How Pelosi Ended 'The War With Iraq'

Perhaps you haven't noticed, but The War With Iraq is over.

Like everything with the Bush administration's relationship to it's gullible public, the point is never what they're doing, but what they say they're doing; it's the words, not the deeds.

So No Child Left Behind of course has nothing to do with helping challenged children in bad schools to keep up, it's about defunding and dismantling the public school system. And 'saving Social Security' has nothing to do with saving social security, its about handing over what's left of the public trough to the investment industry, etc, etc, etc---is there a single American under a rock anywhere that doesn't know this drill by heart by now?

And now the war with Iraq is no longer 'The War With Iraq'; its been successfully rebranded as 'The War with Iran'.

Try and sit through a single newscast or reading of the international page without finding a reference to how Iran is the real 'enemy' over there; whether it's the nuclear bomb there's no evidence of them developing, the IEDs there's no evidence of their government smuggling across the border to harm the agents of our benign humanitarian effort in Iraq, or how Ahmadinejad's denial of the facts of the Holocaust means he's ready to wipe out the free world---or at least America, which can't really be called the free world anymore. But I digress.

Mel Gibson denies the facts of the Holocaust, too, but unless he's planning on wiping out the free world by boring them to death with shitty movies, I don't really see him as much of a global threat. And our own leader, the intellectual from Yale who can't pronounce 'nuclear'--he routinely denies the facts of not only evolution, but global warming, contraception, carcinogens in drinking water, etc, etc, etc and you never hear a peep about him bringing on Armageddon. (Well, only in fundamentalist churches, but they're happy about it.)

But if you scan any of the news for idiots---The NY Daily News say, or CNN--- you'd think Ahmadinejad had actually flown the planes into the World Trade Center and that he literally walks around Tehran with American blood dripping off his bib. When he spoke at Columbia the other week, the conservatives who run American mainstream media spun it like Hitler had spoken at ACLU headquarters in the middle of the Blitz.

The rebranding of War With Iraq into War With Iran is only Phase I of a multi-phased rebranding strategy that will go on for years, a strategy that is in fact prepping us for the big hand-off to a Democratic White House that needs its own public spin for staying in Iraq until we've met the one and only (private) benchmark we've had all along; a permanent force in the world's largest military base securing the theft of the world's second largest deposit of oil. But don't take it from me--ask Alan Greenspan, that liberal.

If you doubt the existence of this strategy, than you must've missed the emergence of Phase II last week, when all three of the leading presidential candidates from the 'opposition party'--- the party that supposedly has a mandate from the American people to end the war---furrowed their collective brow and professed dismay that it just seemed too darn unrealistic---and no doubt unpresidential--- to get troops out of Iraq any earlier than--are you ready?--2013.

Why not just let Bush stay president? It's what he wanted all along.

Of course the troops the Dems plan to keep there won't be 'combat' troops, because the 'war' will be over---at least rhetorically. They'll be a 'stabilization force'--that's Phase III of the rebranding.

Phase III will last 50 years, and you'll never hear the word 'combat,' only 'stabilization', but on the ground, the facts will be the same they've always been; unwelcome Americans kids getting killed and maimed by a debilitated local populace who hate them. Desperate Iraqis--armed and otherwise--with no water, sanitation, electricity, protection or hope will still be slaughtered in the streets or made into internal or external refugees. And of course there'll be the big cherry on top we've wanted all along; control of the oil.

And voila--we'll basically have our new Israel; a permanently volatile and unstable place that we'll diplomatically dither with for eternity, all the while pumping tax dollars into a 'stabilizing' military infrastructure to ensure the local population will never have peace and are so distracted by survival that we'll get away with grabbing what we've decided is ours to steal.

Any questions?

The opposition party 'came back into power' and passed non-binding resolutions to chide a president who doesn't give a shit who chides him and then voted to support an ill-advised surge and increase funding for the very war they had a 'mandate' to end. These are facts, not rhetoric.

The Democrats bought Bush the time he wanted by pitching their rhetoric to their constituents, while the White House bought time pitching their rhetoric to their few remaining constituents, and now the moment to get out of the whole abhorrent mess has passed. Bush will be gone but the troops will stay and we'll have gotten the oil.

Oh sure, there's all the side 'benefits'--the American taxpayers funding the creation of a massive invasion/occupation industry--companies like KBR, Bechtel, Blackwater, you know the names--that take taxpayer dollars to at first rip a region down and then take taxpayer's money to build the region up again, albeit in accordance with their own privatized corporate needs and with inferior materials and slave labor.

(or perhaps you thought all those buildings in the Green Zone were built by well-paid union construction workers outfitted in state of the art protective gear with round-the-clock-workplace safety standards in place--you know, like in Katrina)

In short, a massive, publicly funded destruction/reconstruction industry for private profit. Call it 'socialized terror.'

They'll call it 'job creation.'

What could've stopped it all, the great rebranding, the escalation, the extra deaths and crippling debt, not to mention yet another gutting of the power of the American voter? The impeachment process. This is of course the one thing Nancy Pelosi declared was 'off the table' before she'd done a single thing as Speaker.

Say it again, to yourself: 'The one thing that truly could have derailed the longest war in US history, in the one moment where it was still possible, was declared 'off the table' by the leader of the opposition party, placed in power by a mandate from the people.'

The 'Ending The War Phase' is over and the 'How Can We Sensibly Approach A Solution Phase?' has begun. Feel any different?

It's like Karl Rove is still writing the script. Maybe he is.

Our new Democratic president will tell us the 'war is over' and it will be as hollow as 'mission accomplished'--especially to the Iraqis. But Americans will hear our 'combat troops' are coming home and sigh with relief as they nod with a feeling of democratic triumph at 'the wave of change in Washington'---and go back to American Idol and Dancing With The Stars.

Maybe we should stop parsing the spin and arguing over which lie seems closer to the truth we want to believe.

Maybe we should forget about reality TV for a sec and start thinking about reality reality.

Comments

[loki]

The best thing Pelosi can do is get her lying butt out of congress and let someone in who has the guts to keep promises and actually try to do something instead of worrying about her own career. She is already filthy rich, why cant she do something to help America now.

[jqmes]

This is a fucking AWESOME column.

Especially like the Mel Gibson line....

[BuyMoreAmmo]

10-4, roger that, jqmes.....­and if you like Gilroy you'll love this link...go to http://www.kunstler.com/mags_diary22.html

[larry278]

Regardless of what the war is called, Iraq or Iran; it's a crock of shit. The shit has covered all who have voted to fund & support the war. The shit is sticking & it smells. Call the war by the name of the day & call the contents of the crock feces or shit. All of it stinks & all of it is a mess. Nancy, has anybody told you that your smile is simply a shit eating grin? Remember to be polite to Cindy when she wins the primary & the nomination. Nancy, remember, when the people of your district call you a foul, fetid fiend, they mean it. You are no longer the fine, feathered, friend of anyone save W & Co. You're a DINO, Democrat In Name Only, of the worst sort. In the event that any of my words have offended you, I meant it; you have earned all of the previous titles. Enjoy your fame or infamy.

[BuyMoreAmmo]

Great post, Larry...yo­u sound like Harry Truman when the mikes were off. Schitt eatin' grin indeed! Hope Sheehan wears her ass out in the election.

[Dantheman99]

The corrupting factor of corporate cash is rotting our democracy to the core.

Today, there are basic things people can do with their anger.

1) Only vote for candidates and parties who do not take corporate campaign contributions.

2) Organize initiatives to change the electoral system to open the process up to parties who are not corporate financed.

3) Do not let yourself be scared by the same cast of characters who will attempt to scare you into voting Democratic as the lesser of evils and then ignore you after the election.

4) Give money to places that actually do some good. Instead of giving money to the Democrats, give it to moveon.org or other organizations who are not afraid to stand up for truth.

-------

There are a lot of people angry here on this site. How many are actually going to have the courage to vote or contribute differently in 2008? Or will they allow themselves to be scared into voting for Dems again just because they aren't as bad as the Republicans. That is what the Democratic Party leadership is expecting and counting on -- that you'll be scared and cave again.

[fatcat too]

On the day in '08, I may have to write in "Elizabeth Edwards" and hope she's still alive.

Supporting candidates who don't take corporate contributions is possible, but we're not likely to get enough of them into the house and senate
to control the entrenched committees and their chairs or defeat the stream of disastrous legislation which consolidates power in the executive.

[LightningJoe]

Reality reality, hmm... No, I'm afraid it won't fly.

Too real.

[Norm]

Very powerful post. Does no one think voting for Ron Paul in the primary would give the Democrats enough of a butt kick to make them rethink their positions or am I being terribly naive?

[MoNut]

What WOULD the Democrats need for motivation to finally wrangle the truth and make it their own?

Good question.

Even a Ron Paul nomination probably wouldn't pull it out of them....

Can't imagine he can do for the Dems what the constant and piling dead carcasses resulting from this criminal fiasco obviously hasn't already.

Kicking out the "think tanks" and the AIPAC whores would be a good start.

If Nancy wants to govern Israel, she can move there. Another government's lobbyists have no place in American foreign policy.

[BuyMoreAmmo]

Re: "Another government's lobbyists have no place in American foreign policy."..­...Well that would eliminate 90% of the schmucks inside the DC Beltway.

[WorkingClass]

Do what I have done. Register Republican and vote for Ron Paul in the Republican Primary. What do you care about his ideology. The important point is this - NOBODY OWNS HIM.

[linkunlovr]

Talk about a wasted vote! Ron Paul is good but
in a Republican party he has no base. Kucinich
is better and a Democrat with a base he appeals to. A real universal health care plan with no insurance, out of Iraq within 90 days of taking office and an end to nafta. The media are doing their best to ignore him but his words are powerful and the more he is heard the more people realize this is a real leader.

[Petesdaddy]

Ron Paul is starting to look better and better every day.

[BuyMoreAmmo]

I'm not Rethug but Ron Paul damn sure looked good last night on the Rethuglican "debate." Debate, my ass...I've seen better in a high school classroom. He and Huckabee seemed the only voice of reason in a chorus of "mee too" morons. And is this Ronald Raygun wannabe Thompson for real? He makes Chimpy McFlightsuit look smart.

[KittyHegemann]

If you have never watched "Legally Blonde," you should. You'll laugh as you see how DC really works. The American people are soooooo screwed.

[fact finder]

Kitty; You are absolutely correct. They are going to screw us no matter who is in power. The name of the game is we win you lose or you lose we win.

[OccupationMagazine]

I am an Israeli anti-Occupation activist - Oh my friend why do you have courage to name things properly for US and concerning Israel you write some convoluted stuff - "And voila--we'll basically have our new Israel; a permanently volatile and unstable place that we'll diplomatically dither with for eternity, all the while pumping tax dollars into a 'stabilizing' military infrastructure to ensure the local population will never have peace" this is true, but what is the following supposed to mean? " and are so distracted by survival that we'll get away with grabbing what we've decided is ours to steal."
What survival?? My government is not busy with survival but with chasing Palestinians off their real estate and annexing it. My government is a faithful and willing sidekick of the Bushies. Both governments are promoting money-making military industry and interested in military bullying adventures. We in Israel/Palestine need decent American liberals saying it loudly and clearly and unblinkingly.

[TakeNoNeoConPrisoners]

We must destroy the Dem party and rebuild it from scratch. First, cutoff the funding for the Dems in 2008 so they will be handicapped. Two, don't vote Dem but vote for a repig or a 3-rd party to deny the Dems your vote. Three should a repig win in 2008 all the better in destroying the Dem party as they will surely be branded by the corporate media whores as LOSERS when a sure thing was theirs for the taking. Forth, console yourself knowing that progressives like you and me can remake and rebuild a fractured Dem party after 2008 that stands for something and won't hide tail out of DC city when the going gets tough like the current group of Dem cowards. And last, it must get worse before it can get better, unfortunately. Let the repigs shoot themselves in the foot with a repig presidency from 2008 to 2012. Bidding time for rebuilding is our best strategy for the future.

[Plowboy]

The damned Democrats are worse than the obviousdly evil Republicans. They pretend too much. The Republicans do not lie about everything. They do not pretend not to want the war to continue annd expand. The lying Democrats did. But they seem now to want war with Iran even more than the Republicans.
But that is perhaps to be expected. AIPAC owned the Democrats before they captured the Republicans.
It might be time for us Americansd to purge ourselves of both these imposters.

[MoNut]

Once the stall doors opened on Ms. Pelosi it was glaringly clear the Democrats could've just as well put a dress on George W. Bush and called him Nancy.

Same goes with Hillary.

Both are so scarred by Washington greed and doublespeak it's become second nature.

Isn't it great to see just how "urgent" and "immoral" this war has become?

So damned urgent, with time to drag and shuffle feet while watching Cowboy Dub clear brush for a year and a half.

Good luck on the 'election'.

Be better off shooting yourself in each foot than placing a vote for either.

[humuhumunukunukuapuaa]

Excellent Analysis, Tom, Kudos to you.

Bush's fiasco of war in Iraq always was about the oil and it still is, that should be patently obvious to all but the most idiotic sector of the US population and by that I mean those who still believe Saddam ordered 9/11 and would rather "hide" his WMDs in Syria than actually use them to defend his regime.

I too am disgusted at the Democratic Congress and feel betrayed by them. This is, of course, not an endorsement of Bush and the GOP, but a sad testament of the size of the hole Bush dug this country into and the Dems inability to stop digging us further down into it.

Who can we vote for? Is there anyone out there who can really commit us to get us out of Iraq and get us out of our addiction for oil? I thought voting for Dennis Kucinich would be a waste of my vote, but I have no other choice than voting for him. I pray for it, but I doubt the American people will be smart enough to choose what we need as opposed to what we want.

My vote will be for Kucinich. Better to have a clear conscience than voting out of fear.

Aloha.

[srmorris]

I'm reminded of how angry I felt after the 2004 election. Angry, not at George Bush and the Republicans but at John Kerry and the Democratic party.

I simply didn't understand how it was possible to lose an election against, an inarticulate incompetent, who, as far as I could tell, had never succeeded at anything, including his work as President.

Today, I am even angrier. In the 2006 election, it seemed like things had changed. The democrats had let the republicans hang themselves and now they were riding what seemed like a clear national referendum on Neo-Conservative politics. However, despite the outrage in the nation, despite the almost universal clamoring for change, the message does not seem to penetrate the beltway.

They won the House and Senate on the basis of our anger. They have a nation waiting to be led but the leadership qualities that once resided within the democratic party seem to have atrophied under republican rule.

They control the purse strings. They control the agenda but they do not control their own fear and weakness.

If America, is to survive, and I sincerely believe that this is a question of survival, we must find leaders with the courage to act. And if we cannot find them, we must become them.

[dantanna]

why are democrats in power??? what a disaster the bush administration and the republicans in congress are still running the show... we should just all stay home in election day - why waste the energy

[research]

If 90% of the USA people voted, we would never have any conservatives in office, that's why! If Hillary versus any republican, we still have to vote Hillary on the CHANCE she will be better, since it's clear ANY republican would be worse.

[wanked]

Ill vote Greens on the chance they will be better. Hillary will be the same... dem=repub male=female; all greed driven corporate operatives.

[Dantheman99]

I may hold my nose and vote for Hillary for the Supreme Court issue, but I have no illusions she'll be a leader for change.

But for Congress and the Sentate, there is no reason to vote Democrat in 2008. I'm definitely voting Green for Congress.

[Liberalynne]

"they call it job creation"? I call it CEO enrichment. In fact, every serious problem the US faces is the result of CEO enrichment. Outsourcing, illegal immigration, 44 million with no health insurance, selling our hwys and ports, endless war in Iraq, new war in Iran, all the result of enriching CEO's and the politicians to whom they pay commissions (Google Abramof) War and US pain is a corporate economic bonanza. That's why it will go on forever, there is too much money in it.

[SensibleAmerican]

This reminds me of the story of a woman who was a lousy cook. She makes a serious mess in the kitchen. Then, she and her neighbors get together and blame the husband for not cleaning up that mess!

[Dansden]

SensibleAmerican:
RIGHT ON! I like your analogy!

VOTING REPUBLICAN IS LIKE 'SHOOTING ONESSELF IN THE FOOT and saying,
"Take that, that will learn YOU, dern YOU.!"

and to take your analogy one step further...­.
' THEN SHE AND HER NEIGHBORS GO INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND RANT ABOUT THE MESS IN THE KITCHEN AND DEMAND DIVORCES FROM THEIR SPOUSES BECAUSE OF HER MESS IN HER KITCHEN...­.

[faith]

AMEN !!! Absolutely on point.

[foolme1ns]

so why should we vote for the democrats over the republicans????? Why bother??? The only difference is all the whining you get from the democrats.

Well Y'all go and vote for them and give them money all you want to. I will not vote to give anyone permission to screw me again. Since the truth of the matter is, that no matter who wins, the American people are going to be screwed, what does it matter who is doing the screwing?