The article makes six important points, as follows:

• Compared to previous troop levels for analogous periods of time, the “surge” brings no significant increase in deployments in Iraq.
• New tactics and deployments in Iraq do not improve the prospects for success over previous periods.
• Conditions in Iraq for civilians there have not improved, as measured by civilian casualties and oil and electricity production.  In fact, for the period since July 2007 when the “surge” actually took effect, civilian casualties have increased measurably, and oil and electricity production have decreased.
• The expansion of Iraqi security forces has not resulted in better protection for Iraqi civilians.
• While circumstances have apparently improved significantly in Anbar Province, they have deteriorated elsewhere.
• Those best able to measure the success of the surge, Iraqi civilians, assert in polls that conditions in Iraq are worse than before, that the U.S. and allied forces are unwelcome and should leave the country, and by a margin of 57 percent that it is OK to attack coalition forces.

The full text of the article can be found HERE.