RE: Change in the Weather

At least both sides of the aisle are starting to talk about the future. It is getting to the point that the media is just making a mockery of themselves. Another case in point. CBS just finished an interview with outgoing Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, General Hagee. If those who claim to be all focused on success, if they are, would expend half as much time thinking about how to get there......

The hack interviewer, David Martin (or the editor of the interview) remains scope-locked on .... wait for it ... yes "Phase IV" of OIF. Have these people not read anyting but Fiasco? (yes, I am reading it again so you don't have to). I have the links here, make sure and watch the whole interview. What a lost opportunity.

Permanent Defeat

Josh Manchester (who blogs at Adventures of Chester), writing today at Tech Central Station, reacts to the James Carroll piece from last week in the Boston Globe. This was the Editorial, readers may remember, in which Carroll suggested that Americans might best look upon failure and defeat in Iraq as a necessary prescription for what ails. We lost our honor in going into Iraq, and it’s too late to worry about losing any more by turning tail, Carroll concluded.

I responded last week with considerable anger, thinking Carroll’s question an easy one “for any fool in Boston to ask, since the lives of many brave men and women In Iraq would be the objects of his answer.”

Carroll went further, admonishing his fellow Americans that, “can we acknowledge that there is something proper in the way that hubristic American power has been thwarted?”

Carroll says we lost our honor in how we got to Iraq, and have no more to lose, now. I’ll say again:

(To preclude my repeating myself here at MILBLOGS, read the rest at Dadmanly.)

The Closet Plan

The New York Times waits until after the midterm elections to observe that, so far, the Democrats have offered slogan and criticism and little else to help Iraq.

Well, sure, we wouldn’t want an editorial perspective to get in the way of accomplishing the mission, right?

At considerable expense to my nerves – and digestion – I sat through a couple of press outings by Senator Reid and Congresswoman Pelosi this weekend.

Quite astonishing, watching them fumble their way through scripted attempts to sound knowledgeable and responsible about military planning for Iraq.

I can’t remember which interview, Rep. Pelosi I think stumbled through a bland and utterly familiar list combining military and diplomatic initiatives. Not one item on her list suggested one hair’s worth of deviation from what the US military and the Bush Administration have already been doing in Iraq, nigh on 3 years.

That will be one heck of a plan for Iraq, I should observe.

“Keep doing exactly what you’ve been doing, great job and all. Meanwhile, we’ll be busted our humps trying to get you out of there as soon as we can! Oh, and remember, this is all George Bush’s fault!”

With Democrats, it’s all about who’s and what’s in the closet. If Republican Gays are in, they want them out. If the military’s out, they want them safely tucked back in, where they can’t get hurt.

Welcome to the Mommy Party. It’s all about cleaning the closets!

(Cross-posted at Dadmanly)

Change in the Weather

Something to think about...

A careful read will reveal that while the President does not definitively argue for "stay the course", Dr Dean is not arguing for "cut and run". Democrats - with an increased say in US policy, are now confronted with the very real fact that they could be perceived as architects of defeat - as opposed to the pre-election "Cassandra" position they no longer enjoy. Still, they've promised "change" - an amorphous concept that is actually a near-daily reality in Iraq, and has no significant current Republican opposition. But while U.S. politicians move slowly towards a new, improved, compromise definition of "change", al Qaeda is able to act fast in declaring victory.

This fits in with another aspect of that "media invasion" - divide and conquer America. Sap the will of half the people, and the other half will not be able to confront a (seemingly) distant enemy while being obstructed on the home front. Until now that split has been defined by political party affiliation. But any upcoming "compromise" will likely have the interesting impact of alienating half of Republican voters and half of the Democrats -each for different reasons, of course, but this promises a potentially interesting variation from the pre-election partisan separation.

'Iraqi Forces Success in its War Against Terrorist Gangs

News from Haider Ajina - I received this one late on Veterans Day.

Greetings,
The following is my translation of a head line and article which appeared in Iraq Alkhadcon November 12.

'Iraqi Forces Success in its War Against Terrorist Gangs
Those who kill our people are now in the hands of those who protect our people'.

'Ninewa police announced Saturday that Iraqi military killed two terrorists and arrested eight during clashes in Telaafar. Two Arabs (non-Iraqis) were arrested in Mosul. A group of terrorists arrested near Baqubah, had weapons and fliers in their position. During a search and seizure operation West of Baqubah, Iraqi forces and multinational forces arrested 18 terrorists including eight Arabs (non-Iraqis), five carried Sudanese papers, and three carried Egyptian papers. Mohamed Alaskari speaker for the Iraqi Defense Ministry announced the killing of an Alqaida Emir (Commander) in Western Ramadi. The interior ministry announced Thursday that Iraqi security forces have killed 90 and arrested 73 suspected terrorists during the first week of November'.

Haider's comments,

While most of the news focuses on the car bombs and killings in certain areas of Baghdad, North and North West of Baghdad. Our military and the Iraqi security forces (who we trained) are working hard combating the perpetrators of most of these attacks. Many Iraqi papers are referring to the terrorist as the Baath-Alqaidans, further reflecting the continued alliance between the Baathists and Alqaida in Iraq. We must not forget that the Baathists are still ruling Syria, and they are backing the Baath Alaqida activities in Iraq such as IEDs, snipers and kidnappings. We do not hear about the arrest and killings of these terrorists. All we read and hear is sectarian killing. While the Baathists ruled Iraqi they killed and maimed hundreds of thousands Iraqis and no one was calling it sectarian killing then. In fact, hardly any one condemned what Saddam and his regime was doing then, particularly other Arab rulers. Now Mubarek of Egypt says Sadam should not hang for his crimes. Dictators in the Arab world are watching their future as they see Sadam on trial for his crimes against the Iraqi people. This of course makes dictators fearful and nervous.

Today, we honor our military veterans and those in the military who are serving our country, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. While we honor them, they are doing their duty for our country by combating terrorist in Iraq and Afghanistan. To all the men and women who have served and serving in Iraq. To all the families of those who have paid the ultimate price. To all those who have suffered during their service in Iraq. My family’s and my deepest thanks, gratitude and pride both from the U.S. and Iraq for all the sacrifices, endurance and service for our great country and Iraq and the Iraqis. God bless all of you and keep you safe.

Regards
Haider Ajina
McKinleyville CA

(Thats today's news from the military side. Haider also reveals some under-reported Iraqi civil successes here.)

Over?!

Did you say "over"?

Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!
Otter: Germans?
Boon: Forget it, he's rolling.
And it ain't over now. 'Cause when the goin' gets tough...
[thinks hard]
the tough get goin'! Who's with me? Let's go!
[runs out, alone; then returns]
What the [bleep] happened to the Air Force I used to know? Where's the spirit? Where's the guts, huh? "Ooh, we're afraid to donate, Bluto." Well just kiss my ass from now on! Not me! I'm not gonna take this. Wormer, he's a dead man! Marmalard, dead! Niedermeyer...

How Not to Document Your Time While Deployed

How can you guarantee a counseling session from a superior and a minor shytestorm? Post a video on YouTube of you and your buddies duct taping a female servicemember to a pole that gets linked on the frontpage of Drudge to which an unidentified Pentagon official is quoted as saying "I am not laughing."

Yeah, this will really make the DOD more receptive to blogging in its varying forms. (and no, I don't think the video is a big deal, but my opinion doesn't count)

Now for the fun: How will this video be argued as further proof of our "failed policy" in Iraq? I vote something along the lines of "if our soldiers weren't goofing off, they'd realize how immoral and horrible this war is." Or something.

More Murtha

A few short months ago, Murtha Madness broke here at MilBlogs.

Fast forward to today:

“Your strong voice for national security, the war on terror and Iraq provides genuine leadership for our party, and I count on you to continue to lead on these vital issues,” Pelosi wrote Murtha Sunday in a letter obtained by The Hill. “For this and for all you have done for Democrats in the past and especially this last year, I am pleased to support your candidacy for majority leader for the 110th Congress.”…

How's Okinawa this time of year?

Water Under the Bridge...

...as they say, but has it ocurred to anyone else that the replacement of Donald Rumsfeld was already decided before the Army Times ran (or even wrote) its editorial calling for just that?