29 января 2007

SOTU 2007

I am a little late getting this out, but nobody reads this anyway.
I have spoken to several about last week's SOTU and this is my favorite line:

"Our success in this war is often measured by the things that did not happen."

I find this to be genius rhetoric and brilliant speech writing. To measure a war's success by things that have not happened. Imagine that! The possibilities are endless.

Now we wait and wait to see if 25,000 more troops will be sent in an effort to clear, hold, and re-build Baghdad. This is the administration's last attempt to stop civil war and sectarian violence. The Iraq Study Group declared that as Baghdad falls, so falls Iraq. If the troop surge is approved, all focus will be on the capital city and this last rush of military force. If the troops surge is denied, the war's calamity and failure will be pinned on the Democratic congress who veto it. The responsibility will shift in the coming months. It has already happened. The Bush Administration has created a smokey rhetoric which has put all responsibility on the Iraq people and "military" to take control of the situation that we have started; To take responsibility to show us that they are deserving of our presence.

Iran is also moving in on Baghdad, against warnings from Washington. The NY Times (Jan. 28) describes the efforts: "The ambassador, Hassan Kazemi Qumi, said Iran was prepared to offer Iraq government forces training, equipment and advisers for what he called 'the security fight.' In the economic area, Mr. Qumi said, Iran was ready to assume major responsibility for Iraq reconstruction, an area of failure on the part of the United States since American-led forces overthrew Saddam Hussein nearly four years ago.

'We have experience of reconstruction after war,' Mr. Qumi said, referring to the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. 'We are ready to transfer this experience in terms of reconstruction to the Iraqis.' This does not sit well with the Bush Administration.

Needless to say, this is not going to get any better anytime soon.
I think it's just getting started.