IF THE MILITARY SURGE IS SO ‘SUCCESSFUL’–WHY NOT JUST LEAVE?
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistThe moment this Iraq war started to turn itself around, the military brass started to panic.
What if things do calm down–then what do we do?No one had any answers to that question. Neither did Bush nor McCain–both a strong advocate of ‘staying the course till victory is
declared’.
The military surge was in answer to the spiraling, out-of-control violence that threatened to tip Bush’s Iraq war into complete chaos without any way back.
So in went 30,000 troops whom pacified much of Baghdad and the surrounding areas. And while that did seem to shake things up a bit, there was still no progress on the political front.
Just recently, Malaki demanded that the US draw up a time table by next year–a
withdrawal date for all US troops to leave his country.
That–in effect–set off alarm bells all over the place. Not just for the Bush cabal, the military brass, but McCain’s camp and his supporters.
“We can’t leave!”--was the rallying cry for all involved.
“Setting withdrawal dates just plays into the enemies’ hands!”How odd that they would make such a statement–wouldn’t you think? After all, if the military surge is a ‘success’–why not just take Malaki on his offer and get the hell out of Dodge?
Pull all our troops out and push them into Afghanistan–where the real war is presently?
Trouble is, this would play right into Obama’s campaign strategy of troops withdrawal within a year and a half of him getting elected President; whereas McCain just wants to continue Bush’s feeble excuse for victory–by keeping our troops in a country that wasn’t even a
threat to begin with, but no longer poses much of a challenge for our military forces in the here and now.
And neither Bush nor McCain wants to see Obama get a boost from a viable plan that clearly countermands what they've had in play for the last 6 years.The insurgency has pretty much died out by the time the surge was completed–with no measurable amount of enemy casualties to show for an effective campaign. The only thing that the military brass was using were ridiculous charts and bar graphs to
show our incremental surges of progress–but in the end, it didn’t have that
electrifying of an effect on Congress as it did have on Bush and the war profiteers.
You would think that they would've been happy
by now!But no...they still aren't.
Now–with Malaki demanding that we leave his country far sooner than McCain or Bush would’ve liked–the military brass is now more worried about everything being ‘undone’ by such a withdrawal or even a ‘timetable’ for such.
Why–if things were such a ‘success’? Why worry at all? It’s a bit puzzling how the military should be the exact
opposite instead of fearful and agonizingly uncertain.
As they are now.
Which means, that all this talk of “success” is either vastly overstated, or the plain fact of the matter is that the Iraqis and Malaki have finally grown tired of the US’s mess left at that their doorstop to clean up after 6.5 years of brutal occupation–
and have demanded
that they leave.No if’s, and’s, or but’s about it.
And we have to leave; having overstayed our welcome.That is the nature of a war-torn country growing fed up with their incompetent occupiers--
is it not? Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, Iraq war, John McCain, Malaki, Obama, timetables, withdrawal
THE REPUBLICAN FANTASIES JUST KEEP ON SPINNING
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistOnce again, Bush has proven to America just how out of touch he is with the rest of Main Street.
Not just him, but John McCain as well. Both share in the ideology that things will be
okay, we just have to go along with whatever they think will happen.
From the economy, the recession, Iraq, and so on.The make-believe optimism never stops with these two.
And it is costing this nation so dearly--in terms of credibility and international standing.Let's look at a fresh example, okay?
The Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
For years this tit-for-tat fight has centered on land disputes and official state recognition between the Palestinians and the Israelis. The Israelis think that they are entitled to the land and have been trying to drive the Palestinians out--with the blind support of the US--for decades.
But the Palestinians didn’t go away quietly. For years, they kept the Israeli Defense Force at bay. And the Israelis have been committing murder and genocide against the Palestinians and no one has been able to (or even
wanted to) put a stop to these actions.
They managed to drive some of the Palestinians out of the occupied West Bank a few years ago, but they haven’t been successful in driving the Palestinians out from the area at all.
Then Hamas won democratically in 2005–stunning both the US and Israel. As a result of those elections (which Bush condemned), aid to the West Bank was cut off.
Just as recently, the UN suspended aid to the Palestinians.
Whereas force has failed in the past, the Israelis have tried on numerous occasions to
starve the Palestinians out of their land by instituting a border embargo–preventing food, medicine, and basic essentials from reaching the people.
But the Palestinians had an answer for that–when Hamas blew a large in the barrier separating the Palestinian people from Egypt.
And a flood of refugees surged forth and started snapping up much needed goods and essentials–
not weapons as the US and Israel claimed they would initially buy.
Things that Israel had been stringently denying the Palestinians.
As a result of this and so many other problems, the split Palestinian government (Fatah and Hamas) hasn’t been able to come to a single peace agreement yet–one of which Bush and his hopeful successor, John McCain–will be able to conclude with a landmark peace agreement before the end of Bush's term of office.
Unfortunately, neither man truly understand the
gravity of the situation embroiling the Middle East. Simply to
wish that peace will happen by this so and so date (or at the end of Bush’s term) will not
happen.
No matter what Bush may think or imply.
But actions speak louder than words in all cases.
And the actions by this administration illustrates that they aren’t as committed to peace in the Middle East as they are to war with Iraq, Afghanistan, and possibly Iran.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, false optimism, McCain, Middle East, Palestinians, peace, war
THOSE WHO ARE IN MOST NEED LEFT HIGH AND DRY
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistI’m pissed at my government for allowing them to walk all over us.
I’m pissed at Congress for caving in and not giving those whom need help the most.
Yes, I am talking about the tax rebate legislation–which axed financial aide for those whom need energy assistance, extra food stamp money, and those whom are currently unemployed–and would
all enjoy the tax bate relief.
I know I would. I just spent three-quarters of my food stamps on food within the last 24 hours. Most of it on meat, bread, cheese, and soy milk.
I saved a little bit on the side so my wife and I can get our monthly chocolate fix. The rest I’ve set aside for later–when I need it.
To the outside observer, what I’ve done may not be such a big deal. But trying living on nearly $300 in food stamps a month–for 2 people–with the current high food prices; and you would begin to see
why people like myself were rooting for Congress to pass that extra legislation for those like myself whom have been financially hurting all this time.
And came away gravely disappointed.Why did the Republicans block the legislation that would’ve given us an extra boost? According to some insiders, they said it was too much money.
Too much money!?
Let me guess: We can blow hundreds of billions of dollars on an ill-gotten war, but we can’t blow the same amount on the home front–making sure that those whom need help…
get it?
What does the Republican Party have against people like me? What did we ever do to piss them off so much??? Why must we be made to suffer so they can waste our tax-paying money on corporate ventures and oil interests? (Not to mention all those tax-cuts for the rich?)
I didn’t ask to be born into this world under the dogging weight of extreme poverty. But I certainly made many efforts to dig myself out of it--and failing each time. But it seems that the mechanisms which tells us that we can
aspire to better ourselves in the long run–are the same entities which controls the purse strings of Congress.
These are the same machinations which tells me that not only can I
not better myself, but I must be permanently slaved to a system that won’t allow me to do the same.
In essence, I am an unwilling prisoner in a corrupt system of democracy.To make matters even worse, Bush’s latest budget proposal has gone ahead and cut
funding from the very programs which help people like me.
Those whom need energy assistance, housing, Medicare, and food stamps.
And if you have noticed something peculiar about his allocated funds?
The majority of it goes to the military and defense industries.So they can have their precious wars.
But why not the people whom need help the most?
Because they were never a priority with the Republican Party.
The poor and the downtrodden have been made to suffer since Reagan was President. His slanted fiscal budgets heavily favored the wealthy and the rich–while giving those who needed help the
least amount of money.
Thus setting into motion, a series of events which has made it harder for people like me
, to get ahead a little bit in life.
We’ve never asked for the world, all we are asking for is a boost in the right direction.
Unfortunately…? Both Bush and Congress doesn’t seem to be listening.
Which means?People like me are left high and dry.
Again.Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: assistance, budgets, Bush, Democrats, food stamps, needy, poor, Reagan, Republican Party, tax cuts, tax rebate, unemployed
World War III Is Going To Be Hilarious
Have to post this!Your president giggled and grinned while
discussing World War III today.
"But this -- we got a leader in Iran who has announced that he wants to destroy Israel. So I've told people that if you're interested in avoiding [grinning] World War III [end grinning], it seems like you [begin giggling] ought to be interested in preventing them from have the knowledge [end giggling] necessary to make a nuclear weapon."
Hahahaha! Yeah! Zinger! That's funny shit. For the record, here's his expression while saying the words "World War Three":
To the rest of the known world, however, World War III a scary thing. It's just below abortion and above rape on the list of the all time unfunniest topics.
Let's break it down.
1. Iran doesn't have a nuclear weapon, and if they ever developed one, they'd be smart enough to know (despite how we caricaturize Ahmadinejad) that using it would invite their own destruction a thousand times over. Thus, there is no Iranian nuclear threat.
2. Yet the administration is drawing up plans to illegally and preemptively attack anyway, based on the lie that Iran is a nuclear threat.
3. Congress, despite the president's 24-percent approval rating, won't stop the White House because of, 1) The Fear, and 2) because Congress has allowed the president and vice president to seize unprecedented power which almost entirely circumvents Article I of the Constitution (among other things).
4. Meanwhile, if we do attack, it appears as if Pooty-Poot might bring Russia in on the Iranian side.
5. And there you go. Knee slapping boners all around. Milk just came out of my nose.
They're marketing Iran with more psychotic voracity than Michelle Malkin attacking an injured baby -- and no one can stop them.
As near as I can tell, there doesn't appear to be a governing body or citizen group who can stop them from carrying this out. Congress won't and, honestly, they can't. Last night's Frontline episode, "Cheney's Law," underscored what we've all been worried about: Congress has been rendered ineffectual against the current power madness of the executive.
For example, has Congress clamped down on the president's rampant use of torture? Sure. (Torture is number five on the unfunny syllabus.) The Republican controlled Congress did this, but the president rendered the law pointless with a signing statement.
Ah yes. Torture. Not to digress too far into this thing, but you know how the president can look us in the eye and say, "we don't torture," as he did in today's press conference? He can say this with impunity because the administration has authored its own definition of torture which is so narrow that anything else -- anything you and I would consider to be torture -- isn't.
If it don't cause organ failure, it ain't torture, Stretchy McStretch-o-rama-funny-pants. In a sense, the president isn't lying when he says "we don't torture." It depends on what your definition of torture is.
This excuse, of course, is the same excuse future enemies will use when they torture... us.
Republican cowards who demand security at the expense of liberty/honor/law have facilitated the Bush executive branch with extraordinary power. Now we're trapped in the shadow of the White House's unprecedented strength, and there doesn't appear to be any conceivable way to stop these people. If Cheney wrangles the military hardware to attack Iran, the air strikes will commence with lightning zealotry. Bet on it. Congress can try to stop him, but they don't have the power any more. According to the Bush administration, Article II is Article II and the Commander in Chief rules.
It's as simple as that. Just try telling him he's wrong on this. You could be the most conservative wingnut ever and you'd lose that debate -- not for a lack of rational arguments either.
Is it any wonder why we occasionally succumb to outrage fatigue: that deflated, windless sense of numbing futility we feel when confronted with the illogical and the absurd? We've only begun to dig into the upper strata of lawlessness this regime has perpetrated over the last seven years. And now, in this desperate dying twilight of their existence -- now that they're gravely unpopular and on their way out the door -- reckless and without anything to lose -- why shouldn't they do all the crazy shit they've talked about? Bomb Tehran? Yeah, that'll be awesome and hilarious. More war means more war powers. If you thought the administration's war powers were crazy huge, just imagine their World War powers. Score!
The president always says that history will vindicate him. 15 months from now, he'll be done. Pretending to be a cowboy down there -- raising melanomas in the harsh Crawford sunshine, laughing at the third hilarious war he started all by himself.
Once he's done, by his twisted reasoning, it's someone else's problem. By "someone else" he naturally means "everyone else."
Just like so many powerful men, he appears to be able to switch off his conscience (if one exists in the first place). It's the same switch that allows him to say "we don't torture," or to smirk and laugh while discussing Iraq casualties and World War III. "Everyone else" won't include him because he'll always be safe. He'll always have Crawford and the twins; his fake accent and his delusional view of history; his nicknames and his eh-eh-eh laugh.
The rest of us -- unless we can find a way to stop this Iran drumbeat -- won't be laughing so much.
Labels: Bush, drumbeat, Iran, laughing, World War III
NO CHILD LEFT ALIVE?
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistFor six years, George Bush and the Republican Congress had spent American taxpayer monies to the tune of $9.3 trillion dollars to date–most of it going to tax cuts for the rich and the wars in Iraq, and Afghanistan.
For six years, Bush had vetoed not one spending bill proffered by the GOP.
But suddenly, Bush is flip-flopping on his 2004 promise to
expand a children’s health insurance coverage plan; known as SCHIP–in an effort to diplace millions more poor children whom otherwise can't receive coverage otherwise outside the current program.
The President is claiming that the program overreaches into the middle-class–and has become too expensive to maintain.
He claims that Democrats are just in it for the political points, but many of his own party whom support the program openly are
dismayed that the President would go against himself and his promise to help expand and continue funding a much needed program for the poor.
A program that currently helps 6.6 million children get the care that they
need.
Ironically, Bush just sent Congress legislation demanding that he gets additional money for the wars in the Middle East–totaling upwards of $245B.
But to spend an additional $35B over the next 5 years to keep those 6.6 million kids from getting sick or
worse–when we spend on average $120B to $130B a year
in Iraq and Afghanistan?
Nah.
Bush just thinks that’s just too
expensive.
After all, with just 15 months left his presidency, W is suddenly
eager to re-establish himself and his legacy as being
fiscally conservative.
Unfortunately for him, it’s come far too late to be anything but a big spender.
All at the expense of our children’s health of course.
But that doesn't seem to bother Bush at all.
And why should it?
He's not paying for it. But our kids are.
Or they will be as soon as Bush vetoes the bill.Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Afghanistan, Bush, children's, conservative, debt, fiscally, healthcare, Iraq, legacy, trillions
BUSH'S NEW WAR STRATEGY: STAY THE COURSE
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistNaturally, General Petraeus plays the same tune that Bush wants to here: “Stay the course–because we are making progress.”
But unfortunately, the reality on the ground is proving all that more harder to cover up with optimism and political spin:
Just this week, a leading Sunni sheik was assassinated by an Iraqi bomb.
The Iraqi police force needs to be disbanded and started over from scratch.
The Iraqi government is completely dysfunctional.
Only one of the political benchmarks have actually been met. (Or actually not. The meeting--between the leaders of the sects on August 26th--caused the Pentagon to revise that de-Baathification objective from being "unsatisfactory" to "satisfactory".
All because of that meeting! But the funny thing, is that no legislation has been passed!)
The rest have failed.
The Iraqi security forces need another 18 months to be "effective." (Not that we haven't heard
this before...)
And the list goes on.
This is the reality of the war in which we have effectively lost to the insurgents.
No amount of ‘good news’ and spin from the White House can erase what many Americans see now as a lost cause.
You don't hear
victory, just a "redefining of definitions of progress" and goals which can't possibly be met now or in the near future.
Certainly not when Bush leaves office.Things are too far gone to simply turn a blind eye towards our failures and try to start things over--which is what this adminstration has been trying to do.
Try to restart a war in which events of the last 4.5 years never existed at all. In reality, Bush is trying to rewrite history before his term of dishonor completes itself.Sp his idea to bring home the troops is nothing more than an insult, and a slap in the face for our serving military.
Considering that the conditions on the ground mirror a low-level civil war, all Bush is doing is buying time for himself–not the troops. Those troops whom were added to the surge have to be pulled back anyways.
Not because they
succeeded in doing anything impressive, but because they are stretched past the breaking point and have no fresh replacements on tap to replace them.
So they have to come home. But rumors are circulating even now that the President and his military crony advisors are planning on extending tours once more and shortening leaves--to make his surge more
permanent through 2008.
With no stability, unity, or democracy in
sight, Bush is just trying to escape the mess he’s created by announcing that he is indeed the Decider--no matter--and he has decided that no change in course is warranted–until
after he leaves office.
Which begs the question:
Is the Iraq war still worth it?Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, civil war, insurgents, Iraq, stay the course, troops
GOVERNMENT'S DUPLICITY KNOWS NO BOUNDS
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistRemember the pizza guy being accused of wanting to massacre hundreds of Fort Dix soldiers--simply by driving his beatup Honda through the gates of one most
heavily secured bases in America--using only an Uzi?
Remember those six alleged terror suspects from the Carribean nation of Guyana who--by the testimony of a drug runner--allegedly wanted to blow up one of the nation's most
secure and impossible to
wreck jet fuel pipelines connected to JFK?
Now...
It seems as though the Bush adminstration is locking itself into high gear in "preparation" for yet another
spectacular (but highly improbable--not to mention
transparent)...
"Terror attack"!
Recall, Jerkoff's...'gut feeling'. Recall how the government is now worried about Al-Qaeda staging some "spectacular" attacks on US soil by the end of this
summer--or in the next few years.
And today's report showing that the government now
confirms what the majority of Americans had figured out years in advance--after the invasion of Iraq: That Al-Qaeda is going to use Iraq as a 'springboard' for future attacks on US soil.
Oddly enough, there is no 'credible' intelligence to support the claim that Al-Qaeda is gearing up for
any kind of attack now or in the near future on the US itself.
So why the fear and worry
now by government officials?
Because it so happens that a lot of things are going wrong for this adminstration--from the failed troop surge to the GOP revolt over their support of the war--and Bush and the GOP both desperately need
something from which to rescue their bacon from a complete obliteration in the upcoming elections by the
people in 2008.
But pay attention to the language of both Jerkoff and other administration officials:
THEY 'EXPECT' A TERROR ATTACK TO TAKE PLACE BEFORE THE END OF THIS SUMMER.
And we all
know that summer doesn't officially end until September 21st.
And what's in September?
2 things:
1) General Panseywaist's report to the Congress on the
ineffectiveness of the 'troop surge' on September 15th.
and2) The 6th year anniversary of 9-11.
What better way to stage another terror attack (false of course) to remind the people that we are still at war with an enemy who seeks to destroy us from within?
But oddly enough, these last 2 attacks (which I mentioned at the beginning) somehow (and mysteriously) got
past all the tight securities implemented upon the 9-11 Commission's sterling recommendations--and somehow were "stopped" before they could be carried out.
Why not allow them to go through the motions?
Well, for one thing, it would be impossible. None of these suspects had the operational knowledge to even carry such an attack out in the first place. And two, none of these suspects were ever terrorists at all. Just unwitting victims in a governnment scheme to scare the people into line.
Third, the targets they chose were something of a fool's dream. Realistically, they could never be pulled off unless everyone was in a state of complete stupor--and the government was just happening to look the other way when it was taking place.
IN OTHER WORDS...
These attacks were drummed up by the most inner circles of our own government and unleashed in such a way--that it would make it
look like these were real.
Except a couple of things went awry:
1) Has
anyone ever heard of a Domino's pizza guy trying to penetrate a high-security military installation with only limited knowledge and an Uzi? And just what was his reasons for doing such a move in the first place? Was his life that bad that he wanted to commit suicide the stupid way?
2) JFK's jetliner fuel lines are
impossible to blow up from the outside or the inside--according to pipeline experts. So why would the government rely on the word of a known drug trafficker--as being completely 'honest' and 'factual'?
And Guyana? What does this nation stand to benefit from such an attack anyways? And when did it escape the government's radar list of countries which are state-sponsored terror nations?
So in the end, our government is already telling us
now, to prepare ourselves for another faked terror plot.
Not a realistic one, but one that has all the hallmarks of being on the list of:
"Non-Existent Terror Attacks".Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, desperate, fake terror plots, GOP, government
IRAQIS: YOU NEED TO RISE UP AND FIGHT!
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistIt’s official people: The Iraqis are arming themselves.
Not the ill-equipped and under trained security forces of Iraq, but the
civilians themselves.
231 years ago, Colonial citizens did the same against British forces in their fight for independence against the Crown of England. They spent years fighting a bloody conflict which gave birth to the United States of America.
Unlike that revolution, the one being fought inside Iraq isn’t for freedom, liberty, independence, or
unity.
But survival.
Iraq’s government has been a colossal failure by far in Bush’s model for change and democracy in the Middle East.
The citizens are being threatened by all sides of the conflict: From foreign elements of Al-Qaeda and other groups, to the so-called
Coalition of the Willing which is comprised of the ever-shrinking forces of the US-led coalition.
And since Iraq’s own security forces cannot bring peace and stability to Iraq, it’s up to the citizens of that country to take matters into their own hands and bring and
end to the bloodshed that has plagued Iraq since 2003.
Take out the foreign elements that saturate your soil! Take out those who continue to impede and marginalize you in every which way!
Take out those occupation forces whom continue to deliver more pain and agony unto your neighbors, your children, and your children’s children–instead of those lofty promises of reconstruction, prosperity, and security which has been in short supply for several years now!
Do whatever it takes to give yourselves hope and promise for a better tomorrow!
Rise up and fight! Rise up and take back your beleaguered country!
Fight! Fight! Fight!Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, civil war, forces, Iraqis, rise, security, up
HOW HARD IS IT TO COMPLY WITH CONGRESS ANYWAY?
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistWe’ve seen it many times over the past six years since Bush entered office:
Congress demanding that the White House and other elements of our own government turn over material which is instrumental in one common aspect of our democracy: Checks and balances.
And the White House and those various elements are saying: “We have
executive privilege, and that supersedes law and the Constitution.”
Y’know…
Nixon tried the same thing in the 70s–in face of Watergate. It took the ruling of the Supreme Court to say that no sitting President was above the law, and Congress had every constitutional right to have access to the Watergate files.
But Bush is counting on this. In his defense, he’s stacked court justices that would see him as having no
fault of his own–and thus would be able to get away with not turning over documents vital to Congress’s ongoing investigations on a number of fronts.
However, the idea behind not implicating a sitting President (especially a
Republican one), is disastrous for the party whom put them there.
Hence the stonewalling and excuses by government officials.
The sad truth is, is that it took an act of the
people to change course with both Congress and the government.
But Bush and those under him still believe that they have unchecked powers, unchecked flexibility in their roles as representatives of these United States.
Which is why they have been fighting as long as they have.
Once a group has unlimited power, it becomes very difficult to restrain them, or at the very least–reign them in.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Bush, Congress, Constitution, executive privilege, Nixon, unlimited power, US government, Watergate
SURGE PROVES TO BE A MUCH BIGGER FAILURE THAN BEFORE
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistIf you were waiting for the other shoe to drop on this troop surge in Iraq–than it already had.
Months ago.
Did Bush actually
believe that adding another 30,000 tired and worn out troops to the mix was going to make any difference in Iraq–especially in the long run?
4 months ago, Bush said that the goals of the surge was to tamp down the violence in Baghdad and give the severely weakened Malaki government “breathing room”.
But four months into the operation–now at full strength–has proven that nothing has really changed as a whole.
Violence still is at an all-time high, attacks are constant, Baghdad is still under siege, and all Bush can do and say is: “We won’t know for several more months–if the troop surge will work or not.”
But why wait four more months, when we can already see the end results of this failed gamble?
Nothing has
changed. The capital is still besieged, the insurgents are still running amok all over the place, and Malaki can’t figure out how to best approach this problem–when the people he was sworn into a couple years ago–has lost
all confidence in his ability to unite the country?
For the life of me, I can’t figure out the logic of the Bush administration in this mess. The latest signs point to a complete failure of this troop surge, but we’re being told to
wait several more months.
Or another year. Whichever comes first. But whether or not the time comes for the truth to come out, the reality of this troop surge has become clear to me:
It never worked.Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at:
starchildalpha1 at yahoo.comLabels: Baghdad, Bush, insurgents, Malaki, months, troop surge, year
BUSH’S DESPERATION IS BECOMING CLEAR
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistIn an effort to paint Iraq the central war on terror, Bush rushed to declassify information that the American public had known since this war on Iraq began:
That Osama bin Laden is going to use Iraq as the central staging point for his attacks.
Does W think we are
stupid?
That one day we would wake up and say, “Hey! You’re right! We should stay in Iraq until the job is done?”
I think not!
The sad fact is, is that Iraq wasn’t the central stage in our terror war. That was Afghanistan.
We should’ve stayed there.
But we didn’t. Or rather
Bush didn’t. Bush made the rash assumption that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and rushed in to overthrow Saddam–by taking his eyes off Osama at Tora Bora for a split second.
And in that split second, Bush blinked, and Osama escaped. The bulk of his leadership escaped, while a great many of his followers were killed in the ensuing US invasion.
After toppling Saddam’s government, Bush inadvertently created a
vacuum in which the insurgency and groups like Al-Qaeda could fill with splintered-association groups, and keep the American-led coalition hopelessly pinned down through constant fighting.
And it’s worked.
Now, Bush is desperately trying to paint this war as the central war on terror–desperate to regain whatever support he still has left to him.
Like he’s done in the past when things have gone south in Iraq.
And they have.
But no matter what, neither Bush or any future President can fight what’s begun.
By shifting the war to Iraq–instead of Afghanistan–we’ve created a nightmare scenario that could’ve only come from a fictionalized movie.
And with each passing day, we are paying for it in both blood and treasure.
All because Bush wanted Iraq for his very own.Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Afghanistan, Al-Qaeda, Bush, civil war, desperation, insurgency, Iraq, Saddam, Tora Bora
SURVEY SHEDS SOME SAD FACTS ON IRAQ WAR CONDUCT
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistWhat did we go to Iraq for? To find Saddam’s WMDs? Nope.
To overthrow a once US-supported impotent dictator? Nope.
To give the Iraqis their freedoms and liberties? Nope.
To make Iraq a model of freedom and democracy in the Middle East? Nope.
So what
did we go to Iraq for?
Well, according to a latest survey of US troops, we went there to torture the very people we are trying to save,
and to mistreat civilians while we’re at it.
Shocking?
Yes.The study by an army mental health advisory team found continuing problems with morale and that acute mental health issues were more prevalent among troops with lengthening tours or on their second and third deployment to Iraq.
So what does this mean?
It means that our troops mental facilities are
breaking down with each extended tour. It would explain a lot about the Haditha incident last fall and Abu Ghraib in 2004.
This report says that the burden of extending tours and an endless war is wearing down our military–and as a result–our government is either
blind or inherently ill-equipped to deal with the situation.
But more than that, it shows that our troops are beginning to show a
hardened, indifferent attitude towards Iraqi civilians:
Exhibiting behavior which would almost suggest a teenage
mentality.Examples:
About 10 percent of soldiers surveyed reported mistreating non-combatants or damaging their property when it was not necessary.
Less than half of the soldiers and marines would report a team member for unethical behavior.
More than a third of all soldiers and marines reported that torture should be allowed to save the life of a fellow soldier or marine.
Why is this happening now?
In the words of Major General Gale Pollock–the army’s acting surgeon general:
"These men and women have been seeing their friends injured and I think that having that thought is normal."And while Pollock is saying that because of their military leadership is
preventing them from acting on these thoughts, it makes one wonder:
How long will it before the military brass is burned out from constant war–and this mental “instability” starts affecting them?
Just one more reason why this war should end and end
sooner rather than
later.
But I doubt that Bush sees this as a problem. I seriously doubt that he understands the mental
strain our men and women are under.
Because to him, war is a game. But war profiteering? That is a horse of an entirely different
color.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Bush, condone, Iraqi civilians, mental strain, report, torture, US soldiers
DEMOCRATS MUST HOLD THE LINE AGAINST BUSH'S GAMBIT
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistNow that they’ve grown a spine, the Democrats must now play a chess game with Bush.
Here’s how I would play it:
- Let Bush veto the damn bill. Why? Because he’s already proven that he doesn’t care about the troops or their welfare. (By the lack of proper equipment, training, and support since this war started. To Bush, the troops are nothing but sacrificial pawns.)
- The bill goes back to the Democrats, and they sit on it for a time, and then send it back to Bush to sign–in about three months. (July)
- Democrats sit on again for another three months. (September.) By this time Bush is in full blown desperation. He goes on the media circuit and blames Democrats for not giving him a ‘clean’ bill with no strings attached.
- Democrats are quietly waiting for Bush to accept their bill. They know they have time on their side. The President doesn’t. They send him the bill.
- Bush vetoes it for a third time. But by the time it comes back, Republican support is so drained and fragmented–that they sign on for the bill; and the Democrats have almost enough (but not quite) support for a Congressional override.
- So they wait just a little longer.
- October-November rolls around and it’s become clear that the war in Iraq is no closer to being won; the surge has failed utterly, and the last of the GOP holdouts are breaking ranks with the President to sign on to the bill.
- The same bill goes forward and gets vetoed for a fourth and last time. And this time, the Democrats have enough votes to overturn his veto and signs the bill into law–putting Bush in a permanent checkmate.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.com
Labels: Bush, checkmate, chess, GOP, pawns, spending bill, veto
THE WHITE HOUSE’S NEW SPOILED BRAT
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistSimply put:
Bush has
no political capital to spend or a united Republican Party to stand behind anymore–when dictating America’s course in Iraq.
The once staunch President is now a lame duck, people. And though he may make enough noise to sound like he’s still got some
bite left, the Democrats recent moves on the war funding bills undercuts just how
vulnerable Bush is now–compared to 2004.
Bush no longer has the momentum he once had which spelled out his stubborn resoluteness in the face of the reality.
The reality now–for him–is that Congress isn’t going to give him what he wants with no strings attached. That was with the GOP-controlled Congress.
This one’s Democrat
.
(And like Pelosi recently said: “There is a new Congress in town, Mr. President.”)
However, Bush’s attempts to lay blame at the feet of the Democrats–if the new funding doesn’t get to the troops in time (when they have until July at the latest–is even more
shameful than what the Democrats did to make sure that this latest round of funding came with strings attached.
Crying foul because both the people
and Congress wants a marked change in failed war strategies, isn’t the hallmark of a wise and seasoned President of the United States.
It is the sign of a
spoiled brat who isn’t getting his way anymore.
And Bush’s latest temper tantrum illustrates just how far out of touch with mainstream America he really is.
Maybe Daddy should spank?Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Bush, Democrats, GOP, mainstream America, people, President Bush, spoiled brat, vulnerable, war funding, White House
ADMINISTRATION HAS NO LEG TO STAND ON WITH SUBPOENAS
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistSince the inception of the US Constitution, Congress has had the constitutional
authority to issue subpoenas on any high-ranking official in the US government suspected of wrongdoing or illegal activities which unjustly profits or politically enhances another’s standing–and imperils the function of the standing administration, by no longer representing the will of the people.
Nixon tried to duck the subpoena issue during Watergate, and Clinton tried the same with the Monica Lewinsky affair. But in both cases, the Supreme Court stepped in and ruled that in both instances–the
government is not above the law.
It had to submit.
Naturally, Bush is trying anyways; claiming that the “act of issuing subpoenas against some of his administration’s highest-ranking officials is
unconstitutional and represents a deliberate attack on the Presidency.”
Unfortunately, Bush was never a student of political history, or otherwise he would’ve already
known that Congress is well within its rights in doing what it‘s done–seeing how he’s foot dragged his way through the matters of the US attorneys being fired long enough; by denying Congress and the people the
truth.
For the last 2 months, Bush has given out only butterball truths, misinformation, contradictions, and so many other distortions about what really went on with the 8 US attorneys being fired for other than “performance issues”, that Congress had no choice in the matter but to issue subpoenas.
In all respect, this is a perfectly
legal and constitutionally
appropriate action for Congress to undertake.
And despite some dwindling attacks by some Republicans in regards to this matter, the Democrats may finally uncover other truths in regards to the matters of government secrecy and the Iraq war–only because Bush no longer has a leg to stand on.
Of course, Bush will say he has a
trump card in regards to how he stacked the Supreme Court in his favor with conservatives willing to back him–and that may be true. But the court may be inclined not to bail the President out in this instance–seeing how politically
weakened he and his administration has become since the November elections.
Let’s hope that this remains true and the people will see that the judicial branch doesn’t serve one man loyally, but the interests of the people as a
whole.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Bill Clinton, Bush, Congress, Lewinsky affair, Nixon, politically weakened, subpoenas, Supreme Court, US attorneys, Watergate
DON’T GET TOO OVERLY EXCITED–U.S. HAS ONLY BOUGHT ITSELF TIME IN THIS TWO-FRONT WAR.
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistIt comes as no surprise that the security operation in Baghdad has lessened some of the impact and horrors of the raging 4-year-old Sunni-led insurgency.
But before any of you war supporters start popping those champagne corks, you might want to just hold off the celebrating permanently:
All this has done is bought the US-led coalition forces some time and breathing room.
The insurgency has gone to ground and laid low for the time being, calculating new attacks and new approaches to the security operation–and probing the whole thing for weaknesses. But it doesn’t mean that the insurgency has been defeated by any means.
Even the capture of Al-Qaeda of Iraq’s leader (supposedly captured–no one has actually confirmed this publicly), hasn’t lessened the daily car bombings, the violence, and the killing of Iraq’s vulnerable citizens.
Make no mistake about it:
This insurgency hasn’t been crushed. And it won’t be militarily–no matter how many troops Bush sends into Iraq.
And we won’t even be able to hold onto the said areas once things are in place. Because–like before–the insurgency will rise and strike either at will or elsewhere in Iraq; thus drawing away much needed security from other cities and even the capital itself.
While Bush and his cronies are crowing about this latest “success”–they are still dangerously short-sighted in the long term:
We still won’t win this war by force or playing it up as a victory
in the war against terror.What will win this war is one thing which Bush doesn’t have or won’t embrace willingly:
Diplomacy.
And while he thinks that the talks with Iran this month was still a win for the US, it proved that we have lost a lot of ground with the international community as a whole.
Instead of, “Sure, we’ll sign on board,” Iran has simply offered, “We’ll think about it and let you know the results.”
That in itself is a slap in the face for our long-standing foreign policy initiatives.
And it will be awhile before the nations of the world begin to trust the United States openly again.
A long time indeed…Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Al-Qaeda of Iraq, Bush, civil war, insurgency, Iran, Iraq, time, United States
WHICH SIDE ARE WE ON THESE DAYS? FANTASY OR REALITY?
By Schuyler ThorpeAuthor and Political ActivistIt doesn’t cease to amaze me. You would think that this endless war without a plan or exit strategy would curtail the government and military’s
rosy and
optimistic views on how this conflict is going–but it
hasn’t.
Curiously, it seems to have
magnified the symptoms drastically: Though we have daily bombings in Baghdad, with civilians and US soldiers dying pretty much every day, both the military and the government running this dog and pony show still
believes that they are making “progress”!
So I guess in this instance, we are in
fantasy mode–not reality.
Despite all the carnage going on, both apparatuses are operating under a
make-believe mentality that things are progressing regardless of the enormous loss of life done to both occupier and its
liberated populace.
Which of course, is making the mission in Iraq less definable and more complex. If the recent surge of troops (scheduled to be increased to 28,000) was supposed to have worked by now, it has
failed.
If the recent surge of troops was supposed to have stemmed the bombings and contain the violence, it has
failed.
That is reality. But to Bush and the military, that’s “progress.”
To my mind, this is the
worst application of military and federal intelligence in any war brought forth by the US since its inception over 200 years ago.
It is no wonder the chaos still goes on unimpeded! We are simply allowing this to happen because we got a bunch of amateurs in both sects of command operating under the mentality of a
retard!
This goes beyond anything which the civilized world would be able to understand. And quite frankly, this conflict is creating more instability by the day, than it could possibly do in the exact opposite.
And despite Bush’s claims to progress with Malaki’s government, there hasn’t been at all. Some half-hearted gestures from his side, but in reality, he’s allowed this to go on for far too long.
The Iraqi people are clamoring and
demanding that he does something, but he
can’t.
However, Bush will still call it “progress” no matter what. The Iraqi security forces are unable to halt the violence. Stop the insurgency, stop the Shiite militias.
And neither can ours.
So in effect, what we are dealing with here is something we all call
reality.
But to the Bush administration and the US military, it’s called
fantasy
“progress”.
Schuyler Thorpe is an author, a political activist, and a frequent letter writer to The Everett Herald of Snohomish County. He can be reached at: starchildalpha1@yahoo.comLabels: Bush, chaos, fantasy, Iraq, Malaki, reality, troop surge
