tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post4842294463346117650..comments2023-11-02T06:28:23.104-07:00Comments on ... and now for something completely different.: War ... what is it good for?dbackdadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-18940276903729106852007-01-19T05:18:00.000-08:002007-01-19T05:18:00.000-08:00At some point, a war becomes a lot like an older u...At some point, a war becomes a lot like an older used car. The cost of keeping it running becomes more than the cost of getting rid of it and moving on.<br /><br />Yes, this war is winnable, but certainly not at a cost any American is willing to pay. To win this war you would need to bring in half a million troops and ruthlessly surpress the populace. <br /><br />First, you wold have to establish a draft. Nobody, including the senior military want this. There are a lot of colonels and generals who remember being junior officers in Viet Nam, and having to sleep in shifts, with there side arms, to protect themselves from being killed by their own "citizen soldiers." <br /><br />And by ruthless suppression, I mean draconian measures like executimng anyone found carrying a weapon, and executing the entire family of anyone who is caught storing arms or kills an American.<br /><br />Does anyone in the US really have the stomach for this?<br /><br />If not, it is time to stop letting this war nickle and dime us to death. Move on.greatwhitebearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08448430897774991335noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-14392796712670070822007-01-18T04:42:00.000-08:002007-01-18T04:42:00.000-08:00I agree that Sadie makes a very valid point. I'm ...I agree that Sadie makes a very valid point. I'm sure there were many soldiers in Vietnam who said the same thing. The question here is, do we want to wait until we reach 50,000 casualties before we decide we've had enough? This war is unwinnable because you cannot impose a political system upon a people with force. You certainly cannot do it after all the mistakes that have been made thus far. If Bush had a real plan before last week, if the administration had followed the reccomendations of its senior military leadership in the beginning, and if Bush had even the slightest ability to see events and opinions from another person's point of view and actually knew how to make compromises, then MAYBE we could have done some good. Now, I think it is a lost cause and sadly, the only decision we have to make is are we going to lose 4,000 troops (and several thousand more wounded, and don't forget the 30,000+ wounded or dead Iraqis) in vain, or are we going to lose more in vain?<br /><br />I certainly don't blame the soldiers for wanting to stay optimistic either. It's a basic psychologically response to conflict. If you're risking your life for a cause, you will convince yourself that that cause is worthy.Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17129109937230440481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-11957215134996276892007-01-17T17:33:00.000-08:002007-01-17T17:33:00.000-08:00Iraq is not a country any more ... it's an abattoi...Iraq is not a country any more ... it's an abattoir. That would be funny if it was a <a href="http://orangecow.org/pythonet/sketches/architec.htm">Monty Python sketch</a>. But it's not. We are indiscriminately putting younger (and older) recruits into a meat grinder. And despite what Rush may say, deaths of Iraqi's actually count.<br /><br />My dad was in the Vietnam war. My brother was in the first Gulf War. I'm not coming at my position on all this from some effete academic perch. These are real people on both sides that are dying. We honor no one by continuing the slaughter.dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-62463154780506294612007-01-17T14:03:00.000-08:002007-01-17T14:03:00.000-08:00Sadie said: I asked him what he would say is the g...Sadie said: I asked him what he would say is the genral opinion of all the soldiers and he said that if Bush pulled them all out right now, all of their efforts would have been in vain. The soldiers that have died would have given their lives for nothing.<br /><br />That's a good point - but it shouldn't be the only reason to maintain a war. There comes a point where the 'investment' already paid in time, money and lives is no longer enough to keep on paying the price. The question we all need to ask ourselves is this:<br /><br />Is the price already paid - and the price yet to be payed - worth the hoped for outcome? And is that outcome even achievable? If the answer to either of those questions is 'No' then its time to think about leaving. <br /><br />Military solutions are generally few & far between.CyberKittenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06394155516712665665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-15412002550518103692007-01-17T09:35:00.000-08:002007-01-17T09:35:00.000-08:00I spoke to a young man, a friend of mine, that is ...I spoke to a young man, a friend of mine, that is in the Marines. He is currently working in the hospital for G.I.s in Iraq. I asked him what he thought of the war and I asked him what he would say is the genral opinion of all the soldiers and he said that if Bush pulled them all out right now, all of their efforts would have been in vain. The soldiers that have died would have given their lives for nothing.<br />He said that if they see this thing through to the end--at least there is hope that those lives would have been given for something.Sadie Louhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07362158642491145353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-88294255571187454232007-01-17T05:37:00.000-08:002007-01-17T05:37:00.000-08:00The similarities are astonishing. I don't know wh...The similarities are astonishing. I don't know why there are still people out there saying we can't use the "V" word about Iraq.<br /><br />Did you hear the latest? The botched executions and violence are merely "growing pains" for Iraq (anyone remember that Democracy is "messy"?). I think he actually used the word "fumbled," nothing like sports analogies to appear statesmanlike). Oh, and Georgie also said that the Iraqi people owe the US a debt of gratitude. <br /><br />How callous is that? He really can only see the world from one singular point of view, can't he?Laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17129109937230440481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-35989381745293336622007-01-16T06:10:00.000-08:002007-01-16T06:10:00.000-08:00Thanks for stopping by, anon. Your two cents are ...Thanks for stopping by, anon. Your two cents are always welcome here.dbackdadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10700991588554336491noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10882105.post-43655586414588860122007-01-15T23:24:00.000-08:002007-01-15T23:24:00.000-08:00How sad is that? I can,t help but be depressed whe...How sad is that? I can,t help but be depressed when I see glimpses of what our future holds if "the Decider" continues in his delusion that God spoke to him and told him, "You the Man, Georgie, Go save the world."<br /><br />My two cents worth from an old lady in CaliforniaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com