Are you a Democratic politician? An ambitious one? Do you want to be president, maybe? Or at least just hold onto your blessed seat in Congress? Are you waaaaaay to busy to figure out how to end the war that the country wants you to end?
Let me help.
Here are three simple things you should shut up about. When you feel yourself wanting to say any of these three things? Shut. It. Shut up. Honestly. Enough's enough.
(1) Who Knew the Iraqi Government Would Suck So Bad?
Stop saying that the Iraqi government is a big disappointment. We bombed them, toppled their government, disbanded all their institutions, let looters have the run of the place ("stuff happens!"), and we're now occupying their streets with tens of thousands of foreign troops, and with armed contractors who aren't subject to the laws of any country. Obviously, the "government" nominally in charge of a country in those circumstances is going to suck. Actually, they'll Suck, with a capital S. You supposedly antiwar politicians talking about how shocked you are that the Iraqi government Sucks, makes it seem like maybe you think this whole invasion-dismantling-looting-occupation thing would have worked out OK, if it only weren't for that Sucky Sucky government Iraq mysteriously ended up with. Shut it.
(2) We Couldn't Possibly End the War
Stop saying that Congress ending the war will hurt the troops. Bush will veto anything the Congress passes that tells him to bring the troops home, so the only way that Congress can end the war is to cut off the funds for continuing it. (Bush can't veto something Congress doesn't do.) If American troops are in a combat zone, and the money that pays for their bullets and gas and MREs is drying up, they must be withdrawn from the battlefield. What kind of psychopath would keep American troops in a war zone without the funding to supply them? No one's that evil, and if they are, we'll deal with them when they do it. Ending funding for the war ends the war, period. Stop doing Sean Hannity's job for him by hawking that claptrap about endangering the troops.
(3) Couldn't We Just Change the Slogan?
Stop saying that U.S. troops in Iraq should stay there, but they should just do different stuff. What's their mission now, pray tell? Propping up the Shiite government, while we also fund Sunni militias to fight the government? Peacekeeping? While we dump billions of dollars worth of weapons into the country? Training and equipping Iraqi forces? Who turn around and kill the American troops who just trained and equipped them? If the goal now is for Iraq to be sovereign and relatively free and not a failed-state, then how 'bout we help them along that path by getting this foreign army off their streets. The U.S. military can accomplish any military mission assigned them -- but what our country wants for Iraq now is not a military mission. The U.S. can and should fund a hell of a lot of help for Iraq, but not in the form of troops and military contractors.
Ambitious Democratic politicians, hear ye hear ye: yankle yerselves out of these three traps you keep falling into when you talk about the war. Don't blame the Iraqis, don't denigrate the only hope you've got to end the war, don't confuse shrinking the war or changing the war's so-called mission with actually ending it. Repeat after me: "This is a Republican war and I will not own it, I will end it. This is a Republican war and I will not own it, I will end it."
A ready-to-be-grateful nation, awaits your next move.
Afraid of what King George might say about them if they cutoff the war funds.
Afraid of what KKKarl Rove might say about them.
Afraid of all the repig fascists and what they would say about them.
Afraid to standup for what's right and end this fiasco in Iraq.
Afraid of what the polls might say and their electabili
Afraid of what the right wing MSM mouths will say.
Afraid their fat-cat corporate money bosses might not like the war to end.
Afraid, afraid, afraid...
And you expect them to step up and stand on principle with all that fear in their hearts.
I am AFRAID you are hoping against all odds that they might overcome this fear which I am AFRAID won't happen.
The only thing we have to FEAR is FEAR itself.
It imbolizes and is self destructiv
I am sick of this war and I am sick of worrying about Cheney's next war. Like probably 90% of Americans, I just want it to stop. NOW. I am tired of this. We all are. I am afraid we are too tired to fight it anymore. Nothing we say or do makes any difference
I do not want to leave Iraq and go next door. I want us to leave Iraq and come home. I do not think we will.
I love your radio show, particular
You are kidding, right?
I've been trying to get a woman elected God for the longest time,
but will settle for President of the United States.
How 'bout it?
Interested
Astute post, btw, Rachel. Thanks for the insights.
Add to this the latest Democratic mantra, "We don't have enough votes to end the war."
Senate Democrats are introducin
It's a load of crap. It only takes 41 Senators to prevent the war appropriat
All this Democratic talk is worthless until they take a stand on the appropriat
There is one reason this war hasn't been ended by the Democrats: the election of Lieberman in Connecticu
Democrats keep claiming they sent a clear message to Congress to end the war, but that is not the case. The message is mixed. The message is indeed, the war is not good, but we will still vote for you, and raise you to higher office still, if you vote for the war.
Edwards was co-sponsor to Lieberman on the War Resolution
And yet people wonder why Congress lacks resovle...
But I agree that the real problem is that we're over there because the oil companies and corporate America (like Blackwater
So, stick with candidates like John Edwards who refuse to take those corporate donations and we might actually have a chance to change course.
Edwards was a cheerleade
Votes yes to the occupation of Iraq, votes no for civil rights. How is that 'progressi
I have a bridge to cross with John, and I'm not there yet. I can not cross that bridge until he explains how he could be so very, deathly wrong about such a major decision. My upbringing makes this a personal issue for me, and one day I may cross that bridge, but for now, those who voted for war, who promoted for war, I'm just uncomforta
Heck, what your basic low down cowardly chickenhaw
Say what you will about Bush, but he never had sex in the White House like some folks.
:-)