Progress in Iraq

Hugh Beyer said:

Ran across the following in Andrew Sullivan's blog. I thought I'd post it
since it seems pretty reasonable to me and reflects my own point of view.
It's why, even as a card-carrying liberal, I can't quite get in bed with the
MoveOn folks. Candlelight vigil? For what, precisely?

<quote>
But the second temptation is to move the goalposts on this war and to expect
the impossible. If someone had told me three years ago that by October 2005,
Saddam Hussein's murderous tyranny would be over for ever, that Iraq would
have a new constitution that emerged from a democratic process and that it
will soon have a democratically elected parliament and government, I would
have been thrilled. If I were further told that the inevitably embittered
Sunni Arab minority had decided to throw itself into democratic politics to
amend the constitution and protect its interests in a future Iraq, I would
be amazed by how swiftly democratic habits can take root in a post-
totalitarian country. If I had been told that, despite extraordinary
provocation from Jihadist and Sunni Arab terrorists, the country had not
dissolved into civil war, and that unemployment was dropping, I'd be
heartened. If I had also been told that the United States had not suffered
another major terror attack since the fall of 2001, I would have refused to
believe it. The fact that the administration has made countless, terrible
errors in the aftermath of the invasion and miscalculated badly on how the
Baathists and Jihadists would fight back, should not distract us from these
underlying realities. In 2002, I feared U.S. casualties approaching 10,000
in a brutal, urban war for Baghdad. The enemy gave us a simmering insurgency
instead, shrewdly calculating that that was their best defense. They were
right in the short term. But that makes it all the more imperative to prove
them wrong in the long term. For the sake of the 2,000 who have already
died; and the countless, innocent civilian Iraqis who have borne an even
greater burden, let's do all we can to make this work.
<quote>

It has also revealed the true face of Jihadism: not the devoutly
religious dedication of oppressed freedom fighters, but a merciless
and sadistic grab for power.

Hugh Beyer said:

Ran across the following in Andrew Sullivan's blog. I thought I'd
post it since it seems pretty reasonable to me and reflects my own
point of view. It's why, even as a card-carrying liberal, I can't
quite get in bed with the MoveOn folks. Candlelight vigil? For what,
precisely?

<quote>
But the second temptation is to move the goalposts on this war and to
expect the impossible. If someone had told me three years ago that by
October 2005, Saddam Hussein's murderous tyranny would be over for
ever, that Iraq would have a new constitution that emerged from a
democratic process and that it will soon have a democratically
elected parliament and government, I would have been thrilled. If I
were further told that the inevitably embittered Sunni Arab minority
had decided to throw itself into democratic politics to amend the
constitution and protect its interests in a future Iraq, I would be
amazed by how swiftly democratic habits can take root in a post-
totalitarian country. If I had been told that, despite extraordinary
provocation from Jihadist and Sunni Arab terrorists, the country had
not dissolved into civil war, and that unemployment was dropping, I'd
be heartened. If I had also been told that the United States had not
suffered another major terror attack since the fall of 2001, I would
have refused to believe it. The fact that the administration has made
countless, terrible errors in the aftermath of the invasion and
miscalculated badly on how the Baathists and Jihadists would fight
back, should not distract us from these underlying realities. In
2002, I feared U.S. casualties approaching 10,000 in a brutal, urban
war for Baghdad. The enemy gave us a simmering insurgency instead,
shrewdly calculating that that was their best defense. They were
right in the short term. But that makes it all the more imperative to
prove them wrong in the long term. For the sake of the 2,000 who have
already died; and the countless, innocent civilian Iraqis who have
borne an even greater burden, let's do all we can to make this work.
<quote>

Hugh

You're not a Liberal. I wouldn't have used your quote as my sig if you
were. You're just a "confused" Conservative!
--
-Larry

"The troll hasn't been born who can troll us worse than we troll
ourselves." Hugh Beyer

JMW said:

It has also revealed the true face of Jihadism: not the devoutly
religious dedication of oppressed freedom fighters, but a merciless
and sadistic grab for power.

So, you're saying the child butchering terrorists and
war criminals on the bu$h regime are Jihadists? Interesting.
Here is some irrefutable truth with regard to Iraq.

http://dailywarnews.blogspot.com/
http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/

Anyone who relies on the proven liars, war criminals,
and terrorists on the bu$h regime for information is
clearly less than sane.

-

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=peak+oil&btnG=Google+Search

"You're doin' a heckuva job, Brownie!" - bu$h, a few days
before his FEMA chief, Micheal Brown was forced to resign
because of his gross incomptence.

"The tools that enable Cuba save lives and preserve
human dignity during hurricanes are socialist values
and organization." - Dr. W.T. Whitney Jr

Ever wonder who benefits from the 150 MILLION
U.S. taxpayer dollars spent each DAY in Iraq?
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0223-08.htm
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?list=type&type=21

http://www.commondreams.org/
http://www.truthout.org/
http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/
http://thirdworldtraveler.com/
http://counterpunch.org/
http://responsiblewealth.org/

"They are waging a campaign of murder and destruction. And
there is no limit to the innocent lives they are willing to
take... men with blind hatred and armed with lethal weapons
who are capable of any atrocity... they respect no laws of
warfare or morality."
-bu$h describing his own illegal invasion of Iraq.
http://www.robert-fisk.com/iraqwarvictims_mar2003.htm

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things
that matter." -- Martin Luther King Jr.

"God told me to strike at al Qaeda and I struck them. And then
he instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did."
-- George W. Bush

"Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the
will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the
Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord."
-- Adolf [censored]

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is
not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
to the American public."
-- Theodore Roosevelt (1918)

Don't let bu$h do to the United States what his very close
friend and top campaign contributor, Ken Lay, did to Enron...

"Larry Hodges" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Hugh Beyer said:

Ran across the following in Andrew Sullivan's blog. I thought I'd
post it since it seems pretty reasonable to me and reflects my own
point of view. It's why, even as a card-carrying liberal, I can't
quite get in bed with the MoveOn folks. Candlelight vigil? For what,
precisely?

<quote>
But the second temptation is to move the goalposts on this war and to
expect the impossible. If someone had told me three years ago that by
October 2005, Saddam Hussein's murderous tyranny would be over for
ever, that Iraq would have a new constitution that emerged from a
democratic process and that it will soon have a democratically
elected parliament and government, I would have been thrilled. If I
were further told that the inevitably embittered Sunni Arab minority
had decided to throw itself into democratic politics to amend the
constitution and protect its interests in a future Iraq, I would be
amazed by how swiftly democratic habits can take root in a post-
totalitarian country. If I had been told that, despite extraordinary
provocation from Jihadist and Sunni Arab terrorists, the country had
not dissolved into civil war, and that unemployment was dropping, I'd
be heartened. If I had also been told that the United States had not
suffered another major terror attack since the fall of 2001, I would
have refused to believe it. The fact that the administration has made
countless, terrible errors in the aftermath of the invasion and
miscalculated badly on how the Baathists and Jihadists would fight
back, should not distract us from these underlying realities. In
2002, I feared U.S. casualties approaching 10,000 in a brutal, urban
war for Baghdad. The enemy gave us a simmering insurgency instead,
shrewdly calculating that that was their best defense. They were
right in the short term. But that makes it all the more imperative to
prove them wrong in the long term. For the sake of the 2,000 who have
already died; and the countless, innocent civilian Iraqis who have
borne an even greater burden, let's do all we can to make this work.
<quote>

Hugh

You're not a Liberal. I wouldn't have used your quote as my sig if you
were. You're just a "confused" Conservative!

I just let my evil twin out to play in MFW. Maybe I'll go pat Hank on the
head to renew my credentials.

Hugh

--
Exercise is a dirty word. Whenever I hear it, I wash my mouth out with
chocolate. ("Ladi"😉