At last, the real scoop on the Petraeus report: http://www.brainsnap.com/national/531/general_petraeus_greatest_battle_illiteracy

If this country were a banana republic (don't get me started), I would think that the Joint Chiefs of Staff were sending clear signals to the administration that the military is on the edge of a coup. But with the gross politization that has occurred in the upper echelons of the military, the posturing signals seem eerily similar to the Lugar/Warner tap-dances about the Iraq War. In the meantime, American mothers of military sons keep burying their children.

"Half a league, half a league, half a league onward..."

Everybody knows that statements like "You have no choice" are intended to imply to opposite.

It needed to be said. The Democrats won't say it, the Republicans DEFINATELY won't say it. TV journalists won't say it. That leaves the public.

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military- industrial complex." -Eisenhower

There is more financial profit in staying in Iraq than leaving. Bush will never get us out of Iraq. Never ever ever.

Hold on a moment. The JOINT CHIEFS are talking about REDUCING the U.S. military presence in Iraq? Holy smoking turd blossoms, Batman! Aren't these guys supposed to be the most warmongering set of bastards on the planet? That they would at least appear to be more pacifistic than the "leader of the free world" is somewhat earthshattering to me.

But hey, I'm a naive Berkeley liberal. What do I know?

Speaking as a naive Berkeley liberal, I vaguely recall from my high school government class something about the "right of petition for the change of government" as a constitutional right of we, the people. Eh? EH? Catch my drift? Petition! Anyone?

Come on, people, the Congress won't do shit. Apparently, we've elected them to split hairs, mince words and push through obscure pork-barrel legislation. They're carefully pruning a couple of trees while letting the forest burn. No good. So. Are we doing anything about it rather than bitching?

Aiee. Fine. I'll just sit here and growl. I mean, I could send a petition for the change of government to Washington D.C., myself, but the only way it'll be worth more than a two-ply sheet of toilet paper is if we have another million-man march to D.C. demanding Bush's head. (Devoid of brain though it is.)

Anyone? Anyone?

Call me an idealist, but I don't think Bush is keeping us in Iraq for primarily financial reasons. This isn't about the military industrial complex. This isn't about Cheney's Halliburton pals. This isn't even about oil.

Bush is driven by so much more and so much less than that--ideology. Iraq is the staging ground for the epic battle of his lifetime. Democracy versus Tyranny. God-fearing Christians versus the Heathen. Good versus Evil. Us versus Them.

The facts on the ground will never dissuade him because he looks to a higher Truth.

Which is friggin' scary.

I'm sorry, but I don't buy that at all. that gives him too much credit for some sort of twisted moral compass. If he was truly there on a crusade things would have been handled much differently. The Iraq war has been kept on a constant simmer since Sadaam's statue toppled. All this is is a steady stream of money. Too many people, too well connected have been fattening themselves off of the Iraq war like foie gras geese.

I put Cheney in the same trash can with Bush. I don't buy for a second the purity of the neocon's intentions. There's too much money at the root of their new world vision.

The ideology, the religious vision...that reels in the gullible right wing voters.

We know what "the process" is for this President. He "hear[s] from his commanders on the ground," until such a time as those commanders start telling him things that he doesn't want to hear (see Shinseki, Eric), at which point that commander "retires", or "accepts a new assignment", or some such. And then Bush does whatever it is he needs to do to keep stretching out this war until January, 2009.

This President wouldn't agree to sign a bill bringing the troops home if he was frog-marched across the Oval office and had the pen forced into his hand at gun-point. A few adverse words from Senators and military officers is definitely not going to do it. History will vindicate him after we're all dead.

Or at least, after a lot more American troops and Iraqis are dead.

Looks like General Pace will be stepping down soon. Any dissent from past gererals have triggered the same events thanks to this WH.

Anyone want to bet what Bush will do? Let me guess. He will state that "progress is being made on the ground" and will ask for more patience and sacrifice.

This administration is determined to have the war continue until January, 2009 so this poopie diaper can be cleaned up by the next POTUS. In that way, the spin can be made that the successor HW is to blame for the failure of Iraq. If more troops and cilivians die, well, that is just an additional cost of doing business.

Follow the money

From the beginning, this war has been about massive handouts to corporations, either via tax cuts or no-bid contracts. Remember right at the beginning when all that money went to KBR and Halliburton because, we were told, that they were the only ones who could perform. Bull.

Plus, war is good for the economy. If all that war money was not being pumped into the economy (much of it "trickle down"), the real impact of the Bush economic policy would be more truly felt.

Bush and his Big Oil/Saudi clients are getting desperate. The Iraq cakewalk they believed they could pull off is falling apart. The Saudis have made huge investments in "American" oil companies and in "American" defense industries expecting that to protect them as their oil runs out. Saudi Arabia will be Osama Arabia in five or so years as the Saudi family bails. Of course they expected to live off the profits from "American" Big Oil companies, especially with the huge profits they expected from the Iraq adventure. The Bush family has been heavily involved in facilitating the takeover of American politics by Big Oil and their Saudi investors. The next five years will be real interesting as their desperation increases. It costs a lot of money to support Saudi princes in their accustomed lifestyle of living the good life on the Med and screwing all those European women.