I find little to disagree with in Glenn’s article or the many wise postings. Despite what the Bush 43 administration’s, or the neocons’, or the oil guys’, or the military’s hidden agenda was pre-invasion, few seem to talk about the Iraqi Shiite pre-invasion agenda and how it is affecting all these other agendas.

Once the Iraqi Shiites learned that aligning with our government as they did in the Bush 41 confrontation with the Iraqi Sunnis and subsequent slaughter of Shiites by Sadam, their hidden agenda obviously was to support an invasion, let us destroy the Bathists, let a civil war ensue and then finally control and run Iraq. The al-Maliki or any Shiite driven administration is only interested in pretending to install a secular Iraq while waiting for us to become impotent and be forced to leave by the American people and if necessary have to put up with some U.S. military basing. After they have prevailed in the civil war, they will ask for Marshall like assistance.

Prolonging our stay or getting involved in a civil war where the enemy of my enemy is my enemy and so many hidden agendas abound is only killing and wounding more of our military. If we had any realistic, pre-invasion open agenda, Joe Biden’s weak federal government and three-way partition would have had to be it. Realizing that, realistic leaders, of which we had damn few, would have concluded not to invade and empower al-Qaeda and create millions of refugees and deaths.

Those of us, who see through all the hidden agendas and unimportance of any Gen. Petraeus report, have to continue to help awaken enough of the American people to detest these hidden agendas and give support to senators like Lugar and Warner to force a withdrawal, so that realism, open government and humanity can be more of a major player in the political mess we find ourselves. And, just maybe, we could elect a president that could help us start on a new path. Let the optimistic pessimists prevail.

Yes. Cultural ignorance, spoiled brat arrogance, religious awakenings, insecure psyches, power-lust, ends justify the means ideology, etc., make it fairly easy to play them. I wished so many Americans weren’t such dupes. Maybe they could learn something from the "savage" Arabs and Persians. Most of the world leaders clearly understand and are disgusted that they have to deal with our present "leadership."

Thanks. Everything in that part of the world and our foreign policy always leads back to Israel. They and the Israeli lobby have played us like a violin since the beginning. They are so afraid of the truth that they kept a DePaul professor from getting tenure in June of this year just because he wrote the truth about Israeli mistakes and deception.

Well said. When you are running for your life for such a long time, you do sustain scars, such that you assassinate the only prime minister that had a real shot at bringing about peace. Scarred psyches can have a hard time seeing the forest for the trees and lash out at people who are trying to help.

Keith Olbermann had another great rant tonight on just that attack of Hillary and the American people.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19859124/

Anyone, and that includes myself during a 28-year Air Force career, who has not experienced combat first hand, is not in a good position to make military decisions about other people’s lives. It is too easy to carelessly play war games and not understand to the depth of your being what war does to the soul of everyone involved.

The most disgusting “players” are those who play with the scarred minds of veterans as happened when John Kerry who volunteered to serve, served admirably, had the guts to oppose the Vietnam war, and then was condemned with false stories that seriously damaged his campaign. Carl Rove and his political games gave us the disaster that is George W. Bush. Giuliani and Romney only believe in politics and power, not what is best for America and the world. True character has to be the prime reason to select our next president. They and all the GOP candidates don’t have it. I’m sorry I have to include John McCain because he sold his soul to the right wing this go round.

And even when you do experience combat, someone like Gen. Colin Powell who rose to the top because of politics, you can sell your soul to get there and then blame everyone but yourself after the Iraq disaster and claim that you knew the right thing to do but weren’t listened to. If he really knew how bad it would be, he would have stood tall like Gen. Shinseki and prevent the tragic results. Real combat leaders, who knew Powell well during his career, will tell you that he was a phony. Down with all phonies.

Highly recommend this article. According to Punjab (Jim Coffey) REPUBLICANTS are Rich Elitists Professing Unending Bigotry, lacking Integrity, Compassion, And Never Talking Straight.

I am going to use this when I talk about these Unpatriots, although we should remember, there are disgusted Republicans and conservatives that are not part of this sorry congregation.