July 7, 2004, Partial Birth Martial Law
Soo-prahz, soo prahz. The interim Iraqi government announced an "Emergency Law" that will "restrict some liberties" in some areas, for some time (around 60 days... for now)...
Lookit: this is understandable. The place is a freaking disaster, and will remain so until we have regime change... HERE. The best thing the United States of America can do for Iraq, since we are politically unwilling to do what is actually necessary (which is break the country into at least four autonomous regions, and invite in neighboring nations to assist in the peace-keeping and and stabilizing efforts, and I DO mean Turkey, Jordan, Syria and Iran ("bygones"), and I most definitely DO NOT mean Saudi Arabia, which has just done enough for everyone), is... get the fuck out, and I mean yesterday.
While Senator Kerry can't promise it (for obvious reasons-- many stupid people who vote think that there is a reason we lose 4 or 5 Americans a week-- there MUST be, right?), he represents our best hope for doing what is the smartest move available-- the only move which will STRENGTHEN our long-term security: cutting and running.
I know, I know: to cut and run is what we would expect of the miserable failure in office now. But we can do it soon after President Kerry is sworn in this January, noting that "the Iraqi people have selected their government... good luck."
True, we won't control their oil infrastructure, so there IS a chance it might actually be rebuilt (frustrating the current President's Saudi masters), and there is no guarantee whatsoever that the new Iraq will let us have bases there-- but then, we don't need bases there. This is the problem: there was never any reason to assume that an Iraqi government that we didn't control would like us. Indeed, there was plenty of reason to conclude the exact opposite. So-- its a simple cost-benefit analysis now: $2 billion and 5 dead soldiers a week-- or yielding control of a country that we illegally and immorally invaded for no reason, which we have left in a shambles and whose ongoing instability makes it the likeliest failed state/terrorist magnet in the world right now?
This one seems awfully easy to me. The President insists he has no trouble making decisions; I guess when you never make a correct one (unless its for your own benefit to take advantage of your family name), it IS easy. Isn't it.
Comments
Riding the Tiger
He broke it so he bought it
Americans die
Posted by at July 7, 2004 09:54 AM
You might just repair a bit of the non-oil infrastructure before you go, you know, the odd power station, a hospital or water plant here and there.
Posted by Ron Wells at July 7, 2004 03:03 PM
I agree with Ron. We should do those things. Besides, Halliburton's already billed us for the work.
Posted by Mr. Agreeable at July 7, 2004 04:39 PM
We've done SO MUCH for the Iraqi people as it is-- I'm sure they're already grateful with what we've done for them so far and would be delighted if we were to just leave. I mean, my God: how many schools can you paint?
Posted by the talking dog at July 7, 2004 04:53 PM
Why TD....as many as our bombs destroyed!
Posted by alicia at July 7, 2004 07:57 PM
I'm more concerned about issues here at home, like the lack of access to basic health care for a significant portion of our own citizens, and the high cost for the rest, than I am about the Iraqis.
I don't cry for them. You people are like Andie MacDowell in Sex, Lives and Videotape. Worry about your own problems, conquer them, and then go out and save the world.
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Posted by V. Dombrosky at July 8, 2004 12:43 AM
The problem, Pete, is that the US broke it. We have an obligation to fix it. If we don't clean up after ourselves, we lose even more respect than we already have, and if you don't believe international respect is important, well, you are mistaken. We need to get it back, and leaving without fixing what we broke wouldn't do it. Most of the folks in the US now realize the war was a tragic error in judgement foisted on us by a crew of liars and thieves, but most of us agree that the mess is ours to fix.
It's a big country. With real leadership, we could fix the Iraq mess that Shrub gave us and fix the economic and healthcare issues as well.
Posted by WallyCoxLives at July 8, 2004 08:26 AM
I certainly agree with the "You broke it, you bought it" theorem. But here's the thing: in any recipe, if you leave it out a key ingredient, the thing you are cooking won't taste the same.
The fact is, we have done a huge number of civil projects- schools painted, sewers, water, power-- that sort of thing-- that NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT.
Why does no one know about them--including the Iraqis? Because no one can get there to report on them. Why? Because we have fucked up on the single, BY FAR, most important thing possible: basic security. If you can't walk outside of your house without getting shot or blown up, little else matters.
We seem to have forgotten that. THAT is why we have fucked up, and less than 2% of Iraqis-- RIGHTLY-- think we should be there a minute longer.
Even if it takes an Iraqi thug to impose martial law-- it is better than what WE have wrought on the Iraqis.
Yes, it would be nice if we cleaned up our mess. But I repeat: we are doing more damage by staying.
Posted by the talking dog at July 8, 2004 09:02 AM
Then we agree and it is a matter of the approach to repairing things that we disagree on. I can't say whether staying makes it worse or whether new leadership could make our presence there palatable, calm the region, and get the repairs progressing.
One of the major issues is that we have thieves for contractors there. I am sure money has been spent on a great many projects to repair the Iraqi infrastructure. With the crowd who were handed the keys to the treasury, I don't know if the money spent actually translated into any actual work, except for the purchase of $45 cases of soda and so on.
Posted by WallyCoxLives at July 8, 2004 10:58 AM
Wally-
Those are two different issues. The feeding trough has been set up(largely by Dick Cheney himself) WAY BEFORE this Administration: the Pentagon largely exists not to defend this country, but to dole out government money to the few, the proud, the insiders. To be hoenst, once the war was on, the thievery of Halliburton and Bechtel in particular, was long in place; general "waste fraud and abuse" is always expected to be in the 10-20% range (learned from my brief term as a peon at the GAO); under Bechtel and Halliburton, its probably closer to 70%-- but you know how these things go. They are doing SOMETHING-- just at a ridiculous cost (and they have the added benefit of having the political savvy NOT to let French and German firms in on the action-- regardless of their possible efficiencies).
I know from personal experience that anyone not already connected to the trough who tried to break into the Iraq contract game-- no matter how small a contract they were seeking and even if Rummy and Wolfy personally wanted them to have the contract were shut out: this is a "Invitation to Large Pigs Only" game, thanks. (Yes, Dick-- not Rummy-- controls even that.)
The other issue started with the immediate Chalabi-made decision to disband the army and simultaneously throw the borders open-- in particular the SAUDI BORDER-- to terrorists. The resulting chaos was pretty much fore-ordained the very day the army was disbanded. When you think how dumb that was it makes your head spin.
The rank and file troops did not "run the country"; and the generals could have been told "play ball, or you will be shot" quite directly. Instead-- chaos, for ideological reasons.
Ultimately, we will owe that country war reparations, probably for eternity... (Bush, et al,., are hoping that this and all the other debts he is piling up will be mooted by the Rapture) but right now, what we owe them is at least a SHOT at stability-- and the only way we can do that, IMHO, is by leaving. Yesterday. Its pretty much the only thing Iraqis of all sectors can agree on.
Posted by the talking dog at July 8, 2004 12:09 PM
Dammit. Couldn't you just agree with me?
Posted by WallyCoxLives at July 8, 2004 02:58 PM
Hey, sometimes I can't even agree with myself.
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