Clueless

via The Globe and Mail

At hearings yesterday, Mr. Levin forced Mr. Gates and Lieutenant-General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

Okay..so I'm nitpicking...the most senior member of the worlds third largest military has what rank? Should a guy who can't tell the difference between a 3 star general and a 4 star general (one wears 3 stars..the other 4 stars) be considered an authoritative source on a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing?

The Bi-Partisans Have Spoken

Reuters

President George W. Bush made clear on Saturday he would not back off his plan to send more troops to Iraq despite bipartisan hostility to the idea and he accused his critics of failing to offer an alternative.

But it's easier to be "anti-war" once you've been trained to believe that only George Bush has anything to lose.

Talibani Responds to "the Surge"

A translation from Iraqi media, via Haider Ajina.

Bush's speech was delivered in the pre-dawn hours, Iraq time, and initial US media coverage accurately noted "no response yet" from the Iraqi government.

I don't know if any American outlets have subsequently covered Talibani's response, but the AP did have this today:

Days after President Bush accused Syria of encouraging the violence in Iraq, President Jalal Talabani on Sunday will become the highest-level Iraqi official to visit this country in more than 24 years.

Re: The Two Below

I highly recommend everyone follow the links in the next two posts down.

There may be a few folks who don't know it (and she doesn't mention it) but Some Soldier's Mom's soldier son was wounded in action during his last trip to Iraq. The Mrs and I got to meet both her and her husband at Landstuhl, where he had been evac'd for medical care. (Unfortunately, that was the only way we got to meet fellow milbloggers while we were in Germany. Fortunately the number wasn't high.)

There are two sides in this war. You can't call for defeat of one without simultaneously calling for victory for the other. Obviously I'm not addressing those who simply voice concerns over the whole "surge" concept - I'm among that number myself. But if you live in the United States or enjoy the protections we afford so many other nations, then you have a stake in this war, and will bear both the unforeseable and predictable consequences of failure. Sadly, too many - perhaps because of those very perceptions of protection here and abroad - feel too much distance from that threat, and can summon adequate "courage" to participate in a simultaneous (and safer, at least as far as immediate likelihood of a participant's physical injury or death) political "war".

The stakes are high in that more genteel battle too, but I fear those who think victory in that sphere will somehow justify defeat in ours are in for a rather rude awakwening should they grasp that brass ring of their fondest dreams.

It's Not a Sound Bite...

Wednesday morning, the phone rings. “Who the heck is calling at this hour?” As I turn over to reach for the nightstand, I glance at the windows in the room. They’re still dark; no hint of light. And I mutter under my breath, “It’s never good news if it’s dark.” As I reach for the phone, the green numbers on the clock say 5:30. I pick the phone out of its cradle and push the “on” button.

"Hello?"
“Hey, Ma.” I mentally calculate, 7:30 Georgia time.
“Hey. Everything OK?”
“We’re going.”
"Your unit?”
“Yeah.”
“Shit.” Great. Not even out of bed and I’m already cursing.
“Do you know when?”
“Can’t say exactly. Looks like March. Be sure to watch the President's speech tonight."
I think, as if we’d miss it??
“Is it official? Did you get orders?”
“Not yet.” And then he tells me a tentative date.
Damn. Just Damn.

Follow along at Some Soldier's Mom

Et Tu?

I SAW IT IN MY INBOX this evening. It was an email from a familiar name, someone very close to me. But it was the subject line that got me really steamed:

FW: Oppose Escalation in Iraq

Opening it, I read this single line from a loved one:

Let your conscience decide....

What followed was, as the subject line suggested, a forwarded petition urging Congress to cut off funding for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Continue reading "Et Tu?"