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The war in Iraq

Sorry for light posting today. We're trying to attend sessions at the Alternative Newsweeklies convention here.

We heard Wesley Clark this morning. He got a rousing reception. He started slowly -- we liked his capsule history of Arkansas, but we live here -- but picked up steam. His political outlook was popular in the room and the breadth and depth of his understanding of war, peace, economics, education and more were obvious and forcefully expressed. His explanation of how we arrived where we are in Iraq and how we must work our way out of it -- with an unavoidable continued commitment of troops -- should be mandatory viewing side-by-side with that of the nominal commander in chief.

And speaking of Iraq, U.S. Rep. Vic Snyder has a typically thoughtful statment on the House Republicans' ploy to pass a stay-the-course resolution. Read it on the jump.(As a reader noted, it didn't stop Snyder and the rest of the Ark. delegation from voting for the largely meaningless resolution -- an election year ploy -- against setting a specific withdrawal date.)

VIC SNYDER STATEMENT

Congressman Vic Snyder delivered the following speech on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives last night on House Resolution 861, the Iraq Resolution.

 

“Mr. Speaker, this resolution contains phrases such as ``we will prevail,'' words like ``determination,'' ``resolve,'' ``we are committed to the completion of the mission.'' It is a good, well written pep talk. But where is the discussion of how?

 

“As Mr. Gilchrest, our colleague from Maryland and a decorated Vietnam war veteran said, where is the urgency in figuring out how we are going to do those things?

 

“We should be having a debate and a discussion on how we will prevail, not just that we want to prevail.

 

“Specifically, how are we going to equip a very poorly equipped Iraqi army? How are we going to set up a system of support and supply and repair for the Iraqi army? How are we going to ensure that more Iraqis are employed and develop the economy? How are we going to increase electricity production, which is below prewar levels? How are we going to increase access to potable water and sanitation, which is below prewar levels? How are we going to increase oil production and the oil production sector, which is below prewar levels? How are we going to finish putting together the provincial reconstruction teams? How are we going to increase and improve the training of police? How are we going to help create and improve local courts and the judicial system? How are we going to improve the refining capacity? Iraq is an importer of gasoline. How are we going to improve the accountability for contractors? That means how are we going to quit wasting billions of U.S. tax dollars? How are we going to find more allies to share in this burden? How are we going to keep our Army, our military from breaking down? How are we going to strengthen our Reserve component, our blessed Guard and Reserve people? How are we going to preserve our all volunteer Army? How are we going to increase our public diplomacy, so that people will quit hating America all around the world? How are we going to make our troops safer?

 

“Those are the kinds of discussions we should be having. But what are we doing? We are rehashing the past. We are talking about the 1990s. We are talking about the war resolution. Let us look ahead. How are we going to prevail? How are we going to keep this commitment to the completion of this mission?

 

“Specifically, I think we need to do far better oversight. I am a member of the House Armed Services Committee. We are abysmal in our oversight, abysmal.

 

“Years ago when the Republicans took over, and maybe it was a good move at that time, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations was eliminated. It has not worked to do that.

 

“I see friends over here. Ladies and gentlemen, we need to bring back the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations so we can ask these kind of questions. How are we going to do the things? How are we going to achieve this pep talk that is going to be voted on today or tomorrow?

 

Comments

That's a great speech and everything, but Vic (along with all other Arkansas delegates) voted in favor.

Obviously, we all support THE TROOPS. So I don't want to hear the neocons calling for liberal heads.

This is just more of the same. Stay the course, stay the course, stay the course...gimme a break. Rep. Murtha called it right...we need a change of direction. Now.

2500+ and counting, 10 killed in a suicide attack on a mosque that has been bombed before, provincial Iraqi police chiefs that trust 1/5 of their officers, no plan whatsoever, $$$$, etc. etc. etc. But "We will prevail..."
I am no "defeatist" or whatever the right wing 30%r's call us progressives, but it is time for lawmakers to stop sipping the GOP kool aid. Wake up America...c'mon...

This may upset you but Vic Snyder voted YEA on the resolution supporting the war. Pelosi voted NAY.

I'm not upset about the votes of Snyder or Pelosi. I am dismayed that no one is constructively addressing the questions that Vic asks.

Vic says one thing and votes another. He has the best of both worlds.

The answer to all those questions is 'we aren't'. Republicans hate government so much that when they're actually asked to govern, they can't do it. That's what happens when you live off Daddy's money. You grow up incompetent.

I am sort of a Snyder groupie so I probably shouldn't be commenting. I can even forgive him for voting yea. I wish he would run for President. But he'd never make it. Way too honest.

I'm sure the republicans will "address" his questions. They are probably already working on new names to call him and others who question their "expertise."

BTW where are all of the rich republicans kids at and why are they not serving their country?

OK, Dr. Strangelove, for the sake of discussion, let's stipulate that Vic Snyder is a two-faced horse's patoot. Now, what are your constructive suggestions for addressing the concerns he has suggested?

I'm proud to wear the title Cut and Run Democrat. It's not my ass dodging suicide bombers in Iraq this morning. How much guts does it take to stand proudly and commit someone else's life to danger?

If we invaded Iraq to get rid of WMDs, our job is done. If we invaded Iraq to get rid of Sadam, our job is done. Our troops are targets, Iraqi freedom shouldn't be built on a stack of 2500 American bodies. Every horror was predicted when we pulled out of Vietnam and none of it came true. We are now trading partners with Vietnam, lots of American tourist go there each year.

I am not being patriotic sitting in my house screaming STAY THE COURSE. No insurgent is gunning for my old white rear-end. And what about that course? One of the reasons Democrats in Congress have a hard time talking out against the war in Iraq, the mess Bush has made of our country, is because there are so many things screwed up it's hard to know where to start. I say pick one and start hammering!

The Bush Course has been a disaster from day one. No successes, none. Oh, the Iraqi people have a government, huh? Well, I set up a government for the 2 cats in my house and it is as functional, maybe more than the US puppet government in Iraq. It's a sham, it's a shame, it's a joke. We need to stop pretending any Iraqi is calling the shots in Iraq...it's simply not true.

So the Bush Course continues to kill our soldiers and dozens of Iraqis each day. Where is the sanity in following a failed course? I'm amazed we aren't still fighting the Vietnam War, another failed course of action. People, we are not being brave committing other people to die in Iraq. Only those stationed there are being brave. Know the difference.

I say go to hell or go to Iraq to all the House members who voted to stay the course. Get your lily white butts over there and then tell us that. Vic, the Democratic Party is the anti-Iraq War Party, act like it and next time vote to bring our troops home. Removing them from a war we're not winning, a war we can't win is the very best way to support our troops.

02/02/03
Bush: Attack by Iraq 'would cripple' economy
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/01/01/sproject.irq.war.cost/

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House is downplaying published reports of an estimated $50 billion to $60 billion price tag for a war with Iraq, saying it is "impossible" to estimate the cost at this time.
White House Office of Management and Budget Director Mitch Daniels told The New York Times in an interview published Tuesday that such a conflict could cost $50 billion to $60 billion -- the price tag of the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
In September, Daniels disputed an estimate by Bush economic adviser Larry Lindsey -- who has since left the White House -- that war with Iraq could cost $200 billion.
Daniels said he believes Lindsey's estimate was "the upper end of a hypothetical," Duffy said

Larry Lindsey was later fired for that estimate...

05/16/06
Senate sends Bush $94.5B for Iraq, Katrina
The 98-1 vote on the compromise House-Senate legislation gave much-needed funds to support U.S. troops overseas. Most of the money, $66 billion, goes to the Pentagon for military operations overseas.
The bill would bring to almost $320 billion the tally for the campaign in Iraq and $89 billion for the one in Afghanistan.
Only Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., voted against the bill. He is opposed to a provision endorsing Bush's $873 billion "cap" on the annual appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. Specter is pushing for $7 billion in additional money for education and health programs.
Still, there is increasing concern in Congress about the cost of the war in Iraq and the fact that the spending is kept on a set of loosely policed books that are kept separate from the rest of government operations.
"This bill continues the charade that this war should be funded off budget instead on including the money our troops need in the regular budget that's requested by the president and sent to us," said Patty Murray, D-Wash., as debate closed Thursday.

$320 billion? and still counting.... Looks like Larry was a little low, not high...
by the way that money is borrowed and not even reported in our budget deficit...
that borrowing + the cost of the tax cuts has been driving the value of the dollar lower and oil prices higher... pretty ironic
Looks like Dubya had it all wrong.. it's an attack on Iraq that is crippling the economy not an attack by Iraq.

Vic had to vote "Yea," even though he raised excellent points. If he had voted against the resolution, even because it's meaningless and solves nothing, his opponent would be running around this fall screaming "Vic Snyder voted against supporting the troops!"

We need to change the couse, not stay the course.

Sec. of State, Gen. Powell, warned at the start that we break it we own it. We broke Iraq, now we need to find a course to fix it and Vic Snyder's questions are among the ones that need to be addressed to find a proper course out of this disaster.

Seperate item, Max, could you give us a more detailed report on Gen. Clark's speech or perhaps post the text if you can get a copy.

I have heard that tired old rhetoric before. Every politican asks many questions implying that the situation in Iraq is hopeless and our guys have failed. How successful are we today in Bosnia and Kosovo? Apply those same question to that area and give us some answers.

Ignoring the obvious issue of voting one way and playing to the base back at home at the same time is contradictory. This is just common sense.

He will get away with it because some folks like him. If another politican did exactly the same contradictory thing---such as Bush---you would point out the contradiction.

You ignore these things for the folks you like and you hammer the same behavior in the folks you don't like.

So, Dr. Strangelove, the answer is no, you don't have any constructive suggestions. Ta ta, old chum.

I am sort of a Snyder groupie so I probably shouldn't be commenting. I can even forgive him for voting yea. I wish he would run for President. But he'd never make it. Way too honest.

I'm sure the republicans will "address" his questions. They are probably already working on new names to call him and others who question their "expertise."

Did anyone see the Bush press conference? He spoke with such excitement about being able to travel to Baghdad and how much appreciation he had for the experience of being there, blah blah, and did not even bother to mention the sacrifice of those 2500 Americans? I know he's an idiot but even a bad politican can't miss that opportunity to thank the armed forces. Why is the country not in a furor over that? Does he hypnotize everyone in that sinister smirky way of his?

So, Dr. Strangelove, the answer is no, you don't have any constructive suggestions. Ta ta, old chum.

I could make enough suggestions that would fill up a telephone directory and you would still take that position. You guys forgive your buddies and hammer those you don't like. Your response just makes my point.

Political rhetoric is a 'cheap' solution and Synder knows that. He is just playing to you guys and your are swallowing it.

So, Dr. Strangelove, the answer is no, you don't have any constructive suggestions. Ta ta, old chum.

I could make enough suggestions that would fill up a telephone directory and you would still take that position. You guys forgive your buddies and hammer those you don't like. Your response just makes my point.

Political rhetoric is a 'cheap' solution and Synder knows that. He is just playing to you guys and you are swallowing it.

There are very good reasons none of these issues has been addressed. Doing so would lead quickly to our withdrawl.

It's all war profiteering. It is as American as apple pie. It goes back to the Civil War. Eisenhower warned us even though he knew it was too late. After ending the cold war picking on these little countries was their only choice. We may as well spend the money here as elsewhere. Can't do Asia, no point in doing South America. Its perfect.

How successful are we today in Bosnia and Kosovo?

No one has answered this.

Jackass:

I like your details but all the average Joe will understand is Enron Accounting.

Seriously, did anyone see the article in the DOG titled "Physicist says pope discouraged study".

"I didn't fancy the thought of being handed over to the Inquisition like Galileo", Hawkin said.

When Einstein published his 1905 theory that says there is no "In the beginning" and the resulting math of this theory produced E=mc2 he said "I hope God is not playing tricks on me".

After 1945 the people of Japan believe him so where does that leave the western fundamentalist? Japan has to dumb down their products to sell to the western world.

Congressman Mayberry will the the real Arkansans voice for the 2nd District. Vic will make a good Mr. Mom to the new baby. Andy will help the President keep cutting taxes and putting more of your money back in your pocket. Vic never met a tax he didn't just love.

Doc - You must have a different reading filter. I did not read a deafest rant. I read a list of questions that need to be addressed so can accomplish our "mission" in Iraq. Of course Rep. Snyder will support the troops, but he also will point out that this does not address what we must do.
If you think questioning whether we are actually doing something is implying the situation is hopeless, there may be some other problems. Critical thinking is required. There is nothing contradictory in saying that you support the troops, but question whether the overall mission is proper, or at least thought through the endgame.

Anonytroll 12:54 - WOuld you like to address why you hold that view? Or will you simply repeat some tired talking point? Mayberry is outside the voting norms of the 2d Congressional District. The Republican Party has tried running hard to Vic's right before, and failed each time. Mayberry can't run on family values and get traction against Vic - Vic married his preacher and is now a proud father. Try again, but this time with substance.

Themis, I don't have to explain any thing to a hard head like you. Vic is history...His wife won't take his last name...remember when Hillary got roasted for that with the voters. Also the tax payers of this state are damn tired of being overtaxed. ie: $600,000,000 in surplus tax money now that needs to be returned to the people who paid it...not someone like you who pays no tax...
.

Themis or whatever,
Asking questions implies that these issues have not been addressed or that they must be addressed in order to justify our mission. They are pretty much the same issues that have surfaced throughout the war and reflect the standard line from the DNC.

I really don't believe that Snyder supports the war and I don't think you do either. I think that he would 'cut and run' if it were politically expedient. For all of our sakes, I hope that I am wrong.

OK Strange, make the case.

Are you a war on terror guy or a nation builder?

Nothing has changed but the fact that Rove's back full time orchestrating all kinds of hate-filled and divisive crap...and this stupid, meaningless vote is quintessential Rove. Bush's multi-million dollar Baghdad stunt is another.

And, the same people who lied us into Iraq and who fucked up the entire occupation are still in charge (of course, Bremer and Tenet have their shiny medals for their outstanding work). Their non-existent Iraq plan (one-line slogans like 'stay the course' or 'we stand down when they stand up' are not actual plans) is still pretty much unaltered...though it's not produced anything but one disaster after another.

Then there is this so-called Baghdad crack down...what a joke. Three years, untold Iraqi deaths and 2500 American lives later they all of sudden said 'Hey, let's organize and run the bad guys out of Baghdad. Well, why in the hell didn't they do this awhile back...oh wait, they did...several times. I think I'll go out on a limb and say it's more superficial theatrics and that the mayhem and slaughter will continue 'cause Iraq's in the middle of a Civil War.

Good thing we've got all that Iraqi oil money flowing in to pay for Bush's war.

...His wife won't take his last name...remember when Hillary got roasted for that with the voters.

Well that uppity bitch...refusing to take her man's name...damn!

Uh, I remember Clinton winning two presidential terms and Hillary winning a New York Senate seat...now exactly when did she get roasted by the voters?

Doc -

These are questions that must be addressed to ensure success. If you do want us to succeed in what is now a quagmire of Iraq, say so simply and we can end this debate. Once we set foot in Iraq, we were there for the long haul. In my opinion, pulling out prematurely could be a more dangerous action than our invasion. If Iraq is not yet ready to assume full infrastructure responsibility and full policing requirements, pulling out only creates a vacuum in which extremist factions may become more powerful.

You are correct in that I do not believe there was adequate justification to invade and that we violated international law when we launched a preemptive strike while the UN Security Council had retained jurisdiction. But we did. Now we are there, and Americans should not something half-way. We had the Marshall Plan decades ago, now we need one for Iraq.

As you may be able to see by reading this, Rep. Snyder's questions must be answered so that we can bring our troops home. Bringing them home early only increases the chance of a Talibanesque government in Iraq. Ignoring these questions simply leads to more money being spent while our troops are in harms way.

Anonytroll-

The State surplus does not impact the Federal elections. May I recommend a refresher in civics and dual sovereignty. In any event, your memory is short lived. Have you forgotten the budget shortfalls of the past decade? Are you against sound fiscal management and the creation of a "rainy day" fund to prevent such from happening again?

"How successful are we today in Bosnia and Kosovo?
No one has answered this."

i'd like to answer the question but i'm not sure what it has to do with the situation in Iraq..
but here goes:
in former Yugoslavia we defended the countries from invaders who were fascist nazis shelling inocent civilians and committing genocide.. in Iraq we are the invaders who are fascist nazis shelling inocent civilians committing genocide.
there is no more shelling of Sarajevo
there is no more genocide in Kosovo
Croatia is one of the premier vacation spots in Europe
Slovenia is now in the EU
the fascist nazis were sent to the Hague and triedfor war crimes..

the question really is whether Bush should be tried for war crimes for killing inocent civilians for absolutely no reason other than to justify the increased defense budget.

Even the military has turned on Bush. You really think Murtha and the generals, and now this poliitcal snaffu at the pentagon are not a reflection of the military's opinion.

They know they are being set up for something worse than Vietnam, unending occupation. At this rate we won't leave until 2015.

Themis or Whatever,
How have we been successful in Bosnia/Kosovo? We are still there and will be with no end in sight. Are we in better shape there relative to infrastructure? Where was the UN authority to go in? We have failed at nation building there.

Yet, Iraq is considered a failure. The nation building there is infinitely more successful. You use the word 'quagmire' but that is an editorial comment not an established fact.

I am perflexed when the obvious contradiction of Bosnia is ignored and a part of the world where we have a vital national interest is considered folly.

I am encouraged that you realize the foolishness of 'cut and run'.

Can't make the case though can you Strange?

Not without addressing all the issues Vic has proposed.

"Can't make the case though can you Strange?"

Strange just drops in to relay the Republican talking points and fulfill his monthly blog quota. Specific points would require he actually address some of his party's failures and corruption.

Specific points would require he actually address some of his party's failures and corruption

Those of you who faithfully follow this blog know that I have come down like a ton of bricks on Bush and the Republican leadership over illegal aliens.

Dr. Strangelove and anonymous need to go back to the Ark Fam. Coalition and sip some kool-aid.

What a sickening bunch of spin this is. We bleed our troops an torture this third world country rather than address real solutions.

Biden proposed a 'Bosnia' like solution but no one is yet willing to use the words 'civil war' if it might mean admitting a mistake.

An these are the guys who call themselves the true Americans and say they support our troops.

H.R. 861:
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--

(1) honors all those Americans who have taken an active part in the Global War on Terror, whether as first responders protecting the homeland, as servicemembers overseas, as diplomats and intelligence officers, or in other roles;

(2) honors the sacrifices of the United States Armed Forces and of partners in the Coalition, and of the Iraqis and Afghans who fight alongside them, especially those who have fallen or been wounded in the struggle, and honors as well the sacrifices of their families and of others who risk their lives to help defend freedom;

(3) declares that it is not in the national security interest of the United States to set an arbitrary date for the withdrawal or redeployment of United States Armed Forces from Iraq;

(4) declares that the United States is committed to the completion of the mission to create a sovereign, free, secure, and united Iraq;

(5) congratulates Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki and the Iraqi people on the courage they have shown by participating, in increasing millions, in the elections of 2005 and on the formation of the first government under Iraq's new constitution;

(6) calls upon the nations of the world to promote global peace and security by standing with the United States and other Coalition partners to support the efforts of the Iraqi and Afghan people to live in freedom; and

(7) declares that the United States will prevail in the Global War on Terror, the noble struggle to protect freedom from the terrorist adversary.

"The nation building there is infinitely more successful. You use the word 'quagmire' but that is an editorial comment not an established fact."

Two sentences were never arranged to display hypocrisy so perfectly.

you must not be reading the posts.
there is no more shelling of Sarajevo
there is no more genocide in Kosovo
Croatia is one of the premier vacation spots in Europe
Slovenia is now in the EU
if you think there is no end in sight you should hit the beach in Dubrovnik.. beautiful women, great wine and food.
what U.S troops are in Bosnia? NATO or UN are there and American troops are part of that force but as a peace mission. i bet a rifle hasn't been fired in Bonsnia in 10 years.. again, we were defending sovereign nations from an invasion... similar to our defense of Kuwait.
Clinton was accused of nation building which was untrue and Bush campaigned against nation building of which he has spent his entire time in office.
don't mean to pile on, but you are missing the point.. we started Iraq, we invaded them. we didn't invade Bosnia we defended them....
anecdote of the day:
one of the worst massacres of civilians in Sarajevo was a bombing of a market where 68 people died and 200 injured.
that happens everyday in Iraq

Zelda..She changed her name to Clinton in 1980...stick to something you know...you do know something don't you.?..have you tried mango juice?

Screw you Themis...I want my money back..if you had been overtaxed like the rest of us that pay taxes you would to...

The Yugoslav wars were a series of violent conflicts in the territory of the former Yugoslavia that took place between 1991 and 2001. They comprised two sets of successive wars affecting all of the six former Yugoslav republics. Alternative terms in use include the "War in the Balkans", or "War in (the former) Yugoslavia", "Wars of Yugoslav Secession" or, less commonly, the "Third Balkan War" (a term coined by British journalist Misha Glenny, alluding to the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913).

The wars were characterised by bitter ethnic conflicts between the peoples of the former Yugoslavia. The conflict had various underlying political and cultural problems as well as ethnic and religious tensions.

However, much weight has also been given to long-standing ethnic tensions. In the case of Kosovo, they root back to the perceived loss of ancestral Serbian lands (Kosovo was integral to all historical Serbian kingdoms), while other tensions arose from the legacy of World War II during which Croatian fascists (Ustase) and Serbian monarchists (Chetniks) fought on opposite sides (though not all Croats or Serbs belonged to either of these two movements), with the Ustase regime (which controlled present day Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina within the 'Independent State of Croatia') pursuing an officially hostile and violent policy against Serb inhabitants. Meanwhile, a great number of people from all ethnic groups fought with the anti-fascist Partisan movement led by the Croat-Slovene communist who would later become the leader of Yugoslavia - Josip Broz Tito.

The Yugoslav wars ended with much of the former Yugoslavia reduced to poverty, massive economic disruption and persistent instability across the territories where the worst fighting occurred. The wars were the bloodiest conflicts on European soil since the end of World War II, resulting in an estimated 120,000-130,000 [citation needed] deaths and millions driven from their homes. They were also the first conflicts since World War II to have been formally judged genocidal in character and many key individual participants were subsequently charged with war crimes.

Hardly a success story. The minute that NATO (American) troops put out this place will explode. No problems were solved.

Associated Press
Thursday, November 25, 2004; Page A19

TUZLA, Bosnia, Nov. 24 -- U.S. troops marked the end of their nine-year peacekeeping role in Bosnia on Wednesday as NATO prepared to hand over the task to the European Union in December.

A small number of U.S. troops will stay in Bosnia to hunt war crime suspects and help the country reform its military. "

Well Doc, looks like your barking up the wrong tree trying to pretend we're up to our necks in trouble in Bosnia while Clinton makes millions giving speeches. That dog won't hunt. I'm sure you'll try again.

You post all those facts and that's the best conclusion you can draw?

You tax haters are warm, and smug and snug three layers deep in security and all you can think of more money.

You know what the Bible says about the love of money. Well now we have the evidence.

NATO, EU, US---You can't keep the lid on unless a foreign force stays there. What remains is a devastated landscape. Do you want to bet what would happen if a foreign force were to leave?

U.S. troops marked the end of their nine-year peacekeeping role in Bosnia

Good grief. The war was only over about two years ago. We stayed in Bosnia 9 years.

Zelda..She changed her name to Clinton in 1980...stick to something you know...you do know something don't you.?..have you tried mango juice?

I know that anonymous said that 'Hillary got roasted by the voters' for not taking her husband's name. I simply asked when did this voter roast of Hillary occur since Bill was elected governor with Hillary's maiden name still attached (then there are two presidencies and a senate seat as Rodham-Clinton).

So, once again, when did this voter roast of Hillary occur?

BTW...it was 1982, not 1980, that she ADDED Clinton to her Rodham.

Themis you sound a lot like the Arkansas Times. You wouldn't be sneaking one in on us would you? Let's be at least a little up front with who we are.

When you write you leave a hint of style much like a fingerprint. Yours appeared a little to familiar.

ARK. BLOG Up yours, pal. We've been signing our stuff for 33 years and don't intend to stop now. And putting our name and number in the phone book. Unlike, say, you.

So how do you 'get out of Iraq' liberals feel about the 42 democrats voting to stay the course and win the war in Iraq. Disconcerting for you guys. Even your beloved Vic 'don't call me cut and run' Snyder put his tail between his legs and decided to support our troops---at least in order to get reelected.

Let's see. Did I document my facts to support my position. Yes, I checked the House of Reps Web Page and got the votes. Maybe some study will come out from one of your flunkie 'think tanks' explaining away the obvious.

However, not all is lost. You can still claim to support our troops while you characterize their sacrifice as a lost cause. You learned from Vietnam. You just out and right called us dogs then. Now you have learned the art of public relations. Support the troops but denegrate their mission. No problem though. They won't feel like fools. They will know that you support them---it makes good copy. You and the Arkansas Times will be able to sleep at night.
TTFN

Zelda, supporter of all that is female. Hillary would salivate over your support. I bet you even gave her lessons in 'how to throw a lamp at your husband' when she was first lady of Arkansas.

I think that it is great that you support someone that 42% of voters---democrat, republican, Indepen.---would not vote for under any circumstances. Great pick there Zelda! You got to get out there girl and really hump it in 08 and see to it that your girl wins.

Heck. She is a shoo-in. All you need to do is put a sack over her head, fill her mouth with cotton and teach her how to do the newest dance---the kerry shuffle. She is a quick study. And if that doesn't work, she can always bake cookies.

Go girl.
TTFN

MSC, I can state emphatically that I am not the AT. I not an employee of the AT. I am not an unpaid volunteer shilling for the AT. I believe that will about cover it.

WIth regards to some of your statements about supporting the troops but not necessarily the mission, what I said above stands. Once we set foot in Iraq and proceeded to gut it as a nation, we were stuck there for the long haul. My current issue is akin to the exit strategy debate. What is our exit strategy? Are we prepared to offer the kind of assistance needed or are we looking for a good photo op to use when we pull out.

I will not denigrate a mission designed to put a nation back on its feet after we knocked it down. What I question is the method, or lack thereof, demonstrated in our madness. I want to see the least number of Americans and Iraqis killed in the long run. Those last four words are why I am hesitant to support a pull-out without some kind of quantitative stability in Iraq.

These threads seem to always devolve into personal attack. (Got your back, Zelda.) How about the topic: Wes Clark had some interesting things to say today. The Senate resolution was useless. Vic Snyder said some interesting stuff. Back on topic, anyone?

Perusing the new after work today, I found these truly awe-inspiring quotes supporting the offer of amnesty for Iraqi insurgents that took-up arms against the U.S. troops occupying Iraq.

"I really believe we ought to try to find some way to encourage that country to demonstrate to those people who have been opposed to what we're trying to do, that it's worthwhile for them and their children to come forward and support this democracy. And if that's amnesty, I'm for it. I'd be for it. And if those people who are, come forward... if they bore arms against our people, what's the difference between those people that bore arms against the Union in the War between the States? What's the difference between the Germans and Japanese and all the people we've forgiven?" - Sen. Ted Stevens

"...might it not just be as useful an exercise to be trying to pass a resolution commending the Iraqi government for the position that they've taken today with regard to this discussion of Amnesty?" - Sen. Mitch McConnell

"Is it not true that Nelson Mandela's courage and his ability to create a process of reconciliation and forgiveness was a major factor in what has been a political miracle in Africa...Did not Nelson Mandela, win a - the co-winner of - a noble Nobel Peace Prize just for this sort of gesture?" - Sen. Lamar Alexander

Those Republicans are just totally alone in their rousing support for our troups, including the 15,000 plus wounded by the Iraqi's they want to pardon.

Pardon the iraqis. The perpetrator of all the killing is George W. Bush.
To the Hague with him!

Zelda, supporter of all that is female. Hillary would salivate over your support. I bet you even gave her lessons in 'how to throw a lamp at your husband' when she was first lady of Arkansas.

I think that it is great that you support someone that 42% of voters---democrat, republican, Indepen.---would not vote for under any circumstances. Great pick there Zelda! You got to get out there girl and really hump it in 08 and see to it that your girl wins.

Heck. She is a shoo-in. All you need to do is put a sack over her head, fill her mouth with cotton and teach her how to do the newest dance---the kerry shuffle. She is a quick study. And if that doesn't work, she can always bake cookies.

Go girl.
TTFN

Posted by: MSC


Yeah, how 'bout calling yourself XENA Webbior Princess?
Kicking Warrior GOP Ass

Wesley 'warrior' Clark. This is the only guy who got a purple heart for political wounds received while trying to navigate up the promotional ladder of the pentagon. He also shares the unique distinction of having brought us within a 'hair's breadth' of war with Russia. Seems he wanted to duke it out with some Russians soldiers at an airport. I can go for that.

Wes is a sort of Little Rock boy. I thought that I saw him at Park Plaza Mall but it was a security guard. I was disappointed because I wanted to get his autograph. However, I heard that he charged for that and I was short of Euro dollars.

Wes for President. I just hope in my life time. Wouldn't it be great to have another Arkansan as President? He could get with Bill or maybe Hillary and get some pointers. Maybe he should stay away from Bill for pointers.

TTFN

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