We Are NOT Arming the Sunnis ... or the Shias.

There is a discussion going on at NR regarding the oft stated "fact" that we are "arming" one group or another in Iraq and that these weapons are being stolen, or lost, or something and and are ending up in enemy hands. I thought so too.

But we're not!

I keep hearing people say we're "arming the Sunnis" in dire terms — the implication being that we're destined for blowback once the Sunni tribes kick out al Qaeda in Iraq. There are responses to the concern, but it strikes me as a legitimate and serious objection worth discussing — if it's true. But the thing is last week on Meet the Press, the NYT's Michael Gordon — whose spent lots of time in Sunni areas — said it's simply not true. The relevant quote:

MR. RUSSERT: If we, in fact, are arming the Sunnis and we've already armed the Shiites, are we arming both factions in a civil war?


MR. GORDON: Well, we're not arming these groups. They're not being given arms by the Americans,

So how do these myths get started?

More HERE and HERE and HERE