Little Progress in Iraq Yet Bush Pushes On
Snipped from WashingtonPost.com.
Is there no stopping a man who thinks he has a mandate from God? No, because he feels there is no higher authority–not Congress, not the American people and not even his own Intelligence Estimates and now the Government Accountability Office…oh wait, of course he would ignore that one since neither he, nor any of his people, have been accountable for anything. The GAO draft reported in the Washington Post paints a bleak picture of what is going on in Iraq and more pointedly comments on the success of the “surge”. Does it surprise anyone out there that it will be in stark contrast to what the White House will cook up next month? So, what does the GAO have to say?
The draft report provides “a stark assessment of the tactical effects of the current U.S. led counteroffensive to secure Baghdad”. While the goal of the security plan was to reduce sectarian violence the number of attacks against Iraqi civilians remains unchanged. There, however, have been fewer attacks against U.S. forces as al Qaeda and militias reposition themselves in response to U.S. forces’ push into troubled neighborhoods.
But probably the most disturbing from the report is that the capabilities of the Iraqi security forces have not improved. And, what that means, is that our attempts at withdrawal will be further delayed while their own security forces continue to flounder. And, the generals will come back and bemoan the fact that they just can’t withdraw now because the hard-earned new security in neighborhoods will be lost if they leave. It seems like its the same old song over and over again. Wasn’t this the identical situation before the surge?
Here is a brief assessment from the GAO that puts it into perspective.
“Overall,” the report concludes, “key legislation has not been passed, violence remains high, and it is unclear whether the Iraqi government will spend $10 billion in reconstruction funds,” as promised. While it makes no policy recommendations, the draft suggests that future administration assessments “would be more useful” if they backed up their judgments with more details and “provided data on broader measures of violence from all relevant U.S. agencies.”
What is sad is that the person who provided this draft report to the press expressed concern that the conclusions of this report “will be watered down in the final version–as some officials have said happened with security judgments in this month’s National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq.” So, here we go again. If we aren’t being outright lied to, then the truth is covered up or sugar coated so as to allow Bush to continue with his insanity.
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13 out of 18 benchmarks have not been met was reported today. Already Bush’s people have begun the pre-debate, trial-by-media attack/defense of the upcoming Congressional reports to Congress in September.
What is a pre-debate trail-by-media technique? It’s a fairly new form of propaganda for fooling the public. There are no spin-doctors needed here. Spin-doctors are used AFTER a bad event to twist it into something else and okay with the public. This technique to influence the public comes BEFOREHAND. It usually starts with a bad report but mostly in advance of an upcoming announcement or speech. Its trademarks are leaks to the media from unnamed sources. Then reports of the real “facts” by “experts” and presidental pro-arguments. The goal is to settle whatever issue and reach a consensus before the trial or debate in question begins.
The release of the GAO report on the situation in Iraq is being handled this way. As example, a lot of us are now being persuaded that the benchmarks were too stirct and impossible to meet. And that the GAO used all or nothing grades, even though some percentages of success occurred. On and on. This is all preparation slanted toward the General’s report next month on what’s happening in Iraq and to continue the war. There will be an onslaught of this kaka propaganda in the following days. Another example: Watch Bush use this technique to pre-sell his September “stay-the-course” speech to Congress before the speech is given.
I made up the pre-debate trail-by-media technique label in an attempt to help explain what I see as happening. Do you understand? I don’t know how well I was able to explain the concept.
“You can fool some of the people…” has today become “You can fool all the people BEFORE time!”
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Great comment Stan. I liked the use of your technical term–”kaka propaganda”…too funny!
You know we, as the ordinary subjects of King George, are living in a world of taxation without representation. We give him the money and he does what he wants with it.
It’s gotten to the point where paying taxes to support the continual abuse of power for ideological purposes is unbearable. I work hard for my money and the thought that it is going to Bush’s favorite hobby, really infuriates me.
Thanks for the comment and yes, I totally understand your concept of the pre-debate trial-by-media technique. It’s just such a shame that there will be those who will fall for it clinging to any hopes for face-saving in Iraq. So, it will be more lives lost and more money burned senselessly and for what? So Bush can continue his delusions of democracy in the middle of anarchy, civil war and chaos.
Hey y’all! I’m sorta back and reading more again. Unfortunately, poltics haven’t changed.
Chris Hedges at Truthdig.com has an article you may be interested in here too …
The Next Quagmire (at http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20070903_the_next_quagmire/).
Would like to hear your thoughts?
127001
Hey 127001 Great to have you back! We’ve missed you. How are you doing? I hope you are well.
I’ll check out the article on Truthdig…they have some really good stuff on there. Thanks.
And, yeah, some things just never change, Bush and Co., especially.
re: The Next Quaqmire. ‘”Air strikes against 1,200 targets in Iran. The air strikes are designed to cripple the….” (Chris Hedges). //see 127001’s above comment//
Of course all the details for hitting Iran (air strikes plus troops) have been worked out by the Pentagon way in advance. It is a Pentagon guy thing they do. And I believe they already have a supply warehouse somewhere stocked with the accurate — not estimated — number of coffins needed for their next adventure. It wouldn’t surprise me!
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The Kaka Propaganda continues unabated. As for the top General’s report to Congress next week –why bother?– the General should send a rain check. Bush, today in Australia, has covered the bet to/not to withdrawl by uttering “We will win” and ‘Some guys may go home if…if…if…” There is improvement in one Iraq in-the-sticks neighborhood //not in the city of Bagadad itself// because of our army’s new, so called “bottoms-up” policy. Give me a break! When asked media questions Bush doesn’t want to answer //”What is the truth in Iraq?”// his response is: please wait for the two reports to come out. Has Bush waited? No. Even so, Bush has covered both sides of the bet no matter what the reports reveal on the present conditions in Iraq to congress. And how many members in congress will see through the Administration’s surge of kaka propaganda before/during/after the two Iraq reports followed by Bush’s scheduled pep talk re the Iraq war, conditions and its people to Congress and, of course, to the Nation?
Let’s see: If I play to win, to place and to show in the first race….and it’s show and I win! Now that I’ve won enough, I can bet the next race at the track, maybe can hit big on the next, and the next, and can come home with the jackpot. Iraq is Bush’s game, his racetrack. And Bush is using young people’s lives and our tax dollars and our great-great grandchildern’s tax dollars to bankroll this deadly game. Bush won’t quit Iraq just like a gambler won’t quit playing because, by God, he knows as the gambler knows: “I’m going to win!” Sure…Sure thing!
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Hey 127001, it is good to have you back, even if it is ’sorta back’! Hope to see more of you around, as we have all missed you.
General Petraeus Speaks. In advance of the General’s Iraq-assessment speech to Congress on Thursday next week, the General spoke to the troops. Petraeus gave them a syllabus of his make-or-break speech with the keywords: uplifting — stay the course — a hard job — years on the job — and the remainder of the war will be a long walk.
The General meant “the long walk” as a metaphor. Figuratively. But literally? This metaphor brings to mind another “long walk” that was actually called a march — the “Bantam Death March” of 72,000 Filipino and American soldiers in the Philippines in 1942 during World War II. Prisoners of war. Walking 90 miles. Walking dead men. So many were abused, so many died that later the Bantam Death March became a Japanese war crime.
Hence, If “the long walk” from Petraeus’s message to Congress (and to the Nation) becomes a catchword for continuing the war in Iraq for years, then history may dub “The Long Walk” as the IRAQ DEATH WALK.
//IDW–as a car bumper sticker?//
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General Petraeus today, all day, with Congress with his assessments. Question: if Iraq somehow, someday establishes their national government and their security forces are fully trained — Bush’s/the Pentagon’s/now congress’s conditions required for the withdrawal of American troops — the question is how does that end the violence and civil war in Iraq? If choas does continue and treathen to topple everything in Iraq like Bush’s democracy there and the envisoned future control of that entire region, then what? Does the United States war with Iraq a third time?
New Battle Cry: “We’ll get it right this time!” — Sure you will.
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“Overwatch” will become the new mantra for keeping U.S. troops in Iraq and there forever! Wasn’t “surge” a great winning term that was used to sell Congress and the Nation a load of kaka? So too is the term “Overwatch” as a great winner for brainwashing us with more kaka propaganda. At today’s Congressional Iraq assessment hearings came the Q&A portion, and that’s when “Overwatch” came out of General Petraeus’ mouth during one of his answers.
Overwatch. Accept it: Iraq is an occupied country and we ain’t never going to leave. In Operation Overwatch, less U.S. military will always be on hand to control Iraq’s government and to control its people. The need to Watch Over our interests justifies our future presence. Overwatch is not active yet, and won’t be until our troops come home except for the Overwatch ones!
And just why do we intend to stay in Iraq? It’s the oil, stupid!
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