Comments on: Question For McCain http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/ Firedoglake weblog Sat, 28 Nov 2009 05:26:43 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: DefendOurConstitution http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1380124 DefendOurConstitution Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:12:33 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1380124 <p>Clearly liberals just don’t get it. The war is a success, Iraq is better off and they love us. Anyone who says otherwise is a traitor. What would it take to declare Iraq a failure? Easy, a Democrat in the White House.</p> Clearly liberals just don’t get it. The war is a success, Iraq is better off and they love us. Anyone who says otherwise is a traitor. What would it take to declare Iraq a failure? Easy, a Democrat in the White House.

]]> By: TJ11 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379764 TJ11 Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:16:49 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379764 <p>Having read this article the question arises - can this kind of war be “won”? It seems to me the probabilities are heavily stacked against it. The American people know this, based on poll results. The only way McCain/Bush has even a colorable argument that it can be is to mischaracterize the enemy and the kind of struggle we are involved in.</p> Having read this article the question arises – can this kind of war be “won”? It seems to me the probabilities are heavily stacked against it. The American people know this, based on poll results. The only way McCain/Bush has even a colorable argument that it can be is to mischaracterize the enemy and the kind of struggle we are involved in.

]]> By: TJ11 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379742 TJ11 Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:05:16 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379742 <p>Questions for Petraeus:<br /> 1. What makes you think that reducing hostilities to some presumed, but unquantifiable, level has some reasonable probability of creating the conditions for political reconciliation to occur and the Iraqi government strengthened so it can defend itself and the Iraqi people?<br /> 2. How much of your job is devoted to simply maintaining civil order, and how much to reconciliation of Iraqi parties and political factions?<br /> 3. Who is in charge of assessing the prospects and probabilities of political reconciliation of Iraq? That’s the person the Senate committees need to hear from.<br /> 4. If you cannot know that the Iraq civil war can be resolved by the US simply maintaining civil order at some undefined level for some undefined period of time at a known cost of roughly 12 billion dollars a month and 50 to 70 soldiers lives, don’t you think it is time for the civilians in the DOD and White House to come up with a strategy with a greater likelihood of success at a cost that the nation can bear for that undefinable period of time?<br /> 2. Has the US won if it helps Iraq over its civil war, elect a government that has the support of its people and kicks al Qaida out of the country, but Iraq allies itself with Iran? Is this the primary Bush administration interest in Iraq at this time-to install a government that is favorable to the US and not to Iran regardless of the level of hostilities and political battles?</p> Questions for Petraeus:
1. What makes you think that reducing hostilities to some presumed, but unquantifiable, level has some reasonable probability of creating the conditions for political reconciliation to occur and the Iraqi government strengthened so it can defend itself and the Iraqi people?
2. How much of your job is devoted to simply maintaining civil order, and how much to reconciliation of Iraqi parties and political factions?
3. Who is in charge of assessing the prospects and probabilities of political reconciliation of Iraq? That’s the person the Senate committees need to hear from.
4. If you cannot know that the Iraq civil war can be resolved by the US simply maintaining civil order at some undefined level for some undefined period of time at a known cost of roughly 12 billion dollars a month and 50 to 70 soldiers lives, don’t you think it is time for the civilians in the DOD and White House to come up with a strategy with a greater likelihood of success at a cost that the nation can bear for that undefinable period of time?
2. Has the US won if it helps Iraq over its civil war, elect a government that has the support of its people and kicks al Qaida out of the country, but Iraq allies itself with Iran? Is this the primary Bush administration interest in Iraq at this time-to install a government that is favorable to the US and not to Iran regardless of the level of hostilities and political battles?

]]> By: njr83 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379716 njr83 Wed, 09 Apr 2008 04:44:55 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379716 <p>Iraq and where have we lead our friends?<br /> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7337873.stm" rel="nofollow">http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7337873.stm</a></p> Iraq and where have we lead our friends?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7337873.stm

]]> By: Eli http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379620 Eli Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:41:20 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379620 <p>True - I’m worried enough about what kind of damage a cat might do…</p> True – I’m worried enough about what kind of damage a cat might do…

]]> By: auditor http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379618 auditor Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:40:24 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379618 <p>Basra “No Country for Old Men”</p> Basra “No Country for Old Men”

]]> By: MarkH http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379614 MarkH Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:38:56 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379614 <blockquote> <p>Dude, if I could find any ponies I’d be keeping them for myself. </p></blockquote> <p>Dude! Just so you don’t try keeping them in a small apartment in a big city. Jeez, they hate that. You know how hard it is to go galloping in the city.</p>

Dude, if I could find any ponies I’d be keeping them for myself.

Dude! Just so you don’t try keeping them in a small apartment in a big city. Jeez, they hate that. You know how hard it is to go galloping in the city.

]]> By: MarkH http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379597 MarkH Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:34:05 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379597 <blockquote> <p>McCain is dangerous </p></blockquote> <p>God: John?<br /> McCain: Yes Lord.</p> <p>God: Where is your brother, McAbel?<br /> McCain: In Iraq.</p> <p>God: I rescued you from torture so you could be with your brother. Now you have sent him away.<br /> McCrazy: We’ve got to prove I wasn’t tortured in Nam for nothing.</p> <p>God: You were tortured so you would realize the value of being at home near your brother.</p> <p>McNuts: Uh oh.</p>

McCain is dangerous

God: John?
McCain: Yes Lord.

God: Where is your brother, McAbel?
McCain: In Iraq.

God: I rescued you from torture so you could be with your brother. Now you have sent him away.
McCrazy: We’ve got to prove I wasn’t tortured in Nam for nothing.

God: You were tortured so you would realize the value of being at home near your brother.

McNuts: Uh oh.

]]> By: Margot http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379588 Margot Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:29:49 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379588 <p>*snork*<br /> hahaha!</p> *snork*
hahaha!

]]> By: MarkH http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379558 MarkH Wed, 09 Apr 2008 03:16:47 +0000 http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/08/question-for-mccain/#comment-1379558 <blockquote><p>al-Sadr could keep up guerrilla warfare endlessly, …<br /> we can’t keep feeding the meat grinder and profiteers forever. …<br /> He’s bound to lose the numbers game because of our firepower.</p></blockquote> <p>They live there. They’re in it forever…the longest run.</p> <p>They don’t have to win a traditional fight. They just have to stay at it at their leisure.</p> <p>We can’t win and we can’t stay forever, so we “lose”. It’s the traditional insurgency war.</p> <p>McCain just doesn’t understand and never will. He’s still fighting WWII or earlier wars.</p> <p>No, we had no enemy there (except perhaps Saddam) and we have no business there. It’s not in the strategic interests of America to be in Iraq right now.</p>

al-Sadr could keep up guerrilla warfare endlessly, …
we can’t keep feeding the meat grinder and profiteers forever. …
He’s bound to lose the numbers game because of our firepower.

They live there. They’re in it forever…the longest run.

They don’t have to win a traditional fight. They just have to stay at it at their leisure.

We can’t win and we can’t stay forever, so we “lose”. It’s the traditional insurgency war.

McCain just doesn’t understand and never will. He’s still fighting WWII or earlier wars.

No, we had no enemy there (except perhaps Saddam) and we have no business there. It’s not in the strategic interests of America to be in Iraq right now.

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