Let's get real
If you aren’t beginning your day by visiting Juan Cole’s Informed Comment site, you just might be missing something. Take this excerpt for example.
“Despite all the talk about Iraq being "calm," I'd like to point out that the month just before the last visit Barack Obama made to Iraq (he went in January, 2006), there were 537 civilian and ISF Iraqi casualties. In June of this year, 2008, there were 554 according to AP. These are official statistics gathered passively that probably only capture about 10 percent of the true toll.
That is, the Iraqi death toll is actually still worse now than the last time Obama was in Iraq! (See the bombings and shootings listed below for Sunday). The hype around last year's troop escalation obscures a simple fact: that Obama formed his views about the need for the US to leave Iraq at a time when its security situation was very similar to what it is now! Why a return to the bad situation in late 05 and early 06 should be greeted by the GOP as the veritable coming of the Messiah is beyond me. You have people like Joe Lieberman saying silly things like if it weren't for the troop escalation, Obama wouldn't be able to visit Iraq. Uh, he visited it before the troop escalation, just fine.”
Professor Cole puts it all into prospective as no one else does.
“Despite all the talk about Iraq being "calm," I'd like to point out that the month just before the last visit Barack Obama made to Iraq (he went in January, 2006), there were 537 civilian and ISF Iraqi casualties. In June of this year, 2008, there were 554 according to AP. These are official statistics gathered passively that probably only capture about 10 percent of the true toll.
That is, the Iraqi death toll is actually still worse now than the last time Obama was in Iraq! (See the bombings and shootings listed below for Sunday). The hype around last year's troop escalation obscures a simple fact: that Obama formed his views about the need for the US to leave Iraq at a time when its security situation was very similar to what it is now! Why a return to the bad situation in late 05 and early 06 should be greeted by the GOP as the veritable coming of the Messiah is beyond me. You have people like Joe Lieberman saying silly things like if it weren't for the troop escalation, Obama wouldn't be able to visit Iraq. Uh, he visited it before the troop escalation, just fine.”
Professor Cole puts it all into prospective as no one else does.
posted by pissed off patricia at 2:07 AM
10 Comments:
If we have success in Iraq, what will be the prize?
A return to the security only known previously in Iraq under the rule of Saddam Hussein?
What will we win? An end to terrorism? No, that will never happen no matter how many troops and billions of dollar we dump on this perpetual war.
If Iraq was a real war, shouldn't have Saddam been tried as a war crininal instead of turned over to his political opposition and murdered?
Bush and his gangster mob need to be tried as a war criminals. That's better deal than Saddam got.
Luckily for them, they also ruined the economy, so our our focus is off real issues we should be debating.
It sure would be easier to just believe the pablum fed to us by the GOP than to read Professor Cole but knowing the sad truth is much better in the long run. We can actually make informed decisions unlike our current leaders. Imagine that?
Well, perepective, insight and education with real facts...oh dear, POP you are just not in keeping with the MSM....after 8 years you were supposed to be dumbed down ( all of us were) and were supposed to believe that "better" is when American Numbers are better NOT the Iraqi numbers.....and then you are supposed to smile and go shopping....that is true patriotism....
oye......
thank heavens for people like you and juan Cole that still encourage us to use our brains....
Bah. I can still stroll in a Baghdad market and get a killer deal on some rugs. Like you all don't have a heavily-armored battalion with you when you go shopping.
Juan Cole has an interesting piece in Salon today, as well. He's written a thoughtful piece on why Obama's position on Afghanistan and Pakistan may not be the best for the region.
It is quite absurd to listen to the promotion of the surge as if it's some brilliant masterstroke in foreign policy or even strategy for that matter.
Trying to fix a problem you created doesn't make you some sort of saint.
Besides it puts U.S. troops in the position of Lucy and Ethel pulling chocolates off of a conveyor line and stuffing them into their mouth, dress, whatever.
It still won't end well.
There's also an insidious banana-republic-like meme coming out of this whole surge/do-what-the-generals-say thing.
Do what the generals say? Nope. Generals TAKE orders from the Prez, they do not give them. When they do, look out!
If only the generals would order a coup d'etat.
My sons vehicle took an IED hit today. He is okay but said things are picking up and he is flat out! Things will not get better and will spread through out the entire middle east then engulf the world. I posted in my post comments today that Mukasey is asking Congress for Bush to have the power to declare war around the entire world on his own. This friggen crap is just beginning I keep telling everyone that./ Bush has yet to do his worst He wants life time rule ! Watch!
thanks PoP for bringing this to our attention. the stats speak for themselves, don't they?
xxx
and, Jim--
so sorry to hear about what happened to your son. glad he's ok.
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