Bush's Shrinking Safety Zone

[tw]

An ongoing analysis of Iraq has three options: "Go big, go long, or go home". The analysis of these options (including one by three highly regarded Colonels) is leaking all over the news services. "Go long" is a new expression for 'stay the course' which means troop number changes (up or down) by some tens of thousands. “Go long” is an obvious and complete loser’s strategy.

"Go Big" means hundreds of thousands of troops deployed now. Next year means hundreds of thousands will not accomplish anything. Iraq is that close to a cliff.

Hope for a successful application of 500,000 troops for one year is currently about 50-50 and diminishing each month. Henry Kissinger has already declared the Iraqi war is not winnable – because Iraq has been that bad for that long. That should have been your obvious concern over a year ago - long after Scowcroft defined what is now an ongoing Iraqi civil war.

Meanwhile no one is talking about that other war that still can be saved but is also being lost - Afghanistan. British leaders only provided about 10% of the troops that British military commanders in Afghanistan desperately requested.

Leaders are supposed to know when to cut their losses long before everything is lost. American leaders will be telling George Jr what to decide within a month.

"Cut and Run" will not be acceptable to those in power because it admits something glaring obvious - "Mission Accomplished" was lost when the looting began. So these same analysts will be looking for "Blame and Run" - which is really "cut and run" with a propaganda spin. Unfortunately for American soldiers, that may be more of "Go long".

[tw]

From the Washington Post of 22 Nov 2006:

Report Finds DHS Lax on Contracting Procedures
Private consultants hired by the Department of Homeland Security have found widespread problems with its contracting operation, including nearly three dozen contract files that could not be located.

Files that could be found often lacked basic documentation required under federal rules, such as evidence that the department negotiated the best prices for taxpayers, ...

The assessment underscores complaints by department auditors and outside experts that procurement officials persistently neglected contracting responsibilities as they spent billions of dollars after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks -- much of it on security systems that do not work as planned.

Cut taxes and spend on Halliburton, et al with reckless abandon. No problem. We have Rush Limbaugh to blame it all on 'tax and spend' Democrats. Are you an independent or do you have a political agenda that justifies this?

The confidential report, delivered to department officials in March, ...

If we told you this, we would have to kill you? Thank god for the patriotic Americans - also called leakers and whistle blowers. Just another reason to hate Democrat and Republican extremists.

At the outset, the team of acquisition specialists could not locate 33 of the 72 contract files it had selected for the review, ...

No wonder George Jr could not find Saddam's WMDs. Government is now just as consistent and organized as George Jr's autobiography. 85% of all problems are directly traceable to whom?

OJ Simpson only killed two people.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

And this is what tw believes is true.

No wonder I can sandbag the man on history; the more he rants, the better I look.

More and better nuclear defense than MAD is simply less mad, hm? I've lived around good nuke targets the better part of my life. I agree that the ABM as written was obsolescing fast enough to be a dead letter in a very short period, and I say that the better way to defend against ballistic missiles is to make their use too fraught with problems, too limited as to success. Tw's view on this is of course, precisely not in the interest of the nation of which he is a citizen, but precisely in the interest of certain other nuclear, ballistic-missile powers. Once again, he exposes his Communist underbelly and other unmentionables. You're a fuckup, boy!! You make your commie buddies look bad.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

I think I've found another way to play Atropos -- and cut off the thread. Hee!

[Aliantha]

Just remember, Atropos got his come uppance in the end.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by UrbaneGuerilla

I've lived around good nuke targets the better part of my life.

*sigh*
Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.

Listen to these idiots.
Man, someone seriously got to these poor fools.

[tw]

From the Washington Post of 13 Dec 2006:

Army, Marine Corps To Ask for More Troops
The Army and Marine Corps are planning to ask incoming Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Congress to approve permanent increases in personnel, as senior officials in both services assert that the nation's global military strategy has outstripped their resources.

In addition, the Army will press hard for "full access" to the 346,000-strong Army National Guard and the 196,000-strong Army Reserves by asking Gates to take the politically sensitive step of easing the Pentagon restrictions on the frequency and duration of involuntary call-ups for reservists, according to two senior Army officials.

Deja Vue Vietnam. Next step is a draft.

"Right now, the strategy exceeds the capability of the Army and Marines."

That strategy still does not supply enough troops in the field. History says this is how all great empires burned themselves out in this myth that they are the all powerful - god's chosen nation. America now has enemies everywhere. Wacko extremes said that even seven years ago when a president had intelligence and a vice president did not have dictatorship tendencies. Amazing what happens when people listen to emotion of wacko extremists than logic from non-fiction.

No wonder the current administration had to retire so many generals to find someone that would agree with them.

... two-thirds of Army units are rated "non-deployable."

But then one need not read that because even the Iraq Study Group defined that reality. A patriot already read the report; already knew that reality.

Has the Bush Doctrine failed?
The American military force is stronger now than it ever has been in history - partly because it's now been used, and is battlefield-hardened with commanders having all sorts of different kinds of experience.

That was classic propaganda AND a common lie of 30 Aug 2006. Published facts (those that ignore presidential lies) knew the opposite was true AND had to be true. Too much equipment was being stripped to send overseas - and too many costs were being hidden or not being spend to replace lost equipment. Even Humvees without armor demonstrated the problem. Did you, an American, realize this problem years ago? Two-thirds of the American ground force is not operational - as was obvious long ago. Again Frontline's The Lost Year is how one learns so that 30 years from now, another scumbag member of the Democrat or Republican party does not try to destroy America.

Demonstrated is the difference between those who think emotionally verses those who think patriotically and logically.

[yesman065]

Battle hardened?
If dead is battle hardend... sure, why not?

[tw]

From the Washington Post of 17 Dec 2006:

Stubborn or Stalwart, Bush Is Loath to Budge
... said former senator Alan K. Simpson (R-Wyo.), a member of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, ... "Now his legacy depends on the national interest, not partisanship."

Others don't buy it. On its Web site last week, the Democratic National Committee said Bush could be "the most stubborn man on Earth" for not immediately embracing the study group's plan. Critics predicted that any new strategy he announces after the holidays will be little more than a dressed-up version of "stay the course." And a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 66 percent of Americans do not think Bush is willing to change his policies in Iraq.

"I just don't believe that this president, with this vice president whispering in his ear every moment, is oriented to change," said retired Col. Larry Wilkerson, who was chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin L. Powell in Bush's first term. "And even if he were, I don't believe his administration is capable of implementing change."

Lawrence J. Korb, a former Pentagon official under President Ronald Reagan, agreed. "When it comes to Iraq, he has basically confused stubbornness with steadfastness," said Korb, ...

But Bush was deeply influenced by the fate of his father, whose decision to break his no-new-taxes pledge as president helped doom his reelection. The lesson: Stick to decisions regardless of shifts in political winds.

"Stay the course" is now called "Way forward".

from Lord Tennyson:
"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Someone had blunder'd:
Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

34% of Americans still cannot see the lying president for what he really is - who even deny facts from the Baker Hamilton commission. George Jr's stubbornness and mental midgetry will even guarantee a defeat in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, American opoerations in Somolia are also failing just as spectaculorly.

85% of all problems are directly traceable to top management. That is 99% when top management is in denial - blames others such as me.

He has contempt for the American soldier. Way "Forward, the Light Brigade!" is just "Stay the course".

Time to solve "Mission Accomplished" with hundreds of thousands more troops has ended. So George Jr will think for another month about deploying a few ten thousand. They are expendable.

[tw]

When a president must "Wag the Dog". George Jr now advocates more war (rejects the Iraq Study Group) because soldiers are expendable and George’s legacy is more important.

Patriots leak constantly when scum bags would sacrifice more American soldiers to "Mission Accomplished". Leakers apparently include the Joint Chiefs. From the Washington Post of 19 Dec 2006 - and a fact that was predictable:

White House, Joint Chiefs At Odds on Adding Troops
Sending 15,000 to 30,000 more troops for a mission of possibly six to eight months is one of the central proposals ...
But the Joint Chiefs think the White House, after a month of talks, still does not have a defined mission and is latching on to the surge idea in part because of limited alternatives, despite warnings about the potential disadvantages for the military, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the White House review is not public.

Of course it was obvious that "Mission Accomplished" was being lost. The president started a war without a strategic objective AND (as leaked) still has no strategic objective. To anyone with minimal grasp of history, that means defeat. To any student of history or military science, the PBS Frontline program The Lost Year demonstrates why this discussion should have been held in 2004. Since no positive solution remains, what do our anti-American leaders do?

Discussions are expected to continue through the holidays. Rice is expected to travel to the president's ranch near Crawford, Tex., after Christmas for consultations on Iraq. The administration's foreign policy principals are also expected to hold at least two meetings during the holiday. The White House has said the president will outline his new strategy to the nation early next year.

Current attitudes duplicate 1968; including rejection of conclusions from the president's "Wise Men". The expression "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it" has never been so explicit.

Colin Powell (former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and former Sec of State for George Jr) has defined "Mission Accomplished"

So if it's grave and deteriorating and we're not winning, we are losing, ... I am not persuaded that another surge of troops into Baghdad for the purposes of suppressing this communitarian violence, this civil war, will work,

Still 34% in America denied reality when defined even by UK General Sir Richard Dannatt in October 2006. See British to Withdraw from Iraq to appreicate which Cellar Dwellers could not recognize the obvious - who therefore demonstrate contempt for the American soldier.

George Jr must reject the Iraq Study Group. He must send more troops to Iraq. George Jr must advocate troop increases in Iraq AND more military spending at home. He is an extremist no different than Crusaders of the 11th Century. He even said that god told him to invade Iraq. And he must maintain this war beyond 2008 so that it is not 'lost on his watch' - his legacy. Worse are many Americans who believed this idiot – and still do. See British to Withdraw from Iraq. And see what anti-Americans must deny: The Lost Year

The idiot president as an MBA – and like every administration official did on 11 September to make zero decisions – this fool and his staff, instead, will have more meetings.

George Jr recently said we are not winning "Mission Accomplished" and not losing it either. Simple logic. Then American soldiers are not in Iraq. Well not being there is what another lying president tried to claim when he invaded Cambodia. So now George Jr says, by default, that American troops really are not in Iraq. "Mission Accomplished"?

[tw]

From ABC News of 4 Jan 2007 or why Urbane Guerrilla has a president he adores:

Bush: Government Can Open Your Mail
President Bush says he and other government officials have the power to snoop through your mail without a judge's warrant.

Bush made the claim last month in a signing statement attached to a postal reform bill. Bush wrote that the bill "provides for opening of an item of a class of mail otherwise sealed against inspection."

Actually George Jr is correct. Another president - Nixon - did open mail without judicial review. When he was lying to the nation about Cambodia, Nixon feared that soldiers would hear the truth about his lies. So all mail to the troops from the United States was censored. Mail both from the troops and to the troops were censored. Nixon could not afford to have troops even receive the truth. So he opened and censored all mail - in both directions.

Deja vue Vietnam. Nixon - I mean George Jr - censors mail because we cannot be trusted. But then Americans finally got intelligent and demanded that other president (that Urbane Guerrilla also adored) be impeached.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Originally Posted by tw

From ABC News of 4 Jan 2007 or why Urbane Guerrilla has a president he adores:
Actually George Jr is correct. Another president - Nixon - did open mail without judicial review. . . (that Urbane Guerrilla also adored) be impeached.

This is not why I "adore" the President, as you should very well know, but never do know, tw. It is your perpetual, oft-demonstrated inability to get these things right that persuades me you're none too bright -- in political matters at any rate. Nonetheless, valiant in your ignorance, you go on until you go down in flames, never learning the least lesson. Are you then a booby or a target drone?

Nixon was regarded in 1968 as being a strong man on foreign policy. A good man at foreign policy is what's wanted in a state of war, Congressionally declared or not. He quite upheld his reputation there.

You'll recall the Democratic candidate was George McGovern. That George had nothing (theoretically anyway -- I was seventeen at the time he was running) to offer me that would make me, and as it turned out forty-nine of the fifty states, want him in the Oval Office. That looks like history's vindication to me.

[wolf]

The only mail I get is from creditors. If they open them, they have to pay them, right?