Molly Ivins: Digging in for the 'Long War'

[Dudley_DUright]

President Bush has once more undertaken to explain to us “Why We Fight,” which is also the title of an excellent new documentary on Iraq. According to the president, “Our goal in Iraq is victory.” I personally did not find that a helpful clarification.

According to the president, we are doomed to stay in Iraq until we “leave behind a democracy that can govern itself, sustain itself and defend itself.” That’s not exactly getting closer every day. But, the Prez sez, “A free Iraq in the heart of the Middle East will make the American people more secure for generations to come.”

So far, no good. After three years, tens of thousands of lives and $200 billion, we have achieved chaos. As Rep. John Murtha put it, “The only people who want us in Iraq are Iran and al-Qaida.” Since the revisionist myth that we went to war to promote democracy keeps seeping into rational discussion, it is worth reminding ourselves that there never were any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

We are inarguably facing more terrorists now than there were when we started, so the Pentagon has decided to fight what it is now calling “the Long War.” Has anyone asked you about this? Me, neither. Nor has anyone asked Congress. The administration—mostly Donald Rumsfeld—just decided we would have a long war and declared it, and is now committing us to fight against a fuzzy ideology no one seems to be able to define.

Our problem now is that we’re not fighting the people who attacked us—they’re still running around on the Afghan-Pakistan border while we battle Iraqis who don’t like us occupying their country.

more...

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20060315_molly_ivins_war/

[Mythsaje]

1. I look forward to each and every one of her offerings...n/t

[NMDemDist2]

2. K & N for another great Molly article n/t

[confuddled]

4. Yep. n/t

[xchrom]

3. k & r

[Dudley_DUright]

5. Do I hear one more recommend for Molly to get her to "greatest" status?

[jbfam4]

6. Here you go , Dudley

[EVDebs]

7. Incompetence and ineffectiveness is all part of overall R strategery

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=57889

They've redefined victory as something entirely different: unflinching loyalty to themselves, not the Constitution or the commonweal.

[immoderate]

8. Molly hits the bullseye every time.

--IMM

[unblock]

9. we've achieved nothing of great consequence in afghanistan OR iraq

other than making two big messes.

now they want to start a third mess?

[glitch]

10. "We've" achieved nothing. "They've" achieved great riches, beyond their

wildest expectations.

Amassing great personal wealth is typically not a sign of incompetence. We need to quit taking them at their word and judging them on how they fail at that,
and start watching what they are doing.

[mzmolly]

11. Chilling line here:

"I have no idea whom this administration plans to talk into its Long War, but I’m sure it won’t roll out the new campaign in August. In order to sell this, it will have to scare us, assuming some obliging terrorists don’t do it for them."

[ArmchairMeme]

12. K & R fine article

Molly continues to offer refreshing logical thought each time I read one of her articles.

Thanks