Showtime! General Petraeus Speaks

I don’t think any of us really believe the dog & pony show, otherwise known as the testimony from Petraeus & Crocker would yield any earth shattering revelations. They are kind of like wooden dummies on the lap of the bushco ventriliquists- they are told what to say & how to say it.

MSNBC reports
“Their unwavering stance amounted to this: Further pullouts might trigger defeat; the costs of defeat are too horrible to ponder; therefore, we shouldn’t ponder further pullouts.
Specifically, Petraeus called for a 45-day pause after the five surge brigades go home this July. After the pause will come an “evaluation” of the security situation. Then there will be an “assessment” of that evaluation. And on that basis, there will be a “determination” whether further reductions can be made, “as conditions permit.”

Yes, it would appear we are firmly stuck in a quagmire of circular “logic”.

Victory lingo scrapped

All along, we’ve been told of the need to “Stay the course”, that “Victory would be ours”– now the General has repeatedly testified otherwise:

The surge-along with the shift to a counterinsurgency strategy-is a means, not an end. Its point is not to win a military victory (there is no such thing here, Petraeus has emphasized) but rather to create enough security in Baghdad-a “breathing space”-to let the political factions reconcile their disputes

Wow! What a dazzling array of changes we have made. Forget the victory, not gonna happen. Even the notion of installing Democracy (at gunpoint, no less), seems to be off the table- Democracy may be too difficult to achieve– let’s go for “breathing space” as our stated goal.

My bullshit-o-meter is in the red zone

Doublespeak, pre emptive agenda to stay forever, and the tactic I loathe– if you *say it is successful, people will believe it.

Ok Petraeus– let’s put a positive spin on this disasterous occupation.

Things ARE looking up in Iraq- but not in a way any of us would like.
*Death Toll- 4028 with 7 more pending- US troops

*Cost of the War/Occupation $509 Billion

*Death Toll- Iraqis- 1,197,469

*The shelling of the Green Zone has become a daily occurrance

*At least 29,628 U.S. troops have been wounded in action

*Brain injuries are not necessarily counted as a part of the wounded

*Conditions for Woman have worsened, as they are forced to revert to the forced wearing of scarves, prohibited from driving, and have curfews imposed

*112 journalists, 40 media support workers, and 95 aid workers have been killed. Totals as listed since 25 September 2007

*As of September 30, 2006, 725 American troops have had limbs amputated.

*About one third of the 103,788 veterans returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars seen at \United States Department of Veterans Affairs facilities between September 30, 2001 and September 30, 2005 were diagnosed with mental illness or a psycho-social disorder, such as homelessness and marital problems, including domestic violence. More than half of those diagnosed, 56%, were suffering from more than one disorder. The most common combination was Post-traumatic stress disorder, Clinical depression,

* In January 2008 the U.S.Army reported that the rate of Suicide among soldiers in 2007 was the highest since the Army started counting in 1980. There were 121 suicides in 2007, a 20% jump over the prior year. Also, there were around 2100 attempted suicides and self-injuries in 2007.

In closing, the dummies have spoken. Things are looking up. We can’t get out of Iraq because pullouts might trigger defeat, but we are not seeking victory. Sit! Stay! Hope you’ve enjoyed the show.

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