Tom Ricks gets grilled

Military reporter for the Washington Post Tom E. Ricks gets the quiz treatment from readers today. The former Pulitzer prize winner has reported from Somalia, Haiti, Korea, Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Kuwait, Turkey, Afghanistan and Iraq and is the author of the 2006 book, FIASCO: The American Military Adventure in Iraq. Here’s a quick dip into the Q&A which focuses mainly on Iraq,

Fairfax, Va.: This is probably a basic question, but how much longer does the “surge” last? I recall last year there were reports of the military being at a “breaking point.” Will violence ramp up as those additional troops are withdrawn (assuming they are withdrawn)?
Thomas E. Ricks: You should be a foreign correspondent! I was just discussing this question with my smart and talented editor, Carlos Lozada. Those are the right questions to ask this spring as the U.S. troop numbers come down by about 5,000 a month, if they go according to plan. link