White House: Despite benchmarks, surge working

BuchCo is lying....again.

From McClatchy Newspapers:

When our president talks of peace returning to the streets of Baghdad, he mistakes the silence of empty, abandoned homes and sectarian cleansing for progress. He confuses the segregation of Shia and Sunni, each in their own ghettos behind tall concrete walls, for progress. More than 3 million Iraqis have been driven from their homes and neighborhoods into exile, internal or external, and this he calls success.

It is obvious to roughly three out of four Americans that Bush and his buddies intend to dump this quagmire onto you and me and the next generation. He has already washed his hands of it and we have another painful 15 months ahead with the only I have waited to leave office.

Extending the war, kicking that can down the road, was President Bush’s only strategic objective last January when he came up with the idea of escalating the number of American troops in Iraq from 130,000 to today’s 170,000. Put simply, the Decider wants to hand off the decision to pull the plug on his unwinnable war to someone else, anyone else.

Four and a half years after this president ordered the invasion of Iraq in a gross act of arrogance and ignorance based on faulty, bogus and politically twisted intelligence — and after repeatedly changing the rationales and objectives of the war as each has failed in turn — we’re going to continue this war because George W. Bush is incapable of admitting that he was wrong, wrong, wrong.

Leaving aside all the happy talk we heard this week about how much better the security picture is in Baghdad, the fact is that the escalation or surge has failed utterly. The stated purpose of this exercise was to buy breathing room for the faltering government of Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki and the paralyzed Iraqi parliament to make progress toward national reconciliation.

“President Bush will make his decisions based on the national interest and nothing else,’’ Cheney said “Not by artificial measures, not by political calculations, and not by poll numbers.’’

Apparently he doesn't make his decisions based on reality either. Thanks George W Bush & Dick Cheney. Thanks for destabilizing the Middle East.

Scumbags!!!

"Despite the utter failure of the Surge to accomplish its stated goals, the Surge is obviously working".

Typical.

When he says the "surge is working" you have to understand what he means by "working."

The surge is working in that the REAL point of the surge was to kick the can down the road and make the next President clean up his mess.

Given that, yes, the war will be handed down to the next President, the surge is working.

Like that flaming "liberal", George Will says; "A War Still Seeking a Mission":

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/right/orl-syn-will0911,0,4147372.story

Why didn't he just say, "Benchmarks? We don't need no stinkin' 'benchmarks!'"

Speak plainly and carry a big time stick, professor!

Caption Contest;

(Gunner to himself)
'Leni Riefenstahl couldn't have done a better job of it!'

The Admin tries to discount the failure to meet benchmarks by claiming that they've at least made progress toward benchmarks.

That is insane. Benchmarks determine whether you're on track to reach a goal. They are not goals in and of themselves.

If your goal is to walk from Chicago to Los Angeles in ten days, and your benchmark is to reach Denver in 5 days, you can be sure that you're not going to meet your goal if you've only made Naperville by day 5.

Under George Bush's logic, the fact that you made Naperville is entirely praiseworthy. That's insane. That's why our Republicant friends find his pitch so appealing.

If you're not hitting the benchmarks, you're not making adequate progress. Period. You are failing. Period. You need to assess why you have not made adequate progress and change something, not pat yourself on the back for doing such a great job.

Failure, thy name is George W. Bush.

Gee whiz, is our flag big enough for Dick Tater?

Man, how long can his Hummer be?

I bet that Dick carries a 35' tape measure around with him, just to prove who actually has the bigger, uh, flag.

"A NEW WAY FORWARD"

NO JUST "OBSTINACY"

Rose colored glasses. Dick Cheney is a crimminal who should be imprisoned. Quit using our brave troops as a photo op DICK!

Our congress is the enabler to the people drunk on power in the WH. They will allow Cheney to go hunting and Bush to clear brush once they are out of office with no consequence. Our sons and daughters will be paying for this folly long after we have been made into ashes and thrown into the wind.

The size of the flag is in direct and inverse proportion to the number of deferrments the Vice-Chickenhawk received to keep the cluck out of Vietnam.

The surge is working. And once the U.S. military is done in Iraq, they'll come home and we'll have a surge to get rid of the real terrorists, the real evil in this world: The Loony Left.

a blinkin,

TeamBush mantra;

Nothing succeeds..like failure.

You notice how president chainsaw and his chief bootlicker and spittle maker only speechify at military bases these days. Its because the audience had better cheer and clap, cause Petraeus is taking names, and the first guy not to worship the liar in chief gets a 15 month tour in the illegal occupation of Iraq. If the president and ear "bring it on" boy are so tuff, why don't they have their cheerleader rallies in places where people can actually voice an opinion. Guess they are the chickenhawks us loony lefties have always said they were.

The surge has cost more lives, more wounded more cripples and more billions and we are headed back where we started with 130,000 troops in Iraq. These guys call this success. How much success can we afford at these prices?

Try telling your boss that you missed most of your deadlines, got several hundred of your workers killed, and don't have a plan for when the project will finally be completed. Then ask him for $200 billion dollars in additional funding. Just don't forget to bring a box for your stuff.

Surge working. Stay the course. Surge working. Stay the course. Surge working. Stay the course. Repeat after DICK Cheney.

Progress on seven benchmarks was deemed unsatisfactory, and the White House said two could not be measured at this stage.

Hmm?

Ever get the feeling you've been ripped off!

Do any of you remember the book “1984”? You should read or re-read it if you don't. It's becoming more and more relevant every day.

In any event, the news media's coverage of Bush and Cheney team’s handling of Iraq, and your responses to it, remind me of the part in the Book "1984" where the hero went to experience his "Two Minutes Hate." It involved showing the bad guy on a screen saying all his anti-party and anti-Big Brother stuff, and everyone exposed to this went crazy denouncing him. Or, as described in the book:

“The horrible thing about the Two Minutes Hate was not that one was obliged to act a part, but, on the contrary, that it was impossible to avoid joining in. Within thirty seconds any pretence was always unnecessary. A hideous ecstasy of fear and vindictiveness, a desire to kill, to torture, to smash faces in with a sledge-hammer, seemed to flow through the whole group of people like an electric current, turning one even against one’s will into a grimacing, screaming lunatic.”

That appears to be about the same thing I see here every time one of these writers tosses you all some more red meat concerning Bush or Cheney, and especially with regard to the Iraq war. Did it ever dawn on you that maybe you are being conditioned to emote rather than think when all this stuff is dumped in your lap on a daily basis?

Face it folks, Bush, Cheney, Congress, and almost all others running for President or some other office, are all either too stupid, too foolish, too evil – or a combination thereof - to be leaders or decision makers in this country. They have all shamefully led us astray and either robbed us blind or allowed others to do so. This is true of both major parties. They have been bought, and we have been sold us for 30 pieces of silver.

But don’t take my word for it. Just go look at our nine (9) trillion dollar public debt, the slow down in the economy, the credit crunch, the drop of in the housing and mortgage markets, the reverberations here and abroad because of this trouble, and the fact that many economists are now predicting a recession. After that, go look at how much you money has dropped in value just since 1970 as a result of inflationary monetary policies for the benefit of the banking and moneyed interests. And then, after all that, listen to all these fool politicians talk about a different direction for the government which, in the details, means no change in budget and spending practices, more pork, more spending programs, and not a word on how to put our economy back on track or keep our money from rotting from between our fingers.

If you don’t think any of that is important, then I invite you to go back to your Two Minutes Hate so you can scream and rant at Bush and Cheney for something. You can also go back to fooling yourself into believing that electing another ideologue, either Democrat or Republican, is going to change “business as usual” in Washington. On the other hand, just maybe you can start confronting these people and demand responsible change for once. Either that, or it’s time to bring a new party to power.

John W.,

Pogo got it right: "I have met the enemy and it is us."

We ("we" being a majority of Americans) have bought into ad campaigns' of "deserving" this and that (houses, cars, etc.) that we cannot afford. Or can only afford if we borrow to the hilt with both spouses working and a margin of error of one paycheck.

IMHO the single worst fiscal thing that ever happened to America was the invention of the credit card.

JW,
Nice 1984 critique. Truly a great book. It used to be required reading in high school. I have reread it as an adult. Animal Farm as well. Though a satire of the Russian Revolution, you can put present day names on the characters in the book.

Further;

"But don’t take my word for it. Just go look at our nine (9) trillion dollar public debt, the slow down in the economy, the credit crunch, the drop of in the housing and mortgage markets, the reverberations here and abroad because of this trouble, and the fact that many economists are now predicting a recession. "

The right wing ideologues here, from John D on up, have repeatedly stated that the above mentioned facts just don't matter.

I might add that the private debt dwarfs the public debt.

Ahhh, C Morris, please show me where I ever said the nation's (private and public) debt does not matter. I have never said that, never ever even came close to that and I do not believe that.
In fact, it would behoove all of us if we lived like our grandparents and saved like they saved, and were as cost-conscience as they were.

Why are Cheney and Bush such cowards that they're afraid to talk before real people? All they ever do is regurgitate the same old crap on military bases and at VFW halls.

[quote]

The surge is working. And once the U.S. military is done in Iraq, they'll come home and we'll have a surge to get rid of the real terrorists, the real evil in this world: The Loony Left.

Posted by: John D | September 14, 2007 8:40 PM
[/quote]

John D, the "Joseph Stalin of Streamwood", why don't our military go to the Afghanistan/Pakistan border and go after bin-Laden and the Taliban government that allows him to hide there?

Doug,

As far as the individual is concerned, I agree that the credit card is one of the worst things that ever happened to personal finance and responsibility.

I refuse to have one.

But I'm not sure its the worst. There is a lot of competition, including:

1. Congress (a.k.a. Porkmasters, Inc.);

2. George W. (where did my veto pen go?) Bush; and,

3. August 15, 1971, which was the day the last of the gold exchange standard died. The use of pure "fiat" money after that has allowed our "leaders" to inflate our money to meet the demands of bankers and the rich. What cost $100 to purchase in 1970 now costs more than $500.

After reading the koolaid posts about Vice President Cheney, I have this to say no one on this post is as credentialed and experienced as Dick Cheney. No one is as great a patriot a former Congressman, Defense Secretary and CEO par exellance.
VP Cheney is a bright thinker and very good at strategic planning.
God Bless Dick Cheney. Jerry White, Springfield, IL

C.Morris:

I'm not sure about John D., but I remember a number of other, regular Duh'bya defenders writing that the deficit was fine, and that it would be wrong to change Duh'bya tax cuts because that would just slow down the economy.

John D.'s second public fault isn't that he supports Duh'bya's re-use of Reaganomics, but rather, that he is unwilling to criticize Duh'bya and other bad Republicans for doing stuff that doesn't match up with his own good Republican beliefs.

"VP Cheney is a bright thinker and very good at strategic planning."

Which comletely explains why the illegal occupation of Iraq is a total mess, why they have changed generals numerous times, why they keep redefining success, and why this is going to be the longest, most budget busting "war" in the history of the US.

I hope JW insults me more often, because JW's compliments mean he is completely delusional.

RNCBS:

You ARE referring to Jerry White, right?

"Ahhh, C Morris, please show me where I ever said the nation's (private and public) debt does not matter."

Ahhhhhh, John D, I accept your plea. If ya say ya didn't say it, fine.

Most right wingers, however, defend President Tiberius's fiscal policies. I am glad to see you are coming over to the enlightened side.

So you don't buy the argument most conservatives put forth in defense of GWB that 'as a percentage of of our total national wealth, the deficit is insignificant'. ??

Greenspan, BTW, says Clinton had political guts.

"After reading the koolaid posts about Vice President Cheney, I have this to say no one on this post is as credentialed and experienced as Dick Cheney. No one is as great a patriot a former Congressman, Defense Secretary and CEO par exellance.
VP Cheney is a bright thinker and very good at strategic planning.
God Bless Dick Cheney. Jerry White, Springfield, IL

Posted by: Jerry White | September 15, 2007 5:22 PM"

Jerry,

Anyone posting here would do a better job managing a war, even you!

Why?

Everyone here (except for Bruce) has a conscience. (Even John D[evola]!)

"In fact, it would behoove all of us if we lived like our grandparents and saved like they saved, and were as cost-conscience as they were.

Posted by: John D | September 15, 2007 10:51 AM"

John D, my good friend!,

Mrs. Morris and I are very thrifty. Glad to hear you agree.

But, Walton Mountain doesn't exist any longer. Those days are dead. There is no escape or retreat from the ravages of unfettered global capitalism.

Who knew UGC would be as great a threat to middle class Americans as international communism?

John W and C Morris, I do support the Bush tax cuts, which in recent years have increased the federal coffers quite nicely. Lower taxes stimulate the economy and in the long run bring in more tax revenues than do higher taxes.

Also, John W., I have been critical of Bush and the GOP on spending (though in reality beginning in 2004 they did go back to smaller spending increases), the border and illegal immigration, and the fact that some elements of the party lost their way when it came to government and ethics and began acting like the democrats did when they ran Congress for 40 years. Course, the democrats in Congress are up to their old tricks again.

Course, the democrats in Congress are up to their old tricks again.

Posted by: John D | September 16, 2007 1:51 AM

Speaking of old tricks (lies & out of control spending) look no further than the Whitehouse. Keep drinking the Kool-Aid John D.

First, thank you to the troops for the seervice you have done.

Second, thank you Mr. Vice-President for the leadership you have shown.

"The last refuge of a scoundrel is....patriotism."

"The last refuge of a scoundrel is....patriotism."

Posted by: C.Morris | September 16, 2007 8:42 PM

And the best job for a scoundrel is normally that of Congressman or Senator. Or, as Mark Twain was quoted as saying:

“Fleas can be taught nearly anything that a Congressman can.”

“Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.”

“Congressman is the trivialist distinction for a full grown man.”

“The lightning there is peculiar; it is so convincing, that when it strikes a thing it doesn't leave enough of that thing behind for you to tell whether – Well, you'd think it was something valuable, and a Congressman had been there.”

“It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.”

“I never can think of Judas Iscariot without losing my temper. To my mind Judas Iscariot was nothing but a low, mean, premature, Congressman.”

These are Twain’s humorous caricatures of Congress, but there are but a few in that body that I would fully exempt from these remarks.