TPM Muckraker offers an excellent look at how the Bush administration is using language to obfuscate the fact that the surge failed to meet nearly all of its stated objectives. As I’ve thought for years, we’re just going to quietly pull out and say, well, it’s up to the Iraqis now – and then the real chaos will begin.
The one thing that saves Bush from total revolution is the shockingly short attention span and memory of the American public, as the aforementioned post indicates in its first sentence. To repeat a simple but often forgotten point, the surge was about achieving a series of measurable benchmarks. Its end goal was not a reduction in violence but political reconciliation. It has thus far been yet another failure.
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By Rumorhasit
Yes, Richard, as you say, “we’re just going to quietly pull out and say, well, it’s up to the Iraqis now – and then the real chaos will begin.”
Have we learned nothing from history, and that the road to hell is paved with good intentions? But then it is always the desire of a few powerful men not the unambitious common folks that get other fellow men’s families torn apart at home as they blow some faceless overseas families to pieces.
A couple days ago I watched “Charlie Wilson’s war.” Based on true events, and a bestselling book by George Crile about one Congressman Wilson who was able to direct billions of dollars in U.S. and Saudi aid to arm Afghan mujahedin, or “freedom fighters,” and oust the invading Soviet Union. The mujahedin of course later became the Taliban, and of course Osama bin Laden who was allegedly responsible for the Sept. 11 WTC attacks.
“Great events have unintended consequences. What no one involved anticipated was that it might be dangerous to awaken the dormant dreams and visions of Islam. Which is, of course, exactly what happened.” George Crile.
And it remains that this US/UK created “Hell is [still] full of good intentions or desires,” to loosely use Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153)] famous saying. But as for the perpetrators of modern day human tragedy, there is unfortunately only the Hague War crime tribunal, and to only judge and add insult to injury to the losers.
January 11, 2008 @ 6:26 am | Comment
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By Math
I Believe Pro-Democracy and Rightists Should Take A Good Look At the American Failure in Iraq
Even though it is already 2008, there are still many people on the internet today that worship the American democratic system, and call for China to adopt such a system. This post wants ask to those people to look at the American failure in Iraq.
Let me start with an example. If there’s someone who worships the management system of McDonald, and he opens restaurant chain with the same management style as McDonald, and his chain went bankrupt in 2 months. Now is that proof that McDonald’s management system is bad? Of course not. It’s probably because that person wanted to emulate the Macdonald’s style, but was not very good at it. It’s that person’s fault, not McDonald’s. So supporters of McDonald’s can simply argue: “McDonald’s system itself is still good, it’s just that that person did not learn everything from that system.” They can then argue, “If McDonald cooperation itself provided its own managers and its own cooks to make a replica of McDonald’s, then that replica of course will be as successful as the original one. Because this time, it’s not an outsider copying it, it’s replicated by its own team.”
Now, if you look at the miserable states of so many countries who tried to emulate American style democracy, such as Russia, Phillipe’s, Malaysia, Yugoslavia, etc. Rightists can argue: “That’s just because the Russians, the Filipinos, the Malaysians, the Yugoslavians did not fully learn all the details of the American system, so their copies of the system were not authentic, they were pirated! So of course they failed!”
But if you look at Iraq. That’s not someone trying to pirate the original version. That’s Americans themselves reproducing their own system, with their own original recipe. That’s a totally authentic version! And Americans desperately wanted this authentic version to succeed, so they can set an example for the rest of the Middle East.
Yet, is that authentic version succeeding? Of course we know that at least so far, it’s failing massively. So, why is it that the Chef’s own original recipe tastes so badly the second time around? Either the Chef is not putting in 100% effort, which is unlikely, or the recipe was not the original, which is again unlikely. Then that leads to the inevitable question, is the original recipe really that good in the first place? And if you go back to the original version, you’ll perhaps realize the original was a bad dish as well!
Therefore, the failure of the American system in Iraq indicates one thing: that is, the American system is not a universally good system, and will not work in many places in the world.
Starting today, the worshipers of the American system should stop saying : “The American system will work regardless of cultural, historical and economic conditions! If you apply this system, you’ll see immediate results, or we’ll refund your money!”.
Now, you may ask “Math! I know what you are trying to say! You are saying there’s no universally applicable system in the world, and everything is relative to a countries’ own conditions.”
No no no, you misunderstood me, that’s not what I’m trying to say at all. In fact, I strongly believe there is a universally good politically system and will work regardless of a country’s own conditions. And that is the current system of China.
I think if the PLA occupied Iraq, it’ll also try to create its own original recipe in Iraq. That is, it’ll form the Iraqi Communist Party and creates a democratic centralism in which many political parties exist under the leadership of the Iraqi Communist Party and an Iraqi People’s Congress. This will quickly stabilize the situation in Iraq and leads Iraqi on a path to modernization.
January 11, 2008 @ 11:22 am | Comment
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By HKSojourner
” think if the PLA occupied Iraq, it’ll also try to create its own original recipe in Iraq. That is, it’ll form the Iraqi Communist Party and creates a democratic centralism in which many political parties exist under the leadership of the Iraqi Communist Party and an Iraqi People’s Congress. This will quickly stabilize the situation in Iraq and leads Iraqi on a path to modernization.” — Math
Er, Math, isn’t that exactly what the Soviets tried to do in Afghanistan after their 1979 invasion — to modernise the nation along the secular Marxist path? And I have no recollection of it being a resounding success.
January 11, 2008 @ 12:16 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
“The one thing that saves Bush from total revolution is the shockingly short attention span and memory of the American public”
Really? This mental defect of all the American people is the one and only reason there’s not a full-scale revolution? I’m revoking your creative license for that bit of breathless hyperbole, and reminding you that it IS, in fact, a bit insulting to your erstwhile community.
January 11, 2008 @ 3:50 pm | Comment
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By hkonger
Ha ha, very funny, Math….or were you being serious. Please tell me your last part was meant to be a joke.
I posted a link of my favorite AMERICAN comedian, George Carlin in the “500 fewer communists” thread for poster, One Flew Over Beijing Bird’s Nest and because you made me laugh this one’s for you, Math:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNv-oDbBZQU&feature=related
ENJOY!
January 11, 2008 @ 3:53 pm | Comment
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By richard
No, Sam, no! I have proof, documentation, facts and figures… For some reason the public never remembers what Bush said, and he constantly shifts messages as needed, knowing that no one will notice. It is fascinating to trackl, for example, his messages over Iraq: Mushroom clouds and aluminum tubes and immenint threats; then, with no weapons, it became, “The world is safer without Saddam Hussein”; then it became “liberty” and “freedom for women” – and that all died away with the pro-Iranian religious leadership; and finally it’s now “al qaeda” 24/7; we have to be in Iraq because we’re fighting al qaeda! Yikes.
Now there’s the surge story above. Same story. Just change the language and wipe away the old memes as if they never existed.
Same with the Valerie Plame scandal. Bush promised whoever in his administration had anything to do with it would be instantly fired. Of course, once it was shown that Rove had at least some invovlevement, Bush totally changed to a nrew mantra: “This is under investigation by a grand jury so we can’t say anything about it.” Remember that? After saying stuff about it for months?
Sam, drop those blinders and see how the GOP noise machine works, drowining you out in a sea of slogans, no matter that today’s slogan totally contradcits yesterday’s!
January 11, 2008 @ 5:15 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
“Sam, drop those blinders and see how the GOP noise machine works,”
Screw the blinders and the
party rhetoric. I asked you the question: “Do you really think that it is a mental defect, and only a mental defect, of the American public, which is preventing total revolution?”
I wasn’t saying anything about Bush, as you seem to think, and I’m disappointed that I have to clarify this: I’m saying that your statement is fluffy rhetoric and can serve only to reduce your credibility.
Perhaps you could rephrase the sentence and continue on with the main point without sounding like a bumper sticker.
January 11, 2008 @ 9:02 pm | Comment
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By richard
What do you have against bumper stickers, Sam?
Answer to you question: No not entirely. But that mental defect, exploited brilliantly by Karen Hughes and Fox News, plays a large role in Bush’s ability to lie his way through any situation. The public suffers from amnesia and the media seldom point out when Bush completely changes his tune in direct and blatant contradiction of what he’s said earlier.
January 11, 2008 @ 9:13 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
Fine. All that is registered. So, you would say that it’s actually NOT a mental defect and ONLY a mental defect, that is preventing total revolution. That’s the only point I was interested in clarifying.
January 11, 2008 @ 9:18 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
Of course, we could explore the assertion that if the American people were sane, there would be total revolution. How would that play out?
Would the crazies hunker down, hoping that it all blows over until election, while the truly sane load up their AK-47’s and swarm around burning cars in the street?
January 11, 2008 @ 9:32 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
No, actually, your creative ability is admirable, Richard, but you display a regrettable streak of irresponsibility when you make statements that compare people who decline to have a revolution with the insane.
January 11, 2008 @ 9:39 pm | Comment
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By richard
Sam, you lost me. Where did I even bring up the phrase “mental defect”? It was you who introduced that notion to this thread several comments the thread, not me…
January 11, 2008 @ 9:50 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
“shockingly short attention span and memory of the American public” is what you said, Richard. That’s the only thing that prevents total revolution, you said.
Now, if you don’t think that a shockingly short attention span, an ability to remember things, (don’t you think a shockingly short attention span would qualify as some sort of mental shortcoming) is the ONE thing that prevents a revolution in the USA, then you should just say so, and move on with your main point, which was much better than this bit of cheap fluff that you printed.
January 11, 2008 @ 10:02 pm | Comment
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By richard
Sheesh, put words in my mouth, why don’t you? I in no way see it as a mental defect, just a sign of the times that’s been worsened by the Internet, cable news, MTV and of course, the Republican Wurlitzer, which can shift from a tango to a funeral dirge to an Irish jig to heavy metal at the wink of Karen Hughes’ eye.
January 11, 2008 @ 10:24 pm | Comment
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By Sam_S
I quoted exactly what you said, Richard. Now, consider that “If only the American people could extend their attention span a little, there would be total revolution.” And see if there’s a slight mental disconnect going on.
The rest of the post was fine. That was just a really dumb sentence. I told you before, and I’ll tell you again: You have the ability to make a powerful statement if only you don’t screw it up with silly shit. Stuff like that just hands power to the neocons on a silver platter.
January 11, 2008 @ 10:43 pm | Comment
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By Gag Halfrunt
So the Chinese would impose their own system on Iraq and expect it to work there, just as the Americans imposed their own system on Iraq and expected it to work there.
By the way, Math, Iraq does have a communist party. It’s very small.
January 13, 2008 @ 8:12 am | Comment
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By 2008
January 10, 2008
Democratic Presidential candidate Mike Gravel scolds Hillary Clinton on TV for again voting for another war resolution, it is IRAN this time, and calling her “the most dangerous Presidential candidate from the Democratic side!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k87hBjkM8-s
January 14, 2008 @ 4:51 pm | Comment