So the fact that the enemy is still trying to shoot down military aircraft leaving the airport 4 1/2 years after we went in there is "progress?" Whatever.

Wow, just wow.

The culture of denial has sunk to new lows.

I'm very glad that the pilot and crew of this airplane were not injured. They never voted in favor of an imperialist invasion of an oil rich nation based on a pack of lies. I guess Senator Craig was not on the plane, since the restrooms are too small for two people at a time.
http://LarryCraigVideo.com/

Where was Democrat Rep. Bud Cramer? Did he not have a positive comment about the crew?

Just goes to show how important it is to have and supportout toops here and abroad. Take note all politicians who are against the war in Iraq - we need them protecting our country more than we need you sometimes!

Are you kidding? The fact that a few insurgents can fire some rockets at a plane taking off from a U.S. airbase clearly shows the failure to control this sort of madness.

On top of this, the only positives i read about Iraq every day is the body count of the number of terrorists/insurgents we've killed. Does this remind anyone of anything?

So if the plane isn't shot at, things are good.

If the plane is shot at, that's a sign of progress.

By Sen. Inhofe's logic, if the plane had been shot down and destroyed, that would be great progress, really something for the folks back home to cheer about.

Mm, ok. Whatever.

If we were making progress in Iraq, there wouldn't have been an attempt to shoot down the senator's plane. I'm not surprised; this is the kind of flawed logic that has been fueling the war since the beginnning.

Really? Getting shot at proves we are near the light at the end of the tunnel? When senators don't get shot at, will it mean we failed? Also, it certainly could have been Al Qaeda, but while you are sitting in an airplane, how do you know who is doing the shooting?
For the record, I'm very glad the plane made it to safety.

Leave it to the republiCANT's to spin it...Way to go, RA RA RA. Another, more realistic take on this particular situation could be that the security is so bad in and around baghdad that even a plane carrying members of a congressional delegation CAN'T BE PROTECTED!

What's worse than the statement itself is the fact that a large percentage of Americans will trust it, and that the government can largely ignore the smaller percentage that see through it.

Just how do they know that it was Al-Qaeda and not some HOMEGROWN insurgent!?

Let's nuke them!

Yes, war is peace, black is white, up is down, and left is right.

Four years ago, Iraqis "retaliation" consisted of primarily nonviolent protest.

Firing surface-to-air missiles at C-130s is a big improvement at stabilizing the region.

And another note, "terrorism" is a seemingly random act of violence against noncombatants toward political ends. "Warfare" consists of shooting military ordinance at military targets to achieve political ends. Which one was this? Can we please stop labeling everything as "terrorism"?

Really? Is that a part of firework and candy?

So..if the plane was shot down... would that also mean that its still a sign of progress because its been so long since one was shot down before?

Its just not as simple as comitting to something, and sticking with it... there must be another reason so many learned politicians are in favor of "Staying the course".

The attack was a success. Knowing they couldn't bring down a C-130, the terrorists nontheless succeeded in giving the media something to harp about. Brilliant, and all of you play right into it.

And don't give me that "flawed security" garbage, people. You can't utterly lockdown a major city, so don't pretend like some nutcase taking potshots at a C-130 is the sign of the apocalypse.

By the way, since there was no connection between Iraq and terrorists, then why have we been fighting them in Iraq since they landed? Why do liberals continually ignore this? Is it easier to posit oil conspiracy theories than acknowledge reality?

I really enjoy how liberals try to blame everything on the conservatives. Yet, if my memory serves me correctly,they still havent delievered 1 thing that they promised the people that put them in office, not mention that they have the majority and still cant get anythign done except complian about everything.

To modify an oft quoted phrase -- "If we keep voting for people that use this type of logic, then the terrorists win". Whether you believe the Senator is that dense or that patronizing, neither are good choices.... If only the people who voted versus those who buy into these statements were two completely separate groups!

There must be some financial incentive for these elected windbags to go over there.
Could they be collecting combat or hazardous duty pay on top of their bloated salaries?

Oh my Goodness. A plane shot at during a war!!!

A pilot doing what he was trained to do and being successful!

Senetors praising the men and women of the armed services!

Security is bad? You think the attacker was standing on the runway? Do you understand how far away you can be to launch one of those rockets? You were never in war were you son.

Quit bellyaching....grow a pair. Be thankful they are shooting at planes and not shooting into our schools. Because they want to. They hate you and me and everything we have.

You think thier hatred started the day we went over there? Try when we started supporting Israel more likley. Or even before then, research Christians vs. Muslims. Better yet, even if your not a Christian. They see us all the same. And they want us dead.

Quit your whining sally.

Sorry to disagree with this fine speech by the Honorable Senator, but this only shows two things: 1)the LACK of security and control around a vital airfield, even after years of war, and 2)that it probably happens uncomfortably often,that the news is suppressed, and that this time it was known ONLY because US Senators were on board. Besides that, I think that when in a war you can only boast of your ability to dodge the enemy's rain of bullets, maybe you are not "winning" after all.

In fairness to Inhofe, what he said in no way implied progress. He didn't even use that word. The Washington Times should be a bit ashamed of this lack of journalistic honesty.

Liberals think the world is a rosy place, and that our enemies will simply leave us alone if we just resist the fight. The crew members are awsome because of US support and training. Three cheers!

So I suppose in order to perpetuate this so-called "progress" we must now ensure that all military and commercial jets be equipped with flares. Right. And War = Peace, etc., etc.

Were winning, Were winning !!!!! now lets all go to WallMart and by pointy hats.

Getting shot at, well, we already knew terrorists have such equipments, of course it's a disappointment to see they still have access. What really should concern folks the most is that the particular jet was shot at. In other words...who leaked information to terrorists that government parties were on that specific plane? It means there are leaks in very sensitive area's, apparently far up the chain, unless of course you suggest the choice of that particular plane being shot at was only a coincidence....

So we can defeat heat seeking missles with flares but this is the same technology we are deploying is the missle defense system. Anybody else see why missle defense is $$$ down the toilet?

Al

Alex Campbell asked why the democrat Bud Cramer didn't have a positive comment about the crew. Actually, a check of several other stories quotes Cramer praising the crew. Seems the Washington Times story conveniently left that out. Also interesting is that Alex didn't question in the above story why the other two Republicans didn't have positive comments about the crew. Just questioned the nasty old Democrat!

Perception continues to be an interesting concept. True, our American Troops are the best in the whole world. However, their skills should not be forced to be used as they are. The whole thing is insane and will prove to be a no win situation simply because the foundation for our troops being over there is based on a lie. The political crew is most blessed that no harm came to them. But to say that by missing the target it gives impetus to the status of terrorism in Iraq is grossly inaccurate and un-necessary. Don't understand why many politicians seem to think the public is just plain stupid. We are not.

Seriously, the GOP really has to dig deep on nearly anything they can find to justify this War and say we are making progress, their definition of success, thousands bad things and just two good things in the span of 4 1/2 years... yeah, okay... good plicy guys! Actually to me the best news to come out of Iraq of late is Cleric Sadr's freezing of his army and cease fire against us... he thinks his army is being by Iran hoping to take power from within, this is a good thing because maybe one day we could be fighting with the Shiites and Iraq to battle back Iran and maybe that will lead us to winning the real War. One can only hope.

It would be one thing if he claimed that the attack showed WHY we need to stay in Iraq, but to claim that it showed PROGRESS is totally bogus.

Greg, you are right on target. It really seems that way.

Ii is astonishing that some republicans in our nation are still trying to brand anti-war democrat lawmakers as anti-military. This simple-simon mindframe is the easy way for the deluded supporters of this war to redirect blame and downright hatred at people that are trying to stop this madness. The problem is not the democrats, it's the fools that perepetuate the Cheney delusion. They are the ones that are leaving our troops high and dry.

While living in Iraq for 6 months, I also was in a position like the Senator describes, interesting that no one ever wrote about my experience or has known about the many times I have been shot at while trying to do something good, I thought at the time. I hope they take this experience and do something good with it, like get the heck out of there.

~If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?~ Alice in Wonderland quote...

Also, the most likely logic for a proposal of an Iraq Exit Stategy forwarded by the Bush Administration

Has it occurred to the naysayers that the AA missile was fired from far out of range, thereby making it a "futile" attempt? I bet the flares weren't even strictly necessary.

Nobody denies that parts of Iraq are still very dangerous. And the eventual outcome is by no means certain to be pleasing to us. But the fact that the terrorists are now reduced to taking long-range potshots in the deluded hope that they might get lucky is, in fact, both a sign of progress and a reminder of their irrationality.

The obvious conclusion from recent events is that the terrorists are losing, slowly but surely, and they are desperate.

Wow, this article and Sen. Inhofe are spinning so fast it hurts my eyes just to read it.

How stupid is Oklahoma Republican.
1. How he knows from the aircraft it is Al Qaeda?
2. Losing fight because the missed the plane?

Stupid, Stupid, Stupid.

Too bad the plane did not have a couple of 50 megaton bombs to jettison over Iran on the way out of Iraqi airspace.

Funny how american official propagandists want to see the bunches of Al-quaeda -aka international terrorism- in every corner of Iraq and authors of every attacks, this is another pathetic and fallacious attempt to deceive the American people.

i was going to comment but after reading all of these..... that pretty well expressed any opinion I could come up with

What an idiot! This is like when kids say "That didn't hurt." I hope the crew and passengers of the C-130 that does get shot down because of this doofus' bravado feel good that his got away.

Until you bunch of Miss Nancies let the U.S. Army start kicking in doors and tossing grenades without whining about civil rights and war crimes, IRAQ isn't going to go anywhere fast. Someone mentioned similarities to Vietnam, you are exactly right. Vietnam was the first war the was run by politicians, this is just another one. No war will ever be won that is run by Politicians. There is no consistency, and definately no backbone. Both are required to win any war. If any of you had actually served, you would understand. Thanks.

Imhofe's denialism grows more abysmal every time he speaks on a controversial subject. He is, however, steadily and consistently loyal to the larger corporate interests in his state.

Just a note to those hair brain idiots who never learned what Imperialist is. If this country would be really Imperialistic than most of you would be dead by now or in concentration camps and Iraq would be just a big parking lot. In that case we would not have to worry about terrorist firing at our planes. Luckily our country is not so we can tolerate idiots who skipped history lessons in school.

For all who believe progress should mean nobody can shoot at an american plane...think about what you are saying. Come on folks, you are letting your opinions get in the way of facts. How difficult is shooting at a plane taking off or landing at an Airport in an Urban setting? Not Very.

That he could say something like that with a straight face. Either he is in complete denial or there's an IQ issue here. Probably both. What a joke the Republican Party has become. Without their precious "War on Terror" they are nothing.

The whole story stinks, somethings fishy. apparently the c-130 was in the air for 1/2 hour and 6,000 feet up. rpg's wouldnt even get close.I would like the army or airforce or anybody verify these events. notice how nobody is stepping up?

The fact that many of you are saying that this is spin is evidence of the grip that the liberal media has on you.

There are some facts in this story that don't seem to add up. I am an ex USAF B-52 pilot, so I have some knowledge of these things (though I do not claim to be an expert). Somewhere I read that this attack was; about 5-10 minutes after takeoff, at an altitude of over 5000 feet, and that they were being shot at with RPGs (rocket propelled granades). I don't think that it is even remotely possible to shoot down an aircraft at that altitude with an RPG. RPG's have very limited range and are unguided. I would think that a realistic range at which an RPG could hit a moving aircraft might be on the order of some hundreds of yards, and that would be an incredibly lucky shot.

When the Blackhawk helicopter was shot down with RPGs in Somalia, it was in a hover (not moving) and the shooters were less than 100 yards away. The only way that these Senators were in danger was if they were being shot at with shoulder fired SAMs (like a Stinger or something similar) but even a stinger would be very hard pressed to hit an aircraft at their altitude. In addition, flares won't confuse an RPG, only an infrared guided missile. I wonder if the pilot simply saw some rocket trails, so he followed proceedure, made some evasive moves and dropped flares.

I suspect that knowbody was actually firing on the C-130, or if they were it was just symbolic, and they knew there was no chance of a hit.

A comment for all those who doubt the need for the US to have invaded Iraq. If the sociopath Saddam Hussein was still in power in Iraq he would have produced a nuclear Bomb(s) and used it. Once he had it who would have dared touch him no matter what he did? and Who would have touched him after he used it? No one and not without a nuclear war are the answers.

GWM

"On top of this, the only positives i read about Iraq every day is the body count of the number of terrorists/insurgents we've killed. Does this remind anyone of anything?"

Perhaps Gettysburg Pennsylvania battlefields' CIVIL WAR?

http://civilwarphotos.net/files/gettysburg.htm
http://scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0403/S00177.htm
http://scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0403/S00190.htm

"Al Qaeda's unsuccessful attempt to shoot down this C-130 aircraft was a futile effort to influence its losing fight in Iraq, and served to underscore the reality that terrorism is still a threat and that there is still work to be done," the Oklahoma Republican said.

APPARENTLY, SOME FAIL TO ACTUALLY READ THIS COMMENT... READ IT CLOSELY... HE'S SAYING THAT THE ATTEMPT, IN EFFECT, WAS A FUTILE ATTEMPT BY A GROUP THAT IS DESPERATE... AND THEY ARE.

Mr. Imhofe demonstrates the garbage that flows from the mouths of the GOP regarding 'progress' in Iraq. The fact that at the main Baghdad airport a heat seaking missile can be fired with ease at any departing aircraft is solid evidence that there is a total lack of security in the country's capital, and its airport. You are 100% wrong, Mr. Imhofe. What a spin artist you are, Mr. Imhofe.

to the people who pointed out the obvious that clearly having your plane shot at is not a sign a progress, you are missing the point;

The comment made by the senator was one for moral and propaganda. Actually admitting that it was a close shave and showing anxiety would be almost as bad as the terrorists succeeding in shooting down the plane. It's important not to give terrorists any ground.

What's more concerning is how they got the intelligence to make the attack in the first place.

IMPECCABLE training and FLAWLESS performance?

LOL, does he think he's talking to a bunch of elementary school kids? His words are pretty much just a bunch of exaggerated propaganda. What in this world is actually impeccable OR flawless? The last time I read those words to describe something, it was in a comic book. (But of course, the average citizen of any country likes this sort of patriotic talk. So I can't really blame him for using it.)

Hmmm, maybe the shooter was just an enviromentalist, who was tipped off that James 'no such thing as global warming' Inhofe was on that plane . If it were me, I would just tell the other senators that you don't want to be the one sitting next to the guy who brings out the worst in people.

To mej: The US military hasn't fought to protect this country since the War of 1812. They are fighting and dying to raise Halliburton's profit margin.

wow this is really sad that this is considered progress. personally the only thing i can think of that might be good is that american troops are well trained, but then that means they can control their people much better than before in bushs dictatorship like practices. im even beginnin to doubt that the numbers of terroist killed are bein exagerrated, its impossible that 60 terroists can be killed everyday in Afghanistan and the Taliban can keep fighting on

How do we know it wasn't our guys shooting at the plane?