got cop buddies who remember when they *used* to promenade down Broadway, following the trash trucks...
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