Letters to the Editor
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Thank you, Barbara Kaplan
Got any kids, Barbara? Read on:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/6458145.stm
How many more of these would you like to see?
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How the Democrats blew it.
"The war is increasingly perceived as a low-level annoyance, barely even making the news."
Because there is only GOOD NEWS coming out of Iraq and we are also winning (we always were). If the opposite was true, then Iraq would be front page news.
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How the Democrats blew it.
"Amazingly, it now appears possible that the Republicans will suffer no long-term political damage for having started and for continuing to support what is arguably the most disastrous war in U.S. history."
The Democrats had absolutely nothing to do with this war. Remember, the Democratic frontrunner voted for it.
Get off you hate of Republicans and specially Bush and tell the truth.
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Here's some good news for you to read over your cornflakes, Hartnack!
You might like to broaden your news sources beyond Fox
sometime. A few more successes like this, and we'll be right up there with Germany in the Genocide Sweepstakes! Have a nice day!
Poll: Civilian toll in Iraq may top 1M
A British survey offers the highest estimate to date. At least 4 die in a Sadr City car bombing.
By Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 14, 2007
BAGHDAD -- -- A car bomb blew up in the capital's Shiite Muslim neighborhood of Sadr City on Thursday, killing at least four people, as a new survey suggested that the civilian death toll from the war could be more than 1 million.
The figure from ORB, a British polling agency that has conducted several surveys in Iraq, followed statements this week from the U.S. military defending itself against accusations it was trying to play down Iraqi deaths to make its strategy appear successful.
The military has said civilian deaths from sectarian violence have fallen more than 55% since President Bush sent an additional 28,500 troops to Iraq this year, but it does not provide specific numbers.
According to the ORB poll, a survey of 1,461 adults suggested that the total number slain during more than four years of war was more than 1.2 million.
ORB said it drew its conclusion from responses to the question about those living under one roof: "How many members of your household, if any, have died as a result of the conflict in Iraq since 2003?"
Based on Iraq's estimated number of households -- 4,050,597 -- it said the 1.2 million figure was reasonable.
There was no way to verify the number, because the government does not provide a full count of civilian deaths. Neither does the U.S. military.
Both, however, say that independent organizations greatly exaggerate estimates of civilian casualties.
ORB said its poll had a margin of error of 2.4%. According to its findings, nearly one in two households in Baghdad had lost at least one member to war- related violence, and 22% of households nationwide had suffered at least one death. It said 48% of the victims were shot to death and 20% died as a result of car bombs, with other explosions and military bombardments blamed for most of the other fatalities.
The survey was conducted last month.
It was the highest estimate given so far of civilian deaths in Iraq. Last year, a study in the medical journal Lancet put the number at 654,965, which Iraq's government has dismissed as "ridiculous."
The car bomb in Sadr City injured at least 10 people and set fire to several shops. Also Thursday, police said they had found the bodies of nine people believed to be victims of sectarian killings across the capital.
In its latest salvo at Iran, the U.S. military accused the Islamic Republic of providing the 240-millimeter rocket that earlier this week slammed into Camp Victory, the sprawling base that houses the U.S. Army headquarters. The attack on the base near Baghdad's airport injured 11 soldiers and killed one "third-country national."
At a news conference, a military spokesman, Army Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner, displayed a chunk of metal that he said had come from the rocket. Asked how he could be sure it was of Iranian origin, Bergner said its color and markings were unique to rockets from Iran.
The United States accuses Iran's Shiite leaders of providing weapons, training and other assistance to Shiite militias fighting U.S. forces in Iraq. Iran denies the accusation.
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Again though, as opposed to what
We say stay you say that's evil. We say go you say no we owe them. We stay have a plan and you say stop funding it. Ok. Now what?
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sesanders, What Chance to End the War?
First I would like to say that I think it is utterly hilarious that you would say something like "apparently [you've] struck a nerve". Yes, you have struck a nerve. And apparently I've struck a nerve too because you keep writing back. Apparently Gary Kamiya struck a nerve, you've written four letters on this one article!
Of course you've "struck a nerve", because this is a very important topic to talk about. Even if people like you think that talking about it will only cause harm. Talking about this is good, and far better to discuss it than leave it as some hidden shame.
I know that you think this Faustian bargain we have that will only keep ineffective politicians in office is the only thing we can do. This is, however, a self-defeating strategy that will only lead to failure.
You have very neatly packaged liberals who discuss our politicians for what they are, ineffective, as the fall guy for any future political failure, but that is not the Democrat's real problem. You can blame the left for future failure all day and night long (as you have been doing here on Salon), but in the end the Democrats will fail because they are simply ineffective at what they do.
Criticism of the Democrats is not what causes their failure. "Political realities" may tell you differently, but that is the truth. Americans will not vote for ineffective politicians because someone pointed that plain fact out, they will not vote for ineffective politicians because they want something to get done.
And the only way to get rid of ineffective politicians is to vote them out of office. We can't wait 20 or 30 years to get them out via retirement. If we can’t replace them with more effective politicians now, then yes, we may have to wait 2 or 4 years. But that beats you strategy any day, which will only give us mediocre and ineffective leadership of the next few decades. But hey, if you can just blame their detractors for all of their mediocrity then the status quo is just fine, now isn’t it sesanders?