Progress ignored.(Scan)

A host of political and media critics claims that U.S. troops and administrators are "bogged down" in Iraq. Our own observations from Iraq during the war, plus recent polling there by TAE and other organizations (see this issue's feature section), along with our continuing exchanges with the military men and women who are temporarily the princes running the Fertile Crescent, convince us that this gloomy view is incomplete and inaccurate. Contrary to the overwhelming negativity of most reporting, real progress is being made.

Remember the traumas that never befell us in Iraq. Not only was the war itself vastly less bloody and difficult than claimed, but its aftermath has also been quieter. We were told to expect a refugee flood, a food crisis, destruction of the oil fields, and public health disasters. We were warned that Iraq's multifarious ethnic and religious groups would be at each other's throats. Environmental catastrophes, chemical poisonings, and dam breaks were predicted. Turkey might occupy the north, Israel could strike from the south, the Arab "street" would likely roar in resistance. None of these things happened.

That is not to whitewash the fact that painful low-intensity conflict is still flaring. Your editor recently talked about his new book on the war at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, home of the 101st Airborne Division. They have lost 23 soldiers in Iraq. The man I photographed in combat for the cover of my book recently had his humvee bombed twice in a month. But he is not discouraged: He believes he is doing historic work to stabilize one of the most dangerous spots on our planet. He and other soldiers we hear from say they are making great progress in setting Iraq on a more normal and decent path

Here are some signs they are right:

* Stores and traffic are bustling, and most services now exceed pre-war levels. A new currency has just gone into circulation.

* Large cities home to millions--like Basra, Mosul, and Kirkuk plus vast swathes of countryside in the north and south, are stable, mostly peaceful, beginning to bubble economically, and grateful to the coalition forces who set them on a new course.

* More than 170 newspapers are published in Iraq, and broadcast media are proliferating.