The Illusion of Success

If the surge has produced anything, it's produced an excellent illusion that Iraq is under a great transformation. Do I think that's true? Not really. It seems to me all we did is plug a leak with our finger and the only way to keep it the leak from starting up again is to keep our finger there forever.

But that's not how the people will see it. I'm convinced of this. Americans very easily change their minds on issues and then blame the politicians who just did what they wanted. Remember, nearly two-thirds of Americans supported the Iraq war and nearly two-thirds of Congress voted for it. Now we don't want it anymore and what do we do? We blame Bush, Congressional Republicans and Congressional Democrats. We should be blaming ourselves for buying the administration's excellent work of fiction and letting our post-9/11 emotions get the best of us. Are we going to do it again? Are we going to buy the idea that this "success" forces us to stay in Iraq another five years, elect a President who will do it and then be sorry we did on January 22?

Brian Baird, a Washington Democratic Congressman, has already been convinced this farce is success. President Bush is doing an excellent job changing the Iraq debate in time for next year's election. Republicans will use this "success" as reason to stay in Iraq longer and enough people will buy it to see Democrats are agents of defeat and send Republicans back to the White House, only to regret it six months later.

Andrew Sullivan says it great after watching the Democratic debate;

The Democrats had better think through the shifting sands of Iraq with a little
more authority than they seemed to muster tonight.

To me, this "success" was inevitable and the Iraqis would've stood up against Al-Qaeda whether we were there or not. There has been little to no political reconciliation and the only thing the Iraqi government could agree on is to condemn an American defense contractor as terrorists. It is time to finally tell the Iraqis that we have done everything we can, and we've tried long enough. We need to plan for a withdrawal, not because we're defeated, but because we've done all we could and now it's up to the Iraqis. They have a certain amount of time to get their act together, because they seem to doing it just fine now, and then we're going on to other, more important, things. We are faced with the possibility of battling Iran, a country that if we go to war with it, will be the largest country we've fought since Japan. We're also faced with the possibility that Pakistan, a country of over 100 million people and nuclear weapons, may become an extremist state. We cannot be Iraq's babysitter forever. Our soldiers deserve a better mission. They deserve a mission with true results, not one to fix the colossal mistakes our politicians have made.

Happy Hour

-How could you put me on trial?I truimphed over adversity! I'm the 9/11 hero guy! Do you hate America that much? But...remember 9/11? If you put me in jail, the terrorists win.

-No, Georgia can go f*&% itself, we're Florida and we need the water so our lawns outside our McMansions can be green and lush. After all, we're only surronded on water on THREE sides, not FOUR.

-Terrorists are threatening to stage a coup in Pakistan, so it goes without saying Musharraf will have to put a Western-educated female advocate of democracy until house arrest.

-AMERICA SUPPORT THE ADVANCEMENT OF FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY, AND WILL FIGHT TYRANTS WHEREVER THEY ARE...except South Asia.

-Gee, if we try to pull out of Iraq in the middle of the Veterans Day clearance sale, we might piss off a few dozen people in Oklahoma.

-Hey, Even Republicans see little green men.

-The death penalty is a deterrent, even when they never use it, at least that's what New Jersey Republicans say.

-Giuliani says he has experience to negotiate, but just like he when he was Mayor, he won't.

-IT'S GOING TO BE A LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG YEAR

Well, Well, Well

Turns out the possibility that one day Iran may develop one nuke isn't the biggest concern for us after all.

The Bravest Person On Earth

One must admire the unrelenting patriotism one must have for his or her country for them to return to that country and face near certain death. Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto could have thrown in the towel on Pakistan after they hanged her father. She could have given up when forced her into exile long before Islamic radicals began powerful there. She could have lived out her days in the safety and security of Dubai or London, advocating for a free Pakistan from afar. No one could deny that staying out of Pakistan would've been a smart and lifesaving thing to do. Instead, seeing the need for democracy to return to Pakistan, one of the few Muslim countries to have enjoyed a free society, she went back home facing death threats, and barely survived an attempt on her life in the city she was born in.

Defiant, she did not go into hiding after yesterday's attack. Today, she reminded the world what bravery looks like.

"We are prepared to risk our lives and we are prepared to risk our liberty, but we are not prepared to surrender our great nation to the militants."

Ms. Bhutto can teach everyone out there a lesson about leadership. Among those who should take notes; Congress.

If Ms. Bhutto is willing to give her life for what she believes is right, then the Democratic leadership should be willing to risk their seats for what's right. That is true leadership.

"You're Either With Us, Or With The Terrorists"

And then there's that little spoken-of third category;

You're not with us because you'e harboring terrorists, and we're too scared to force you to take a stand, so we pick on easier targets; Iraq and France for example.

Five Years Too Late

Where was this idea five years ago?

If this trigger-happy cowboy wants to blow things up, why did he have to do in Iraq. Why couldn't he do it in Pakistan, where the terrorists are.

I understand they have nukes and a fragile government that could be overrun by Islamists...really, like India is ever going to let THAT happen.

This is where they are...not Iraq.