Iraq strategy

My favorite columnist is David Brooks. So when Brooks said in his latest column that Washington is abuzz over a piece in Foreign Affairs called How to Win in Iraq by Andrew F. Krepinevich, Jr., I had to check it out. I'm glad that I did. The course of action recommended by Krepinevich, which he calls the "oil-spot strategy," essentially calls for U.S. and Iraqi forces to establish safe zones that would gradually expand. It makes eminent sense to me, and frankly I'm surprised that we weren't already pursuing such a plan (Fallujah would seem to be an example of this). "Search-and-destroy" has already proven itself a failure in Vietnam.

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Interestingly, one Iraqi blogger recommended the establishment of safe havens several weeks ago. Like Krepinevich, he says that any such strategy must make Baghdad a central focus.