Thread: How to end bush's war machine ASAP

How To End The War

Paul Craig Roberts | 11 Oct 2005



George W. Bush is a natural born liar. He lied us into a war, and now he is lying to keep us there. In his October 6 self-congratulatory speech at that neoconservative shrine, the National Endowment for Democracy, the President of the United States said: "Today there are more than 80 Iraqi army battalions fighting the insurgency alongside our forces."

Eighty Iraqi battalions makes it sound like the US is just lending Iraq a helping hand. I wonder what Congress and the US commanders in Iraq thought when they heard there were 80 Iraqi battalions that American troops are helping to fight insurgents? Just a few days prior to Bush’s speech, Generals Casey and Abizaid told Congress that, as a matter of fact, there was only one Iraqi battalion able to undertake operations against insurgents.

I wonder, also, who noticed the great contradiction in Bush’s speech. On the one hand, he claims steady progress toward freedom and democracy in Iraq. On the other hand, he seeks the American public’s support for open-ended war.

In her Princeton speech, Condi Rice made it clear that Iraq is just the beginning: "We have set out to help the people of the Middle East transform their societies. Now is not the time to falter or fade."

On October 5 Vice President Cheney let us know how long this commitment was to last: "Like other great duties in history, it will require decades of patient effort."

Who’s going to pay for these decades of war to which the Bush administration is committing Americans? Already the US is spending $7 billion a month on war in Iraq alone. The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service says that if the Iraq war goes on another five years, it will cost at least $570 billion by 2010.

Bush’s war has already doubled the price of gasoline and home heating.

With US forces bogged down in Afghanistan (invaded October 7, 2001) and Iraq (invaded March 20, 2003), Bush is plotting regime change in Syria and conspiring to set up Iran for attack.

Is there a single person in the Office of Management and Budget, the US Treasury, the Congressional Budget Office, or the Federal Reserve who thinks the US, already drowning in red ink, has the resources to fight wars for decades?

And where will the troops come from? The US cannot replace the losses in Iraq. We know about the 2,000 American troops killed, but we do not hear about the large number of wounded. UPI correspondent Martin Sieff reported on October 7 that US wounded jumped from 16.3 per day at the end of September to 28.5 per day at the beginning of October. Multiply that daily rate by 30 days and you get 855 wounded per month. Approximately half of these are wounded too seriously to return to combat.

Has anyone in the administration pointed out to Bush, Cheney and Condi Rice what decades of casualties at these rates mean?

Insurgents are killing Iraqi security personnel who are collaborating with the US occupation at the rate of two or three hundred per month. The wounded numbers are much higher.

Last month suicide bombers killed 481 Iraqis and wounded 1,074.

Has anyone in the administration put these numbers in a decades long context?

Apparently not. Once these numbers are put on paper, not even Bush administration speech writers can continue to pen rhetorical justifications for war and more war.

The neoconservative Bush administration prides itself on not being "reality based." Facts get in the way of the administration’s illusions and delusions. Bush’s "80 Iraqi battalions" are like Hitler’s secret weapons. They don’t exist.

Iraqis cannot afford to collaborate with the hated Americans or with the puppet government that the US has put in place. Out of desperation, some do, but their heart is not in it. Few Iraqis are willing to die fighting for the United States.

When the 2nd Iraq Battalion graduated from US training camp on January 6, 2004, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld and US commander in Iraq, Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, expressed "high expectations" that Iraqi troops, in the general’s words, "would help us bring security and stability back to the country."

Three months later when the 2nd Battalion was brought up to support the US invasion of Fallujah, the battalion refused to fight and returned to its post. "We did not sign up to fight Iraqis," said the troops.

Readers write in frustration: "Tell us what we can do." On the surface it doesn’t look like Bush can be stopped from trashing our country.

The congressional mid-term elections are a year away. Moreover, the Democrats have failed as an opposition party and are compromised by their support for the war. Bush has three more years in which to mire America in wider war. If Bush succeeds in starting wars throughout the Middle East, his successor will be stuck with them.

Congressional Democrats and Republicans alike have made it clear that they are going to ignore demonstrations and public opinion. The print and TV media have made it clear that there will be no reporting that will hold the Bush administration accountable for its deceit and delusion.

There still is a way to bring reality to the Bush administration. The public has the Internet. Is the antiwar movement well enough organized to collect via the Internet signatures on petitions for impeachment, perhaps one petition for each state? Millions of signatures would embarrass Bush before the world and embarrass our elected Representatives for their failure to act.

If no one in Congress acted on the petitions, all the rhetoric about war for democracy would fall flat. It would be obvious that there is no democracy in America.

If the cloak of democracy is stripped away, Bush’s "wars for democracy" begin to look like the foreign adventures of a megalomaniac. Remove Bush’s rhetorical cover, and tolerance at home and abroad for Bush’s war would evaporate. If Bush persisted, he would become a pariah.

Americans may feel that they cannot undercut a president at war, in which case Americans will become an embattled people consumed by decades of conflict. Americans can boot out Bush or pay dearly in blood and money.

I love it, I love it. Yes, Yes, Yes. Send this article to everyone you know and/or love. The only way to stop this madness is to have Jorge Bush impeached. Who out there knows how to draft up a petition? I'd sign it. This has to be done for the good of this country or we are finished. Do it before this weasel puts enough cronies into power that he can just trash the constitution and name himself King for life. Do it for America. Do it for your children.

IMPEACH JORGE BUSH!!!

Nice to see Bush Derangement Syndrome is alive and well on ALI. And here I was, thinking this was about illegal immigration. Go figure.

You want to end the war? Destroy Islam. That should do it.

Have a nice day!

The "war" is bush's money grab through starting conflict with the "axis of evil." Sorry, I'm interested in PROTECTING AMERICA not fighting muslims who are beyond reason. Close the border and stop the illegal invasion. Bring home the troops and let the muslims kill themselves!

"we dont need no stinking war mongering."

Originally Posted by EricOlsen

Nice to see Bush Derangement Syndrome is alive and well on ALI. And here I was, thinking this was about illegal immigration. Go figure.

You want to end the war? Destroy Islam. That should do it.

Have a nice day!

Killing off Al Qaeda is one thing. Going on a cruscade to democratize the entire Middle East is obsurd. Bush had no business going to Iraq, they were not a threat. The threat of millions of illegal aliens flooding our borders is much bigger than Iraq could ever be. Bush is fighting an unnecessary war in Iraq while allowing an open ended invasion (a hostile takeover) from Mexico without even firing a shot. Bush is spending like a drunken sailor that is out of control. He is going to wreck our nation and bankrupt this country in no time flat. We are already turning into a third world nation because of this. Yet we are the paranoid ones?

If everything is so great and wonderful under Bush then tell me about all of the wonderful reasons why Bush is so great and wonderful. In fact why don't you just merely name me a couple of policies of Bush's that have actually been good for America. In fact just name one. If you think Bush is so great and I'm just a paranoid egomaniac then why don't you convince me that what I'm saying is wrong.

Hi EricOlsen, welcome to ALIPAC!!

Yes, ALIPAC is about Illegal Immigration. Every now and then we get off on another topic, but we're really suppose to stay on the topic of illegal immigration and if something pertains to that, For example Avian Flu, we sometimes go in that direction. A lot of other issues stem out of illegal immigration, as I'm sure you know.

Eric, I for one, as an ALIPAC member voted for President Bush (I think most of us did here, but not all!!). We have Democrats and Independents, all kinds of people.

You didn't go too much into detail, but maybe you're like me....I'm MAINLY disappointed with President Bush over illegal immigration. Personally, when I think about and talk about the war, I TRY to do it without pulling the two together. I don't know. When it comes to the war, I've never yet been a Bush Basher. I just keep the two separate.
But I may be very wrong about that.

We do try to respect each other's opinions even though we may disagree.
Usually everyone seems to be able to do that. I hope if you disagree on the article which was posted here, that you will continue to all the other informative posts regarding illegal immigration. Later today, I'm sure the moderators will decide if the posts are on topic or getting too far off topic.

I made a post under discussions today, about cuttng aid off to Mexico because I was really feeling fed up over illegal immigration in my area, so I reverted to a little sarcastic humor. Sometimes it's a release of stress to be sarcastic. But anyway, ususally I'm more serious.

Anyway, I hope you will stay. Although we have some who are really fed up with President Bush on the borders, and some who are fed up with him on everything, you will find people here who still want to support him, and are focused on bringing attention to the borders. So, I truly hope that you will hang in there and if you do, you will see what I mean. There are a lot of different opinions....but when it comes to the borders.....we are unanimously together.

Thank you for joining today, Eric!! I can almost guarantee that you will like the people here, even if you don't agree on a particular issue. By far the people here are solid, well-informed Americans with good intentions for our country.

Thank you again for joining.

Wait a minute!! Eric, I just re-read your reply, and I think you are not disturbed by anything!! I'm sorry, I misinterpreted your post, and I thought you were disturbed about the other posts.

Anyway, my mistake either way. All that matters is Welcome to Alipac!!!!

Maybe I need glasses. Contacts? Pay more attention? That's probably it....the last option.

I make no excuses for bush, nor did I vote for the idiot.

HE IS CULL!



cull:

Adapted From: WordNet 2.0 Copyright 2003 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

cull
A noun
1 cull, reject

the person

I know, I know, I know !!! I don't need any lectures today, but a poem might help me !!

Hey Mr Bush Hack:

I mean EricOlsen, I'm still waiting to be enlightened by your infinite wisdom on Bush. Come on, surely you can name one thing Bush has done right that has benefitted America.