Come anticipate the Iraq Study Group report with me!

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Why do I picture Bush lining his bird cage with this?

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/12/04/us.iraq.report.ap/index.html

― Nu-Edward III (edward iii), Tuesday, 5 December 2006 20:27 (seventeen years ago) link

yeah this is gonna change nothing, no matter what they say. We can expect more of the same up until Dubya's last day in office.

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 5 December 2006 20:41 (seventeen years ago) link

Oddest joke I've encountered today:

Iraq Study Group Report To Be Made Into Opera. It was optioned by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Includes the soundtrack in the comments.

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Tuesday, 5 December 2006 23:33 (seventeen years ago) link

Also, here's an op-ed by the guy who wrote the book about modern american militarism

Their purpose is twofold: first, to minimize Iraq's impact on the prevailing foreign policy consensus with its vast ambitions and penchant for armed intervention abroad; and second, to quell any inclination of ordinary citizens to intrude into matters from which they have long been excluded. The ISG is antidemocratic. Its implicit message to Americans is this: We'll handle things - now go back to holiday shopping.

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Wednesday, 6 December 2006 00:22 (seventeen years ago) link

Nice font...

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42393000/jpg/_42393532_bookcover203bap.jpg
http://images.usatoday.com/life/_photos/2002/2002-06-27-lovely-bones.jpg

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Wednesday, 6 December 2006 14:54 (seventeen years ago) link

26 minutes to go

― Dr M (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 6 December 2006 15:34 (seventeen years ago) link

Link to the report:

http://www.usip.org/isg/iraq_study_group_report/report/1206/index.html

― Nu-Edward III (edward iii), Wednesday, 6 December 2006 16:36 (seventeen years ago) link

"If the situation continues to deteriorate, the consequences could be severe."

Gosh, I hope it doesn't come to that...

― Ned T.Rifle (Ned T.Rifle), Thursday, 7 December 2006 10:47 (seventeen years ago) link

Is "severer" a word?

― Nu-Edward III (edward iii), Thursday, 7 December 2006 14:49 (seventeen years ago) link

marc cooper says bullshit:
http://marccooper.com/deteriorating-and-grave/

nro says bullshit:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MmU3NzE2OWFhN2M5ZWZlYWRiNmYxNzk5N2FlYzM5OTg=

iraqis say bullshit
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/06/AR2006120602235.html

haven't read it all yet myself but beyond the cool maps there doesn't seem to by much of anything of value in it, other than saying what everyone knows already.

― urghonomic (gcannon), Thursday, 7 December 2006 16:34 (seventeen years ago) link

are you saying you already knew US policy was failing?!?!

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 7 December 2006 16:57 (seventeen years ago) link

well i don't know shakey. i have been reading it here and there.

― urghonomic (gcannon), Thursday, 7 December 2006 17:00 (seventeen years ago) link

After Gates was confirmed, Santorum -- who lost his seat in the November election amid a wave of unhappiness about the Iraq war -- took to the Senate floor.
He delivered a nearly hourlong speech, warning of the dangers of not confronting "Islamic fascism" and its budding alliances with anti-American countries such as Venezuela, North Korea and Cuba.
"We are sleepwalking through the storm," Santorum said. "How do those who deny this evil propose to save us from these people? By negotiating through the U.N. or directly with Iran? By firing Don Rumsfeld, (and) now getting rid of John Bolton? That's going to solve the problem?"

He said he felt Gates is not "up to the task."

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/12/06/gates.confirmation/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

he's no doubt picturing people quoting him 50 years from now like they do w/that eisenhower speech warning of the defense/industrial cabal - they laughed at him then, but rick sanatorum was the only one who recognized the magnitude of the islamist threat to america.

― jhoshea (jhoshea), Thursday, 7 December 2006 17:04 (seventeen years ago) link

http://media.salemwebnetwork.com/TownHall/Car/b/lb1208cd.jpg

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Thursday, 7 December 2006 17:32 (seventeen years ago) link

My heart grew heavy upon learning that Lee Hamilton – who gave Reagan a mere naughty finger-shaking for Iran-Contra – was co-chairing.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 7 December 2006 17:57 (seventeen years ago) link

I think the worth of the Iraq Study Group is more symbolic than practical. It's bipartisan, and it's meant to build consensus, or at least be a strawman from which a consensus can be derived. As opposed to Bush's approach of shoving untenable solutions down everyone's throats. The sheer amount of coverage it's getting is a relief from the usual corresponding IRAQ GOING TO HELL / BUSH SAYS STAY THE COURSE headlines.

Sure, it repeats things everyone knows, but having it compiled in black & white and stated fairly baldly is worth something in this age of willful ignorance of the facts on the ground.

(I haven't read the whole thing either, I'm about a third of the way through)

― Nu-Edward III (edward iii), Thursday, 7 December 2006 18:12 (seventeen years ago) link

ROFL: http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/12/07/bush.blair/index.html

"we'll talk to Iran and Syria as soon as they stop acting in their own best interest"

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 7 December 2006 21:03 (seventeen years ago) link

"(ie never)"

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, 7 December 2006 21:10 (seventeen years ago) link

So even Frank bloody Rich sees this thing as desperate Pollyannism (if not as demented as Bush's), and sez what I said 2 months ago: We've lost. Leave now.

― Dr M (Dr Morbius), Monday, 11 December 2006 21:56 (seventeen years ago) link

Juan Williams of NPR almost throttled Bill Kristol yesterday when Cheshire Bill yammered through yet another Neville Chamberlain analogy. It was the closest thing to violence I'd seen on FOX News since the O'Reilly-Moore debate (which in Roger Ailes' eyes must rank with Vidal-Buckley).

― Alfred Soto (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 11 December 2006 22:01 (seventeen years ago) link

CJR Daily runs down/thru some of the neocon critics who are presented as the serious, wise men by a WaPo survey.

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 00:40 (seventeen years ago) link

and here's a bit of vid/transcript of the Juan Williams/Kristol thing

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 00:45 (seventeen years ago) link

Prince Turki Bugs Out

― nuneb (nuneb), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 18:39 (seventeen years ago) link

ugh saw Frum on CNN last night, still acting like the AEI is still a bastion of wisdom and courage rather than a completely discredited bunch of ideological hacks - SO INFURIATING

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 20:21 (seventeen years ago) link

NYDN on how neither the ISG nor the election seem to be changing too much in the white house

― kingfish in absentia (kingfish), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 21:52 (seventeen years ago) link

There is no motivator for Dubya to change policy - he isn't going to. He'll leave it to his successor to deal with, handing political cover to Republicans eager to differentiate themselves from Dubya's policy.

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, 12 December 2006 22:09 (seventeen years ago) link

George Packer's 'Knowing the Enemy, The anthropology of insurgency' from the 12/18 issue of The New Yorker isn't available online but everybody should read it. It's the first fresh thinking I've seen on the 'War on Terror' that makes much sense.

― Michael White (Miguelito), Friday, 15 December 2006 20:41 (seventeen years ago) link

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