Let me add a few comments on to Bill's. Drawing from their 5-point recommendations;

  • First, create a government-wide employment registry so that the Ministry of Finance pays all government salaries — and only to people on the registry. This would centralize hiring and firing, so that only the central government, rather than faction leaders, could give out or take away government jobs. Senior hires should be approved by the unanimous consent of a board composed of all ethnic, religious, and political factions.
  • Second, give these ministry boards the power to investigate and turn over for prosecution employees suspected of involvement in sectarian violence or insurgent activity. This would make it much harder for militia fighters and insurgents to remain on the government payroll.
  • Third, accelerate the introduction of electronic bank transfers by the Ministry of Finance to pay government workers. This would reduce the diversion of payroll funds into the wrong pockets.
  • Fourth, stop gasoline and diesel-fuel smuggling by gradually phasing out subsidies that keep prices so low. Earnings from rising fuel prices should fund programs that help the poorest Iraqi citizens, so that they see themselves benefiting from the higher prices.
  • Fifth, in addition to more US funds for the Iraqi police, more foreign advisers need to be embedded within their ranks to mentor and monitor their activities. The Iraqi government must commit to disbanding and prosecuting rogue units.
Let's take a look at these points.

1. Get real! A "government-wide employment registry" will be a computer database and if anyone is still naive enough to believe that a database is secure, talk to me - I have some prime waterfront acreage for you.

2. Will it? This assumes that the current members of the governm,ent are not already associated with or susceptible to pressure from insurgent groups.

3. I just love this touching faith in the inviolability of computer networks! Talk to the US Admiral who invented computerized banking and see if she will use it!

4. Was this point penned by the current VP? Let me translate this into plain English - raise the prices of basic necessities with he profit going into the pockets of Iraqi and American elites and corporations, and the poor will feel good?!?!? Only a brain dead moron would believe that people struggling to cook and heat their homes will appreciate their hard earned money going into the pockets of elites, and only another brain dead moron would think that this would make sense!

5. The first part makes sense, but the last part assumes that the Iraqi government is "neutral" and not infiltrated by the insurgents / militias.

Whoever came up with this brain fart, and that's really the only way to describe it, should be sent ff to Mosul to work with Rob for a while!

As a final note, the EU is estimating the 5 billion € per year are being skimmed out of tax fraud schemes, much of which is being used to support Islamist activities including the insurgencies in Iraq.

Marc