Andrew Sullivan has a well written short piece on his blog today about Mr. Bush and the war in Iraq. Mr. Bush is a sad sack of humanity that managed to get himself elected President of the United States. He has violated nearly every principle that he once said he stood for. He’s also violated every principle that he has sworn to protect. I think he thought his invasion of Iraq was going to be a cakewalk. Mr. Bush is defiant and grandiose and completely out of touch with reality both here in this country and in Iraq. He’s nothing short of a disgrace. His apologists in Congress, the administration, the American public and the mainstream media would have us believe that resistance to the war and his presidency in general is a fringe phenomenon. Nothing could be further from the truth. I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed a sadder chapter in American history than this one. Perhaps from this nadir we will emerge a chastened and stronger nation. I certainly hope so.
He’s arguing he didn’t decide to go to war; Saddam did. He’s saying he agrees with his Republican critics. He’s blaming the generals for all the combat decisions that have made this war a failure. His blaming Tommy Franks specifically for the troop levels was particularly piquant. So he gave him a Medal of Freedom anyway?–Andrew Sullivan
It is unfortunate that your political views and partisan judgments are offered under the guise of religious commentary. The world does not need more partisanship and politicization of values: we have too much of that already.
I don’t offer religious commentary. I only offer what I’m thinking about. I agree there is too much partisanship and politicization of values. It was not my intent to offend only to comment on what was written and my reaction to it. Pax et bonum.
I don’t know that Bush is a “sad sack of humanity”; I see him more as a son of priviledge who was selected by Republican PTBs that wanted someone they could manipulate in the White House. The American people (at least many of those who actually voted in the elections) went along with it. Rumsfeld though Iraq would be a cakewalk, so he ignored the advice of Colin Powell and others and tried his hand at a war with a minimum number of troops. And gee, it’s only costing us $12 billion a month! A piece of cake!
I agree that this is a sad chapter in American history. I think the US will suffer the repercussions from this debacle for a long time, unfortunately.
Keep speaking your mind, Don!
I don’t know what a PTB is. President Bush is or has been manipulated. He is an unfortunate focal point. He was the friendly guy that folks would vote for. Cheney is actually the shadow president. Rumsfeld, Cheney, Rice, Wolfowitz, Perle and others of the PNAC have pulled the strings in this administration. I can’t get over what arrogance and utter disregard for human life that is so rife within and among them all.
Our republic exists in name only. We are no longer a democracy. Our elected leaders do the bidding of corporate interests. There is unfortunately no real substantive difference between most Democrats and Republicans. Our country has been overthrown and it has all been done “legally”. The legacy of Iraq will only be the half or quarter of the sum total of the damage done to our country and our own people.
I try not to think of it most of the time. Thanks for your comments. 🙂 Don
PTB = Powers That Be
My husband and i were talking about the presidential race so far, and how discouraging it is. None of the candidates seems to be addressing in detail the important issues today. I admit that I haven’t been following it very closely, but it’s hard to tell what the various candidates stand for. Despite all the means of communication available to the candidates, their messages are not coming across clearly. Everything is filtered through the lenses of handlers, advisors, the media, and finally the preconceptions of the individual listeners.
Totally agree with what you are saying about elected officials being beholden to corporate interests. Campaign finance reform is sorely needed, but we see with the recent Supreme Court decision how difficult that can be.
I try not to think about it most of the time, too!