A Murdered Man of Peace
We seem to have a situation in Iraq. It comes down to a situation of a return on investment. What can be the best outcome and how much will it cost? A reasonable prudent person would examine the anticipated expectations of the most likely outcome. Seeking the best scenario is not planning, it is dreaming. Dreams are good things, pursuing them at any cost is not. My dilemma with Iraq is a calculation that the most likely outcome will be far short of the President's dream.
The President, like most liberals, is an idealist. He really believes that Islam is a hijacked religion. He believes that eliminating the bad guys will create a new Aquarian Islamic Era. I do not. Nothing will change in the Islamic wars until the Muslims resolve it themselves. Mr. President, Islam is the problem. As Aquarians used to say, "Sorry about that."
Key ally: Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha was assassinated only ten days after President Bush praised him as an ally against terrorists The Daily Mail
more
U.S suffers fresh blow in Iraq after key ally is assassinated by terrorists
Last updated at 21:00pm on 13th September 2007
A US-backed Iraqi warlord who met President Bush just ten days ago was killed in a terrorist bombing.
The killing of Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha is a fresh blow to U.S forces, as he was seen as a key ally in the fight against al-Qaida.
During a visit this month to Iraq, Bush hailed the courage of Abu Risha and others "who have made a decision to reject violence and murder in return for moderation and peace."
Abu Risha was blown up by a bomb, suspected to be planted by al-Qaida, near his home in the Anbar province, west of Baghdad.
He was the Sunni leader of the Anbar Salvation Council, also known as the Anbar Awakening - an alliance of clans backing the Iraqi government and U.S. forces.
The operation is right where it should be, based upon the results of the Jan '05 Iraqi elections.
ReplyDeleteThe politics, the diplomacy, the civilian portion of the Iraqi Adventure, dismal ...
We are right where we were projected to be. But the story, it''s like we just stumbled onto a revelation.
Such poor stage management.
If it works in Anbar, why not
ReplyDeletePHILADELPHIA (Associated Press) -- The city's embattled police chief, acknowledging that police alone cannot quell a run of deadly violence, has called on 10,000 black men to patrol the streets to reduce crime.
Sylvester Johnson, who is black, says black men have a duty to protect more vulnerable residents. He wants each volunteer to pledge to work three hours a day for at least 90 days.
"It's time for African-American men to stand up," Johnson told the Philadelphia Daily News, which first reported the story Wednesday. "We have an obligation to protect our women, our children and our elderly. We're going to put men on the street. We're going to train them in conflict resolution."
The program's backers include Dennis Muhammad, a former Nation of Islam official who has been hired by police departments in Detroit, Syracuse, N.Y., and other cities to conduct community-sensitivity training.
Philadelphia, the nation's sixth-largest city, has nearly 1.5 million residents, 44 percent of them black. It has notched 294 homicides this year. More than 80 percent of the slayings involve handguns, and most involve young black males.
Abu Risha was buried one year after the goateed, charismatic, chain-smoking young sheik organized 25 Sunni Arab clans under the umbrella of the Anbar Awakening Council, an alliance against al-Qaida in Iraq, to drive terrorists from sanctuaries where they had flourished after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.
ReplyDeleteNo group claimed responsibility for the assassination, but it was widely assumed to have been carried out by al-Qaida, which already had killed four of Abu Risha's brothers and six other relatives for working with the U.S. military.
U.S. officials credit Abu Risha and allied sheiks with a dramatic improvement in security in such Anbar flashpoints as Fallujah and Ramadi after years of American failure to subdue the extremists. U.S. officials now talk of using the Anbar model to organize tribal fighters elsewhere in Iraq.
Gerard Baker has a different point of view on Iraq and the US involvement.
ReplyDeleteThe US Empire, less intrusive than Roman, but more pervasive.
ReplyDeleteJust ask Britney and Madonna's newest detractors.
Just watch Sabado Gigante.
#1 in the World, from Miami!
Neither Bollywood nor Quebec.
The # 1 show, from Miami, Florida, USA.
A conquered Territory, from the Spanish, then consolidated with the Cubans, Columbians and Venezuelans, bringing a mocha mix to white cream America's coffee.
Then influencing the culture of all the Americas, broadcast from Miami, rather than Mexico City or Havana.
Selling American Values, to the World!
Celebrate!
Dance to the music!
We've WON!!
5,700 troops home for Christmass
Appealing apparel, that fellow wears. Wore.
ReplyDeleteIvan finishes second. Bigger Bomb
ReplyDeleteA conquered Territory, from the Spanish, then consolidated with the Cubans, Columbians and Venezuelans, bringing a mocha mix to white cream America's coffee.
ReplyDeleteThen influencing the culture of all the Americas, broadcast from Miami, rather than Mexico City or Havana.
Selling American Values, to the World!
---
Do you really believe that shit?
""Forty-eight hours duration, hitting 2500 aimed points to take out their [Iranian] nuclear facilities, their air defense facilities, their air force, their navy, their Shahab-3 retaliatory missiles, and finally their command and control. And then let the Iranian people take their country back," the general said describing the campaign, adding it would be "easy."
ReplyDelete---
I wonder if it will be even easier than the current Cakewalk?
This looks Photoshopped to me, compared to the original, a few weeks ago.
ReplyDeleteWouldn't it be cool and fun to watch OJ Die, on live TV?
ReplyDelete...then there'd be the endless YouTube reruns when we just couldn't get enough.
I could, if pressed.
ReplyDeleteIt is Miami, Florida, USA, after all.
It is the cultural capital for Latin America, where else would you prefer, doug?
Nueva York, Porto Rico?
Where should the most popular show in the World broadcast from, Havana suit you better? Caracus perhaps?
What and where is the better option, for a soft power US Empire, to exploit?
To spread WalMart and McDonalds to the masses? Britney and Madonna.
The best weapons we've got.
Lust, Decandence and Greed.
Everyone's welcome!!!
Even Omar the Model.
Pooty's a phony. He's a bait fisherman. Besides, only a fool goes shirtless on the river. Too many bugs flying around.
ReplyDeleteYet another Kanukistani connection in the European Jihad nexus. Bob, you can run but you cannot hide. :D
ReplyDeleteh/t: LGF
I was thinking more about the future course of Los Angeles, possibly Phoenix, and etc:
ReplyDeleteIOW LA may be the future, but American Values will have long since become unrecognizable.
Maybe we're talking about two different things?
Long time, no read, Mat.
ReplyDeleteWelcome Back!
South, mat, away from the socialist seculars, go south to land Rome's Papa and pyramids. Jungles and deserts
ReplyDeleteJust the normal run of the mill narco-wars down there. Keep your head down, and a fellow will do just fine.
If you were starving to death, would you lower yourself to using a cockroach, or something, for bait, AlBob?
ReplyDeleteDoug,
ReplyDeleteI was busy reading all 193 comments in the other thread.
Doug,
ReplyDeleteYou and dRat have the patience of god. I would’ve sliced her throat and be done with it.
WHEN has 'Rat ever exhibited PATIENCE?
ReplyDeleteAnd,
WHERE, specifically?
I didn't realize 'Rat was confronting her:
ReplyDeleteI thot it was
Mano a Moonbato.
The America of the future will not look like Jane Wyman's version of it.
ReplyDeleteNor Ron Reagan's either.
Mrs Cleaver, a piece of imaginative story telling, like the Beaver, himself.
Lament the changes or embrace them, natters not to much. The time for beheading the culture that Britney and Madonna represent, long past. It is a hydra now, not bothered by the loss of a head.
Remember when Elvis was to risque for Prime Time. Ed Sullivan boxed the shots, waist up only.
The sands of time do not fall up, the swing of the pendulem, to slow for it to get me back to Mrs Cleaver. We're still traveling away, not even swinging back.
And if it does, it'll be on a different place. Creative destruction, our forte.
Mr Jefferson would be shocked, they'd all be amazed.
We all hang together,
or we'll surely hang alone.
There are Opportunities.
Open your mind, as the President advised.
Or, are you talking about Ash?
ReplyDeleteYes.
ReplyDeleteIf I were starving to death I might well eat the cockroach.
ReplyDelete"It is a hydra now, not bothered by the loss of a head."
ReplyDelete---
Aren'tcha glad you're back, Mat?
:-)
Mat,
ReplyDeleteLook at the Dumb Democrats thread for Doug vs Trish.
Ash was just for desert.
So, you would make Cockroach Pesto before you'd stoop to bait fishin?
ReplyDeleteOr, are you SO Conservative that you wouldn't risk your precious Cockroach for the chance for a luscious Steelhead?
ReplyDeleteDoug,
ReplyDeleteYou keep her (Trish) busy. Just be careful when the full moon is out. :)
I always figure he an ally, tossing those softballs, to impress the lurkers with our point of view.
ReplyDeleteHe could be habu, for all I know.
Just stirrin' the pot, so keep stompin' the dog.
As much fun as not. Besides, who knows whom else may become convinced, that may come to see the perception I prefer.
You think Ash is good for Alexa Ratings?
ReplyDeleteHere's one for you Mat:
ReplyDeleteThe Revolutionary Gaurds are
an NGO.
No, really!
Or, as Trish said:
"They really are, Doug"
!
LMFAO
I became a Weak Knee'd Israel Suck up for buying into them being connected in any way to Tehran!
ReplyDeleteShe also compared democratic Iran to democratic Turkey.
ReplyDeleteHere's a sad story in our daily fishwrap this morning.
ReplyDeleteU of Idaho freshman faces deportation after 15 years in U.S.
Moscow--AP--
FRATERNITY BROTHERS STAND BEHIND STUDENT WHOSE ILLEGAL STATUS HAS CAUGHT UP WITH HIM
From all outward appearances and achievements, Luis Olivares is an all-American kind of guy.
The problem is, he isn't an American.
Olivares said he remembers the night he was smuggled across the Mexican border as if it were a dream. Now, the would be U of Idaho freshman is facing a nightmare.
...story goes on about how he grew up in Royal City ,Washington....
Olivares said his illegal status has finally caught up with him. He was an excellent student where he lived in Royal City, Wash., earning a 3.9 grade point average in high school. In pursuit of his American dream, he applied and was accepted at UI and enrolled in business courses. He pledged at the Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity, and was embraced with open arms by his new brothers.
...story goes about how he applied for financial aid, got caught out, turned to the legal community for help, and is s.o.l.--for the time being. He can come back in after going back to Mexico for some years....
He does concede however he should have started working on his immigration status much earlier.
If Olivares does go back to Mexico, he will essentially be alone. His family lives in the U.S. and he hasn't seen his father since he was two. But he said he isn't too afraid, since he has accomplished much on his own. And he should be able to get a decent job, as he is bi-lingual.
The most painful thing will be leaving the fraternity, he said, where he's grown to love and respect the members who have been working to help him stay at UI and get his degree.
...He's applied for help through the U of I Law School let 'em all in free program, so I think it will probably work out for him some way. After all, the article is about garnering community support for him here. This guy is nice looking, smart, no gang banger. What to do?
I should pay more attention:
ReplyDeleteI noticed, but did not really take that one in.
Ron Paul supporter,
all the way.
More fun than a chorus, singin' from a hymn book
ReplyDeleteEven if it is, an NGO, by ratification by omission, they are an extension of Iranian policy.
No matter how it charts.
She allowed you to make that point, a few times.
Ash, too. Either the agruments are persuasive or not. Few on the blog rolls admit error and apologize for being wrong. Few indeed.
Most just fade away, when time tells.
5,700 Troops Home for Christmass!!
The enemy has just faded away ...
We've Won!!!
Tell him to start dealing drugs and killing niggers, AlBob:
ReplyDeleteHe'll get in state tuition in Calif.
They're tryin to pass a Calif Dream Act Now!
ReplyDeleteBest non-mormons can do, I guess.
We might want to ask, how many members of that rouge Iranian NGO did the government of Iran arrest and put to trial? And if they haven’t, why not?
ReplyDeleteWhy do I keep scrolling down to the thread below?
ReplyDeleteSo, what's your prediction on Mookie, 'Rat?
ReplyDeleteI know of a couple of those stories, bob.
ReplyDeleteNice kids, came when they were 3, 4, went through High School here.
Kinda cast a drift by the System after that. Goin' for Federal and State handouts, that's asking for trouble. Subconscious desire to get caught, likely as not.
There are tens of thousands of those stories out there.
You Jooish?
ReplyDeleteAlBob,
ReplyDeletePlease tell me when you find out:
I thot you were Mat, thus the question.
Me, Jooish? Nope. Israeli, Yes.
ReplyDeleteYes, the Dream Act--the article mentions that too but I left it out.
ReplyDelete'Pasco's Tom Roach(don't make a joke out of that, Doug) who said he is the only attorney in eastern Washington who exclusively practices immigration law, said he's had dozens of cases just like Olivares'. Roach said he would probably be better off staying(illegally I presume, you know these lawyers) in Washington and going to a junior college he can afford out-of-pocket and wait for the DREAM Act to pass.'
Yup, that's the deal. What should I do, lawyer? Well, just continue to break the law, and wait till the law changes, of course.
Judean nationalist, that’s what I am.
ReplyDeleteHe picked a Federal Prosecutor to be the new Prime Minister. He was investigating corruption, he's got the dirt on everyone of 'em.
ReplyDeleteBut not a KGB alumni.
He splits the PM and the Presidency as job descriptions, before he walks into semi-retirement. Picking an aged Presidental replacement, Old Guard but dependent. Putin becoming the power behind the thrones.
Until he comes back due to popular demand, in the next election cycle, or the death of the President.
The letter of the process is observed.
Why I’m not a Joo:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nkusa.org
That's where Jr meets them, Comunity College.
ReplyDeleteDaughter met some in High School.
That's a reality of the situation. The US has invest tens of thousands in these kids, who are not culturally Mexican. Not as much as they are what passes for US culture, today.
Which ain't June Cleaver, but it's not Emiliano Zapata, either.
He could join the army.
ReplyDeleteNo, they can't, no without work permits.
ReplyDeleteThat's Jr's challenge. They do not qualify as qualified enlistees without the visa, first.
Gotta be legal to join the Army.
"Israel"
ReplyDeleteWorse than Hitler!
Extremists do get weird.
Bet we could raise 100,000 man espeditionary force of wanna be green carded enlistees. In a "Foreign Legion" type force. Send them on Nation building, in Haiti, over to Indonesia for earthquake relief. They'd work out well in the Middle East, too.
ReplyDeleteSix to ten year enlistment, residency at the end.
You should be able to set him up with fake Visas!
ReplyDeleteHave him agree to give you 20% of the signing bonus.
ReplyDeletedRAt wrote:
ReplyDelete"Even if it is, an NGO, by ratification by omission, they are an extension of Iranian policy."
Are you maintaining that any act performed by an Iranian organization is an extension of Iranian policy? Do you believe a similar responsibility occurs for the US organizations? Say a corporation incorporated in Delaware executes a hit on a Chilean business rival - is that then an extension of US foreign policy and the US government should be held accountable? Is this your view of government responsibility?
The Guard service kept him out of being recalled to the Corps and dedicated to going to class, getting that GI Bill money.
ReplyDeleteSuits me. He studies all the computer code stuff I never bothered to learn, so now I know how, when he does.
Dispenses having to work with inept employees.
The projects' lead time to adequate launch capability just lengthens.
Just like the Iraqi Army, kid should have had it all after the first Semester, but that was not the reality. Takes more time than anticipated, bringing good troops on line.
Takes more than a crash course.
If the Government of the US supports through grants, payments or ratification by omission, then yes, the Government is responsible
ReplyDeleteThe same criteria that apply to an ICC indictment. If the National Government acts, the ICC actions are voided. It is when the Government will not act, that the ICC does, as with Sudan and the Darfur indictments.
The Sudanese Government, Ratifying by Omission their responsibility for that behaviour.
Which brings us back to drawing a line (grants ect.) from the Iranian government to the Quds. The "ratification by omission" gets into all kinds of jurisdictional issues. One could argue that since the US government did not prosecute for that murder in Chile then they ratified by omission which would be problematic. Similarly saying that the Quds consisting of Iranians operating in Iraq is Iran's responsibility is problematic without showing a more direct link between the organization and the Iranian government.
ReplyDeleteHey Rat,
ReplyDeleteDidn't Bush do what you want last night? He declared Iraq a success and started bringing the troops home. This is what you were counseling is it not?
You got a devious, criminal mind there, Doug:)
ReplyDeleteThat seems like a good idea to me. In the army for some time, then a route to citizenship. What's the downside to that, if like this guy, he's basically here anyway, and shown himself to be a good type? No criminal record, good grades, speaks the language. Speaks two languages in fact. Basically a valuable guy.
ReplyDeleteFor about two years
ReplyDeleteLocalize the conflict handing off to local forces, further criminalize and internalize the Iraqi conflict.
Begin to withdraw as the Iraqi stand up, with timelines, not political benchmarks.
That's why I say we've won!!!
He has just done a piss poor job of presening the concept. Should have been shaping the rhetorical battlespace since Jan05, the "End Game" if not the "State" was clear to see, then.
5,700 troops home for Christmass
30,000 home in July, more on tap, after that. The locals will not hinder the departure, the Mahdi has stood down. The Baathists will have limited autonomy, the US base in Anbar erll positioned to Peacekeep.
It's all good.
You think I've been kidding?
My perspective has won, for now.
Celebrate, Celebrate!
Dance to the Music!!!
Hope General P can hold things together.
BLADE RUNNER 2007, Opening Titles
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fT590N74r5o
It's too bad this won't live.
But then again, what does?
It is only problematic, ash, if you cannot enforce the leagal decision, like the ICC has in Sudan.
ReplyDeleteThe US had no problems enforcing it's Law, if it so decides to.
The Law is flexible as regards to power. Who enforces the warrant, that's always the question of utmost importance.
Who is the Sheriff?
The legal remedy is clear, the enforcment of it, that is not so easily forseen. When the Judge sends the Sheriff, then it's done.
Per the Authorization for Use of Force, 14 Sept 2001. The President of the United States is the sole Judge as to who the US determines supports terrorist that have or wish to strike the US or its' interests.
Quite the Law, but the Law, none the less.
The President is the Decider, no doubt of that, under US Law.
All true, bob.
ReplyDeleteBasicly just like US, but younger and with out papers.
How big an issue should that be?
Then expanded across the 20 million with out papers, the line becomes ever more fuzzy.
Secure the border, allow in only those desired. Then decide how many and whom are desired. Whether they are already in the United States or wanting to immigrate here.
It is the uncontrolled migration, not the legal immigration that is the primary challenge. Secure the frontier, the rest will shake out.
In a compassionate Americas.
(a) IN GENERAL- That the President is authorized to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons
ReplyDeletehe determines
planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons, in order to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States by such nations, organizations or persons.
Carte Blanche, with no expiration date
dRat wrote:
ReplyDelete"It's all good."
Weeellll, I'm not so sure. By making the withdrawal contingent upon success then you are placing events beyond our ability to control them aside from taking whatever happens (like the murder of our sheik ally) and putting lipstick on that pig all the while shouting VICTORY! Seems a foolish way to set it up to me but hey, whatever turns your crank as long as the troops are withdrawn. Given Bush's past record, any uptick in violence as troops go down will be an excuse to up their levels again.
No, ash, the Iraqi State, the Government is greater than any idividual.
ReplyDeleteThe Government has not fallen, will not fall.
It is a Government of Law, not men.
That is the essence of liberal democracy that we are instilling.
That we will further instill in the next 18 to 24 months.
The occassional murder, political or criminal will not stop the State. Not if we stand with them.
As we are.
If Mr Bush were assinated, the Republic would continue, greater men than he have been lost, the US marched on. Iraq is a land of historical and cultural greatness. The people will raise to the occassion, when they see the writing on the wall.
hattip Senator Warner.
If Bush had packaged it correctly, if he had not depended upon a mail room clerk for ideas ...
But still only a defeaist would not be pleased with the trendlines.
Ms Hillary just not happy with the 100,000 still there in Jan 09, When and if she'd get the Responsibilty to set the timeline.
That's quite the thick spread of lipstick there Rat. We shall see if that pig flies.
ReplyDeleteUptick or down, to be expected, but now there'll be some accountability to the Plan.
ReplyDeleteAlways what I heard called for ...
An accountable plan.
Now there is one, with six month updates to Congress.
Just what was asked for, but poorly packaged by Team 43.
If things head south, we'd not abandon US vital interests without a debate. But if those interests seem secure, we'll roll on out, on schedule.
How else to account for the unseen contingencies?
When the Team 43 went from timelines and deadlines, to output base benchmarks, they set themselves up to fail. Whether purposeful or not, that's the reality.
ReplyDeleteThe Iraqi made every deadline, well managed that aspect of the process. We should have stuck with process and timelines, leaving "benchmarks" in the background. Especially when it was known they'd not be met.
Poor overall management of the stage,
poor information managemnt,
poor workflow management.
Terrible communications skills.
No vision
There is an interesting video letter to the editor at NTTimes about Bremner's decision to disband the Iraqi Army.
ReplyDeleteCharles Ferguson, a filmmaker, presents a rebuttal to claims made by L. Paul Bremer III that top American officials approved the decision to disband the Iraqi army.
"Especially when it was known they'd not be met."
ReplyDelete---
To do otherwise would be to damage is legacy as a blockhead.
THANK YOU ASH!
ReplyDeleteTrish had a quote from one Asshole that NOBODY Objected.
ReplyDeleteHell, you could give away free booze and sex, and SOMEBODY would object!
I'll go post it at Jackassoonians:
ReplyDeleteHe'll spend the whole day writing 50 pages "proving" it's wrong!
EVERYBODY DISAGREED!
ReplyDelete(almost)
Even Powell and Armitage,
who I thot were at fault.
Trish will never buy it,
despite DOZENS of credible
People testifying to it:
That Col says the most and he does NOT appear to be lying!
WHERE THE FUCK WAS BUSH IN THE "PROCESS"?
ReplyDeleteFeith and Wolfie and a couple others are the only people said to have wanted it that way.
ReplyDeleteDay of Infamy for the Neocons!
C-4 will be multipliorgasmic!
None of this is true of course, as Trish has declared Steve doesn't know what he's talking about, just as
ReplyDelete"THERE WAS NO OTHER PLAN!"
A New Course In Iraq...For Iran
Quds Force Training Iraqis In Iran
Doug, you mind clueing me in on the disagreement between you and Trish on the Iraqi Army?
ReplyDeleteSorry, I haven't really been paying attention and I'm curious.
I've held all along that Garner had a different plan.
ReplyDeleteTrish insisted there WAS no other plan, period.
LOTS of very credible people say otherwise in the clip.
The Col. that has the most to say sure doesn't look like he's lying.
General Garner briefed Pres Bush on his plan on Feb 28, 2003.
ReplyDeleteBremmer made HIS decision on May 9, 2003.
Tells a protesting Gen Garner of his decision a week after arriving in Iraq,
Army officially disbanded on May 23, 2003.
Col. Paul Hughes, tasked with tracking down the Army in Iraq:
The fact that 137 THOUSAND of the Iraqi Army
CAME AND REGISTERED
tells me they DIDN'T Disappear."
When rioting errupted, an Iraqi Officer told Col Paul he could gaurantee a force of 10 Thousand Military Police within a week.
Richard Armitage says he and Powell were not made aware of the CHANGE IN PLANS, until after the fact.
Col. Paul Hughes was astounded when he was told, saying:
"None of us knew this was coming.
There's not a WAY, anyone can say this did not affect the insurgency"
Rendered Half a Million military men unemployed and infuriated.
(also Betrayed by the Forked Tongue Americans YET AGAIN)
Many more:
Quite a large and very cohesive conspiracy of Ass-Coverers, here.
Truly Diverse, too.
---
I just don't understand the
Visceral Hatred by looney librarian government apologist moonbats of Don Rumsfeld.
Paul Bremer gets chicks by saying he’ll do to them what he did to Iraq.
ReplyDeleteWell, that and them fancy boots and the good hair.
ReplyDelete...and they just CAN'T resist that "the third" thang.
I wonder if THAT'S what attracts Moonbat Chicks?
ReplyDelete