The Fake Military Withdrawal

The Fakest Military Withdrawal Imaginable in Iraq By Ramzy Baroud

"So what if the US army downgrades its military presence in Iraq and re-labels over 50,000 remaining soldiers? Will the US military now stop chasing after perceived terrorist threats? Will it concede an inch of its unchallenged control over Iraqi skies? Will it relinquish power over the country's self-serving political elite? Will it give up its influence over every relevant aspect of life in the country, from the now autonomous Kurdish region in the north all the way to the border with Kuwait in the south, which the jubilant soldiers crossed while hollering the shrieks of victory?"

Does it really take a genius to know that this isn't going to end well for our troops (and our nation)? Hostility towards the occupier has existed since the start of the invasion, not to mention what we did to them before the invasion with the embargo. I've seen Pew reports showing the vast majority clearly demand occupier leave. Why is this so hard for us to understand? Can't we imagine foreign troops on our streets? If not, maybe now is a good time to think about it.

The way it's really going to go down, as I see it, wouldn't be a Vietnam style rout, nor will it resemble the Alamo. It will be unique, and very bad, because we have so many big guns and so many people willing to use them.

Eventually our troops will leave, that much is clear. We know it and the Iraqi's know it. Question is whether they will take this opportunity to show off their tribal zeal and affinity by hurting and embarrassing the occupier in the last stages of the occupation, when on the ground troop strength is so low. I think they will.

Imagine it gets down to the embassy, and it's under siege, taking fire daily. What would the Neocons do? Send troops back in? No. Pull out? Maybe, but maybe the warmongers will decide to have a field day with the Big Guns?

The important understanding here is that the Neocons bet our farm on their crusade to establish military authority in the Middle East. They have no plans on withdrawing our military until they complete this mission. If our troops were to be pulled out of the Middle East, Israel would be left surrounded by enemies. The Neocons and their friends in our information supply, the media, aren't going to let that happen. They'll come up with all kinds of stories, excuses, great things to say, etc., but that war is far from over.


Bill








Bill

Mass Assassinations - and what it means

Mass Assassinations Lie at the Heart of America's Military Strategy in the Muslim World By Fred Branfman

"The truth that many Americans find hard to take is that that mass U.S. assassination on a scale unequaled in world history lies at the heart of America's military strategy in the Muslim world, a policy both illegal and never seriously debated by Congress or the American people. Conducting assassination operations throughout the 1.3 billon-strong Muslim world will inevitably increase the murder of civilians and thus create exponentially more "enemies," as Gen. McChrystal suggests -- posing a major long-term threat to U.S. national security. This mass assassination program, sold as defending Americans, is actually endangering us all. Those responsible for it, primarily General Petraeus, are recklessly seeking short-term tactical advantage while making an enormous long-term strategic error that could lead to countless American deaths in the years and decades to come. General Petraeus must be replaced, and the U.S. military's policy of direct and mass assassination of Muslims ended.

...

The U.S. has conducted assassination programs in the Third World for decades, but the actual killing -- though directed and financed by the C.I.A. -- has been largely left to local paramilitary and police forces. This has now has changed dramatically.

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The notion that a handful of U.S. military and CIA officials have the right to unilaterally and secretly murder anyone they choose in any nation on earth, without even outside knowledge let alone oversight, is deeply troubling to anyone with a conscience, belief in democracy, or respect for international law. It was precisely such behavior that made the Gestapo and Soviet secret police symbols of evil.

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Both the "Underwear" and the "Times Square" bombers attributed their attempts to blow up Americans to their anger at the drone strikes. While Americans were saved by their incompetence, the U.S. may not be so lucky the next time, and the time after that. One thing is crystal clear: inflaming anti-American hatred throughout the Muslim world can only exponentially increase the numbers of those committed to killing Americans."

Quoted more then usual from this article, but this is a powerful line of thinking which has been on my mind for some time, so I'm pleased to see it so well articulated. Please read the entire article - and think about it!



Bill

Look at what we're done

U.S. Occupation of Iraq More Than Doubles Poverty, Sickness -- Leaves Country a Total Disaster By Adil E. Shamoo

"Iraq has between 25 and 50 percent unemployment, a dysfunctional parliament, rampant disease, an epidemic of mental illness, and sprawling slums. The killing of innocent people has become part of daily life. What a havoc the United States has wreaked in Iraq."

"This is What Success Looks Like" By ALEXANDER COCKBURN

"The only reliable definition of “success” in any of the United States’ martial enterprises is the effective destruction in economic, social and environmental terms of the target country. That certainly happened in Iraq and is a process far advanced in Afghanistan."

The Iraq Legacy: Tell It Like It Is by Medea Benjamin

"With the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq, the administration, the military and the media are trying to put a positive spin on this grim chapter of U.S. history. It would certainly give some comfort to the grieving families of the over 4,400 soldiers killed in Iraq if their sacrifices had left Iraq a better place or made America safer. But the bitter truth is that the U.S. intervention has been an utter disaster for both Iraq and the United States."

Bill

The US Has Lost in Afghanistan -- We Have to Come to Grips with What That Means

The US Has Lost in Afghanistan -- We Have to Come to Grips with What That Means By Conn Hallinan


Bill

An Israeli Attack on Iran would reduce Barack Obama to a One-Term President

An Israeli Attack on Iran would reduce Barack Obama to a One-Term President by Juan Cole

A great Neocon status review by Juan Cole.



Bill

The Iraq Debacle: The Legacy of Seven Years of War

The Iraq Debacle: The Legacy of Seven Years of War by Iraq Debacle Coalition

Please read this brief and concise evaluation of the Iraq invasion and recommendations.

I sincerely - 100% - believe that the best course of action is to prosecute Bush for murder. This trial will peel open the layers of the scheme and the cast of perpetrators

Presidents flying blind By Andrew J. Bacevich

"We've been conditioned to trust presidents, but as recent history shows, they're often clueless too. Can Obama admit error and stop trying to tell us, and Afghans, what's best for Afghanistan?"

An excellent thought-provoking article

The War in Iraq Has Entered a New Stage of Public Relations by Dennis Kucinich

"This is not the end of the war; this is simply a new stage in the campaign to lull the American people into accepting an open-ended presence in Iraq. This is not an honest accounting to the American people and it diminishes the role of the troops who will put their lives on the line. This is not fair to the troops, their families or the American people."

Bill

Exposing the propaganda machine

How propagandists function: Exhibit A By Glenn Greenwald

The Israel Lobby Swims The Atlantic by Grant Smith

Deceptive Economic Statistics By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS

"If the government will lie to you about Iraqi weapons of mass production, Iranian nukes, why won’t they lie to you about the economy?

...

Wherever one looks--food stamps, home foreclosures, bankrupted states, mounting joblessness, the message to long-suffering Americans from “their government” is the same: go eat cake, while we fight wars for Israel that enrich the military/security complex and while we bail out banksters whose annual incomes are in the tens of millions of dollars and up."

These are a few current articles on the propaganda and deceit that defines and shapes the world around us. If google a bit, you can find more. Of course you wouldn't find them in the mainstream media, which is the whole point.

The effect of this propaganda is absolutely stunning. With millions of people believing the lies manufactured by this gang, we continue to waste precious lives and staggering sums of money on their lost cause crusade for military authority in the Middle East.

Ask yourself this question: how can so many people be so duped for so long?


Bill