From: Adam <""4thwormcastfromthemolehill\"{at}the field.near
the bridge">

John Cuccia wrote:
> On Wed, 23 Aug 2006 22:51:11 -0400, "Mark"
 wrote:
>
>> One of my biggest disappointments in this whole endeavor, has been the
>> penchant of the "neo-cons" and conservatives of all
stripes to go "wobbly"
>> about twice a year, they just don't seem to have the
"stones" they pretend
>> to have.
>
> The real problem is that they don't have the brains that the pretend
> to have.  They're arrogant fools who convinced the lout in the White
> House to commit the United States to a "war" that we can't win and
> that we can't quit.
>

You can win it so long as you see it for what it is which is a
"retreat from Empire while leaving a functioning democracy in
place" type event.

It will not be a perfect democracy but then none are.

Will it be a Malaysia or a Singapore? Maybe an African style "one man
one vote once" retreat from a functioning democracy ? Maybe an India
or a Pakistani mil style retreat from a functioning democracy ormaybe
simply Iraqi democracy which owes nothing to any of the prior examples.

But you :

A) Have to state what to "win" is. i.e. is a democracy with a
populace hostile to the US & friendly with "Anti-Israel
forces" a win? i.e. wrt Palestinian democracy you still appear to wish
to pick the winners which ain't really democracy.

B) Have to mentally see the pulling down of the flag & the blowing of
bugles & mil types boarding ships/aircraft.

For an administration that used to set such store in "clarity" I
see little "clarity".

Conflating it with a war on terrorists & frankly telling the Iraqis
that they are dying 10-1 in your place is not a way to breed a deep love
for the US in the hearts of the Iraqis nor to win a war.

>> No one thought, nor implied that it would be easy.
>
> That's nonsense and you know it.  Here, read this:
> http://www.wacotrib.com/opin/content/shared/news/stories/SCHUETT_COLUMN_0822_
COX.html
> GNOME WITH CRYSTAL BALL: Donald Rumsfeld estimating length of war.
> "Five days or five weeks or five months, but it certainly isn't going
> to last any longer than that." Same gnome only crystal ball is
> fractured: "It could last...six days, six weeks. I doubt six months."
>
> The fact it that the architects of the invasion, in their arrogance
> and ignorace,  had no idea what they were getting us into.
>

They were repeatedly informed by well informed people so they can not claim
the defence of ignorance. Unless you count "ignoring your way into
ignorance".

>> Americans are still easily bamboozled and "pushed"
around by "designer"
>> polls, designed to get the results desired
>
> After that remark you can never call anyone else an elitist with a
> straight face, eh?
>
> All I can say is thank goodness we have enlightened individuals like
> you to straighten us out.

Or those directing le message du jour.

Adam

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