tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post2410481910480586305..comments2024-03-28T21:41:52.558-04:00Comments on The Elephant Bar: There is Trouble in Paradise. Malaki and Petraeus Have Hard Feelings.Deuce ☂http://www.blogger.com/profile/13472858446242700869noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-15836785062868229692007-07-29T12:22:00.000-04:002007-07-29T12:22:00.000-04:00"But by not doing any of those things, we have ced..."But by not doing any of those things, we have ceded the inititive and created a de facto status que that fails to achieve US Goals."<BR/><BR/>I thought US Goals already had been achieved - without toppling baby Doc.<BR/><BR/>If Syria was a problem for us on the ground, however, it was a problem because we occupied Iraq. Absent that, Syria was a problem for the Iraqis. Ditto every other neighboring country.<BR/><BR/>Taking out Assad's tanks would not have prevented Syrian territory from being used as a Sunni conveyor. Nor, as you suggested last summer, been an antidote for Lebanon.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-9757479407906082842007-07-29T09:45:00.000-04:002007-07-29T09:45:00.000-04:00dRat,Re: 40,000 criminal cases. Why isn't Islamic ...dRat,<BR/><BR/>Re: 40,000 criminal cases. <BR/><BR/>Why isn't Islamic law being applied? That should solve the problem chop-chop.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11132252460964519368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-73483768866402488312007-07-29T01:29:00.000-04:002007-07-29T01:29:00.000-04:00A wider war or no war at all, trish.Wider both mil...A wider war or no war at all, trish.<BR/><BR/>Wider both militarily and using those other, softer, facets of US power. <BR/><BR/>I thought that we should have toppled baby doc Assad, back in '03 & 04. Destroyed his armored capacity, at least.<BR/>But we did not.<BR/><BR/>I thought we should have cleared and destroyed most of the terrorist communities in Anbar, increasing the internally displaced and the refugees in Syria and Jordan.<BR/><BR/>I thought we should have had capacity to hold the 100,000 criminals that Saddam released, prior to his down fall. More than 2.5 times the capacity to hold criminals now, only 40,000.<BR/>Texas holds 125,000 criminals in jails, with a smaller population base, 21 million or so.<BR/><BR/>But by not doing any of those things, we have ceded the inititive and created a de facto status que that fails to achieve US Goals.<BR/><BR/>We should begin to disengage our military from the internal Iraqi disputes, leaving the bulk of the water hauling to the elected Government we have helped to installed and the Security Forces we've spent four years training.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-75176794598427098692007-07-29T01:11:00.000-04:002007-07-29T01:11:00.000-04:00I'm Glad we invaded. I think he Would have gotten...I'm Glad we invaded. I think he Would have gotten a nuke, eventually (and, probably only a few years.) I think if he got a Nuke all of the oil in the ME would have been his. We just barely got enough votes to stop him the first time he invaded Kuwait. If he'd had nukes the Gold would have been his.<BR/><BR/>So, I'm as ignorant as Dubya. I had no idea those assholes were as worthless as they are. I guess that makes me the biggest asshole of all. Well, there you go. <BR/><BR/>I think Whit's on the right track. But, Mat's right, also. Ahmacahmadingdong CANNOT ever be allowed to have a Nuke. And, we DO have to keep the oil safe for another twenty years, or so. <BR/><BR/>Yep, it's a mess; and, I'm an Asshole. A really, really dumb asshole. It's NOT a Lonely feeling, though.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-48774576657279121702007-07-29T01:03:00.000-04:002007-07-29T01:03:00.000-04:00Well, I have completely misrepresented myself, the...Well, I have completely misrepresented myself, then; because I don't have the slightest idea what in the hell we should do.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-43506791543221822502007-07-29T00:57:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:57:00.000-04:00I take your sarcasm and gather that what you belie...I take your sarcasm and gather that what you believe is that we just haven't done enough of that military stuff.<BR/><BR/>Well, I'm going to let you gentlemen plan your way out of the fix we're in. Using all the elements of national power, which is one. <BR/><BR/>Don't disappoint me.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-85469735568346423572007-07-29T00:51:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:51:00.000-04:00And, them Cia guys are, always, right on top of th...And, them Cia guys are, always, right on top of things. Weren't they the ones that stated in 88' that the Soviet Economy was the "Equal," if not Greater than our own?<BR/><BR/>Yep, we'll get us some more of that "Intelligence." <BR/><BR/>Economy? The Dumb-ass motherforevermoretrucking religion won't even allow them to charge/pay Interest. How's that economy deal work when you don't have banking? What, we don't know? The "Civilized" world has had banking ever since there's been a "Civilized" World? <BR/><BR/>I'll be damned. Now, what do we do?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-26948964952900074412007-07-29T00:49:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:49:00.000-04:00"do we really want a conflagration in the Heart of..."do we really want a conflagration in the Heart of 40% of the world's oil."<BR/><BR/>Rat has been proposing this for quite some time. He IS a wider war advocate.<BR/><BR/>Aren't you, Rat?trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-60379301274865773262007-07-29T00:43:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:43:00.000-04:00Yeah, we just ain't done enuff of that diplomacy, ...Yeah, we just ain't done enuff of that diplomacy, stuff.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-83586885810979459202007-07-29T00:36:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:36:00.000-04:00Never mind. I missed rufus' comment.I guess, bob, ...Never mind. I missed rufus' comment.<BR/><BR/>I guess, bob, all we need is the M in DIME. Got a problem? You've got M. Got an interest to pursue? You've got M. Got a conflict to resolve? You've got M. Need time or favors? M is there to fetch them. Need information? There's one number to call. <BR/><BR/>I'm not uptight, bob.<BR/><BR/>I'm AM amazed, though.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-75837479077814379482007-07-29T00:22:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:22:00.000-04:00"So the idea of that Iraqi Army driving south, aga..."So the idea of that Iraqi Army driving south, against a US air bombardment is laughable"<BR/><BR/>Who suggested they'd do it?trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-82910276274222721592007-07-29T00:16:00.000-04:002007-07-29T00:16:00.000-04:00Dint you notice? I said, "A Nuclear-Armed" (that ...Dint you notice? I said, "A Nuclear-Armed" (that means they have had time to turn their Iraqi AND <B>Iranian</B> - you know, that OTHER Shiite Nation next door that some of them want to hook up with so badly - Oil money into Nukes. <BR/><BR/>The question not being whether we can go back in and protect the KSA/Kuwaiti/UAE oil fields, but do we really want a conflagration in the Heart of 40% of the world's oil.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-82587622773013928582007-07-28T23:01:00.000-04:002007-07-28T23:01:00.000-04:00The Iraqi Security Forces, with its' 350,000 men, ...The Iraqi Security Forces, with its' 350,000 men, is reportedly on the verge of falling to aQ, all 2,500 of them, the minute the US were to leave Iraq.<BR/><BR/>So the idea of that Iraqi Army driving south, against a US air bombardment is laughable, an equal fear to their failing to secure the Iraqi government, in Iraq, aginst aQ.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-86970224722163470012007-07-28T22:53:00.000-04:002007-07-28T22:53:00.000-04:00Very True, but you don't want to see a huge "Nucle...Very True, but you don't want to see a huge "Nuclear-Armed" Iraqi/Iranian Army heading South, either.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-11357507462215327072007-07-28T21:59:00.000-04:002007-07-28T21:59:00.000-04:00One cannot steal what one owns, rufus.And possessi...One cannot steal what one owns, rufus.<BR/><BR/>And possession is 9/10ths of the Law. The Iraqi Government, that we installed, owns the Iraqi oil, how they dispose of it and how they disperse the revenues recieved, that's up to them. Not US.desert rathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02369546288659566961noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-44097763629748109252007-07-28T21:56:00.000-04:002007-07-28T21:56:00.000-04:00'other elements of national power'--yessirree--con...'other elements of national power'--yessirree--condi's talk, our dominance of the seas, stuff like that, our ability so far to continue paying for shit from China, all those elements of our national power.bobalharbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07392941487194884284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-32518622901426942852007-07-28T21:52:00.000-04:002007-07-28T21:52:00.000-04:00Oh come on Trish. Don't be so uptight. Everybody s...Oh come on Trish. Don't be so uptight. Everybody should have some nuclear bombs. Nicaragua, too, to keep the damned yanks away. Everyone should have nuclear bombs. That is what we say around here at our house. Give them out, like an Idaho hunting license, pay the fee, and promise to be good.bobalharbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07392941487194884284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-86551123279356139702007-07-28T21:17:00.000-04:002007-07-28T21:17:00.000-04:00Mostly, though, they just want us to look the othe...Mostly, though, they just want us to look the other way so they can steal the oil money.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-69713131514091242932007-07-28T20:25:00.000-04:002007-07-28T20:25:00.000-04:00I can understand PM Malaki's frustration. The Shii...I can understand PM Malaki's frustration. The Shiia are in a bind. They can't turn to Iran, they will lose their oil revenues to Iran. They can't turn on the Americans, because then they lose their patronage, and have to deal with the Sunnis directly and without US protection.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11132252460964519368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-7484306496868417032007-07-28T19:19:00.000-04:002007-07-28T19:19:00.000-04:00Thanks for the kind words, bob. "Bomb Iran. Habu i...Thanks for the kind words, bob. <BR/><BR/>"Bomb Iran. Habu is right, we are in a war, we just don't(most of us) know it yet."<BR/><BR/>(Sigh.)<BR/><BR/>I don't know who most of us at the EB are, bob, but here at my house we've been at war (grant me a liberal understanding) since, oh, 1995. And you know what, bob, it's gotten a mite tiresome. There are other elements of national power, bob, and you're going to have to acquaint yourself with them.<BR/><BR/>DIME<BR/><BR/>Diplomacy<BR/>Intelligence/Information<BR/>Military<BR/>Economic<BR/><BR/>If you wanted to do Iran, it had to be done - from Afghanistan - years ago. It can't be done now. Not the way you're thinking.trishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14139410627244875589noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-66097318406805927032007-07-28T17:39:00.000-04:002007-07-28T17:39:00.000-04:00You got Questions? I Got ANSWERS.You got Questions? I Got <A HREF="http://thefraserdomain.typepad.com/energy/2007/07/updated-world-o.html" REL="nofollow">ANSWERS.</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-72098227460698839552007-07-28T17:29:00.000-04:002007-07-28T17:29:00.000-04:00Iraq is about ever-increasing tightness of oil sup...Iraq is about ever-increasing tightness of oil supplies. That's all it was ever about.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-18167558896365994752007-07-28T16:43:00.000-04:002007-07-28T16:43:00.000-04:00I be practicing me rain dance. :)I be practicing me rain dance. :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11132252460964519368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-79260608316428747952007-07-28T15:56:00.000-04:002007-07-28T15:56:00.000-04:00Good Grief, Mat, and I thought we here were suppos...Good Grief, Mat, and I thought we here were supposed to be, 'the men that conquered the mountains'. I'll take a teaching.<BR/><BR/>Going to spray the eternal weeds now,thistles, damn them!bobalharbhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07392941487194884284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-66912722253857252522007-07-28T15:45:00.000-04:002007-07-28T15:45:00.000-04:00Bob,Thank you, again. And you know you always have...Bob,<BR/><BR/>Thank you, again. And you know you always have an open invitation to my home in Haifa. Israel is small, but we have everything here. Even <A HREF="http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8PDJK100&show_article=1&image=large" REL="nofollow">wild leopard wrestling</A>, wearing underwear only! <BR/><BR/>:DAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11132252460964519368noreply@blogger.com