Safety dance.

Sleep soundly, America. George W. Bush is keeping you safe. Safe from World War III (by threatening yet another war in the world's most volatile region). Safe from socialized medicine or "government run healthcare" (by vetoing even the modest health care initiative passed by a spineless congress). Safe from terrorists (by terrorizing the accused and the extra-judicially detained). Don't you feel better now? This has been another busy week for the administration, what with the launch of yet another in their long series of reasons why we invaded Iraq and why we must also confront (and perhaps attack) Iran. Yes, we are literally there to prevent World War III - that is what might happen if we back down now. This is the long awaited sequel to:

  1. We must disarm Saddam
  2. We must bring democracy to ordinary Iraqis (who yearn for freedom)
  3. We must catch Saddam (thereby ending the insurgency)
  4. We must stand up an Iraqi army (so that we can then stand down)
  5. We must prevent a civil war
  6. We must keep the civil war from getting worse
  7. We must fight the terrorists over there so as not to fight them here
  8. We must capture / kill Zarchawi (thereby ending the insurgency)
  9. We must secure Baghdad first (by digging a trench around it)
  10. We must send more troops (so that the Iraqi government can have time to do our bidding)
  11. We must fight Iranian influence in Iraq (bastards have no business being there!)
  12. We must punish the Iranians (for killing Americans sent to fight their influence)
  13. We must support the Anbar Awakening (and consequent ethnic cleansing of thousands of Shi'ite families)

I'm certain I've left a few out, but you get the idea. Flavor of the week. My particular favorite is #7 - the "fight them there rather than here" bit. As if there were a finite number of terrorists in the world who would follow us to wherever we choose to fight them, then once they've been defeated, they're gone for good. Safe!

Since they managed to convince us to tolerate the commencement and further prosecution of this war, they probably think we'll swallow anything.

Talking Turkey - Per news reports and Juan Cole's blog, somewhere between 70,000 and 100,000 Turkish troops are massed along that nation's border with Iraq. As Iraqi Kurdish leaders and the folks in Ankara prepare for war, our Defense Secretary (per Cole) has said that we will take action against the Kurdish PKK (Workers Party), the Turkish faction allegedly being harbored by Iraqi Kurds. Told you we'd throw them over the side.

luv u,

jp

Comments

Anonymous said…
Well said.
November 10, 2008 at 1:41 PM
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