Durka-Durka-Muhammed-Jihad!!
The President of the United States spoke this evening on television. I liked what he said, especially:
The terrorists believe that free societies are essentially corrupt and decadent, and with a few hard blows they can force us to retreat. They are mistaken. After September 11, I made a commitment to the American people: This Nation will not wait to be attacked again. We will take the fight to the enemy. We will defend our freedom.and:
The lesson of this experience is clear: The terrorists can kill the innocent — but they cannot stop the advance of freedom. The only way our enemies can succeed is if we forget the lessons of September 11 … if we abandon the Iraqi people to men like Zarqawi … and if we yield the future of the Middle East to men like bin Laden. For the sake of our Nation's security, this will not happen on my watch.and this especially:
After September 11, 2001, I told the American people that the road ahead would be difficult — and that we would prevail. Well, it has been difficult. And we are prevailing. Our enemies are brutal — but they are no match for the United States of America — and they are no match for the men and women of the United States military.And evn though there are some that will scoff at this, the subject of a pullout timetable was settled:
Our strategy can be summed up this way: As the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down.I'm hoping that this might settle some people's stomachs, but I doubt it.
UPDATE: Thought I'd add a few comments about the comments I've received with regards to this post:
It would seem that the main 'talking point' in response to the President's speech was the tired and beaten-to-death argument that the war in Iraq was all about 9/11.
Let's take a look at the speech, shall we?
The troops here and across the world are fighting a global war on terror. This war reached our shores on September 11, 2001. The terrorists who attacked us — and the terrorists we face — murder in the name of a totalitarian ideology that hates freedom, rejects tolerance, and despises all dissent. Their aim is to remake the Middle East in their own grim image of tyranny and oppression — by toppling governments, driving us out of the region, and exporting terror.No correlation - implied or otherwise - between 9/11 and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
After September 11, I made a commitment to the American people: This Nation will not wait to be attacked again. We will take the fight to the enemy. We will defend our freedom.Again, no correlation; just President Bush laying down the reality of the early 21st century.
The only way our enemies can succeed is if we forget the lessons of September 11 … if we abandon the Iraqi people to men like Zarqawi … and if we yield the future of the Middle East to men like bin Laden. For the sake of our Nation's security, this will not happen on my watch.
They are trying to shake our will in Iraq — just as they tried to shake our will on September 11, 2001.Hmmm....starting to wonder...
After September 11, 2001, I told the American people that the road ahead would be difficult — and that we would prevail.Okay....where's the implication that we went into Iraq solely based on the attacks of 9/11?
I've heard quite a few opinions on why we're in Iraq and the bast analogy that comes to my mind is this: during World War II, there was a gigantic fight ahead of the Allies in 1942 and the best way to defeat Germany and Japan wasn't to strike them head-on - it was to nibble away at their edges. But in this war - the War on Terror - there isn't defined boundarys with a big sign that says BAD GUYS HERE. This war is now defined not by specific nation-states that are B-A-D, but nation-states that harbor and condone the actions of Islamopsychos.
Operation Iraqi Freedom and the subsequent insurgency in Iraq are just a campaign of the War on Terror. Who knows...maybe we'll invade Lichtenstein next year.
So....since there's no inference about 9/11 being the direct cause of OIF, shall that *cough* arguement be striken from the record? Shall we talk like adults instead of howling at the moon?
FYI, my donor is 55 years old. I'm 40...
60 isn't that far from 55....
I know.....just joshing ya.
Read more in Presidential Speech TonightMikey, my kidneys are 60 years old, and have worked overtime for some of that, considering how mu
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Yogimus said:
Al Qaeda's stated aim at the time of 9/11 was to remove the Americans from Saudi Arabia, nothi
Read more in Presidential Speech Tonight
Royston said:
Very refreshing to hear Ruthie's sane voice among the fear driven rhetoric of the other comments.
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Mad Mikey said:
Jeff: That's great! I wish I could go camping, but setting up dialysis in another city is a seve
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Comments on Presidential Speech Tonight
I didn't get to see it on tv, but heard it on the radio. Good speech overall. Will it influence any of the spineless liberals out there? Probably not.
|| Posted by Tetzman, June 28, 2005 07:45 PM ||Hey Tetzman...watch who you call spineless, bitch.
|| Posted by ruthie, June 28, 2005 07:57 PM ||I thought tonight's speech was absolute bullshit. Bush will never cop to anything..he lives in a fantasy world, and I found it particularly disgusting that he dared to keep mentioning 911 in the context of talking about Iraq. That was beyond bullshit..yet he still pushes his propaganda upon the people. He said absolutely nothing of substance tonight. All he did was show us all more of his insanity. He talks about sacrifice? What a fucking joke..he doesn't know the meaning of the word. I might also add that he was told way back when more troops were needed. The troops still aren't armed properly. He lied his way into this war, and the blind masses buy his filth. What a sad time for this country.
Well, the LIBERAL masses. Us neocone got it MADE!
|| Posted by Yogimus, June 28, 2005 08:36 PM ||I found it particularly disgusting that he dared to keep mentioning 911 in the context of talking about Iraq.
You should really find it more disgusting that the ones terrorizing Iraq have the same warped ideology as the ones who killed thousands of Americans on 9-11. Coincidence? Keep dreaming.
The troops still aren't armed properly.
General Ruthie, reporting for duty!
Moonbats are so amusing. LOL!
|| Posted by Chet, June 28, 2005 10:28 PM ||I believe ruthie is right. We need to provide a better combat weapon for our troops, and we need to grant them more leniency in their actions.
|| Posted by Yogimus, June 28, 2005 11:04 PM ||You should really find it more disgusting that the ones terrorizing Iraq have the same warped ideology as the ones who killed thousands of Americans on 9-11. Coincidence? Keep dreaming.
Aside from Bush saying that, how do you know that they have the same warped ideology? Must be nice to have that long distance mind reading ability. Many of the freedom fighters are simply defending their country from occupation and terrorism...terrorism by the Bush administration.
General Ruthie, reporting for duty!
I can find you several quotes by real generals who requested more troops. General Zinni, for instance, is one such General.
Seek the truth, bro, and if you look hard enough you might get a clue.
Moonbats are so amusing. LOL!
I find it reprehensible that you find any of this amusing, yet it is typical of rabid dog right wingers to not see their own folly.
|| Posted by ruthie, June 28, 2005 11:09 PM ||Wipe yer nose..it's covered in Bush shit.
I believe ruthie is right. We need to provide a better combat weapon for our troops, and we need to grant them more leniency in their actions.
Ah, fuck it Yogs, you just need to get your ass over there and Sgt. Rock them all.
|| Posted by scroff, June 28, 2005 11:12 PM ||how do you know that they have the same warped ideology?
The horse's mouth reveals much. Man, you libs have short freaking memories!
General Zinni. On the ground in Iraq now? Um... nope.
C'mon! I know you can do better!
Oh. Yeah.
Seek Truth, yo!
|| Posted by Chet, June 28, 2005 11:18 PM ||Interesting article, yo! Old news.
So let me be sure I understand what you're saying here... al-Zarqawi says it's ok to kill "innocents", so therefore all the "insurgents" must be of the same mindset! There are no old Baathists hanging around, no pissed off Iraqis who have lost their families when Americans have killed innocents (except we call it collateral damage and do it in the name of freedom instead of jihad), they're all muslims with the same warped ideology. How naive. I guess because Bush is a self proclaimed christian, we're all christians.
Guess you missed the Abizaid interview this weekend, eh, yo?
Keep seeking
|| Posted by ruthie, June 29, 2005 12:03 AM ||Aside from Bush saying that, how do you know that they have the same warped ideology? Must be nice to have that long distance mind reading ability. Many of the freedom fighters are simply defending their country from occupation and terrorism...terrorism by the Bush administration.
Truth is between these 2 cases. I seldom pimp my blog, but I have covered it there a bit better. Link:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/yogimus/2935.html
Ruthie, where YOUR argument encounters a flaw is when you consider the fact that your freedom fighters are defending their nation by blowing up their countrymen.
Chet, you fall on your assumption that if you do not sign up for the war, you have no say in the matter. That is wrong, and imbaccyllic.
Ah, fuck it Yogs, you just need to get your ass over there and Sgt. Rock them all.
Not all, but definitely SOME.
|| Posted by Yogimus, June 29, 2005 03:09 AM ||Geez, ruthie, does your doctor have to replace the sphygmometers in his office after your visits?
does your insurance cover that?
|| Posted by Rob@L&R, June 29, 2005 05:06 AM ||Many of the freedom fighters are simply defending their country from occupation and terrorism...
Ruthie, if this was a 'stand up' fight this might be true. But these 'freedom fighters' are detonating car bombs in front of crowded marketplaces and killing Iraqi civilians, beheading Iraqis that are in the security forces, and lots of other heinous acts that simply have no civility....even civility that's encountered during wartime.
It would be like the Minutemen (from 1776) killing everyone at the Bostom Common in the name of George Washington; it just doesn't "translate"
And no matter how you attempt to frame these actions, they've not the actions of an 'army' defending it's soil - their the actions of psychotic scumbags that are practically similar to those that perpetrated 9/11....THAT is the context in which President Buch mentioned 9/11 in last night's speech.
|| Posted by Mad Mikey, June 29, 2005 07:08 AM ||Wow Ruthie!
Did I upset you? Truth hurts eh?
Your opinion is appreciated, but it doesn't mean I have to agree with it. Based on all the reading/research I do, The whole situatiuon in Iraq is going as well as can be expected. Sure mistakes have been made, and we can always do things better. I think we need to step back and let the military do their job, as they see fit. Most politicians have never worn a uniform, and as such shouldn't be dictating a timtable for finishing an operation of this magnitude.
Ruthie, did you research how long we spent in Japan & Germany, after the wars there were concluded? Both theaters of combat had insugents after the major fighting was deemed concluded.
And NO, I don't rubber stamp everything President Bush has done. I think he's done a piss-poor job on immigration, energy and a few other things...
Lest we not forget,
|| Posted by Tetzman, June 29, 2005 07:14 AM ||Those who forget history, are doomed to repeat it!
BTW, Ruthie,
::::: throwing out more Moonbat bait:::::
Did you miss the reports that most of the supposed "Freedom Fighters" in Iraq, are from outside of Iraq?
I caught John Kerry on NBC this AM. It was the same tired old argument about we need to "get it right" with regard to Iraq. Of course he didn't have any constructive comments about how HE thinks we can get it right..
|| Posted by Tetzman, June 29, 2005 07:19 AM ||HMMM..Germany and Japan, after WW11 had insurgents? Interesting..tell me more, please.
The big difference is that Germany and Japan were the aggressors. a better comparison is the German occupation of France.
Did you miss the reports that most of the supposed "Freedom Fighters" in Iraq, are from outside of Iraq?
According to ABIZAID, your statistics are quite wrong...and that was from comments he made on June 26th. Small amount of foreign fighters.
|| Posted by ruthie, June 29, 2005 09:37 AM ||"their the actions of psychotic scumbags that are practically similar to those that perpetrated 9/11"
practically similar? umm... how 'bout exactly the same. the mindset is the same across the region, and across the "religion of peace" (my ass). they are the rule, not the exception. and this shit ain't new, it's been going on for decades.
I see the strategic value of what we are doing in Iraq (even though I'm blind ;-)) as much today as I did in March '03. Forest for the trees, and all that...
|| Posted by nathalie, June 29, 2005 09:58 AM ||BTW Jeff - how are you feeling these days? Boundless energy??
To tell the truth, I'm feeling ragged out these days....looking forward to getting a donor. ;)
|| Posted by Mad Mikey, June 29, 2005 10:50 AM ||Mikey! I'm on the mend! They claim I've got something close to 40% kidney function with the transplant! Even with that much, I feel great!
|| Posted by Tetzman, June 29, 2005 01:41 PM ||I've got lots of energy, no dietary restrictions, and no dialysis machine to sleep with every nite!
Life is very good!
We're going camping this weekend. It'll be the first time in 3 yrs that we've been able to go someplace without power.
That's great, Tetz. Hope you get a donor soon, Mikey. I know you just feel worn out most of the time.
|| Posted by Cait, June 29, 2005 02:32 PM ||Jeff: That's great! I wish I could go camping, but setting up dialysis in another city is a severe pain...
Cait: You don't know the half of it, but thanks for your support. (You know....you can live with only one kidney, right?) ;)
|| Posted by Mad Mikey, June 29, 2005 03:08 PM ||Very refreshing to hear Ruthie's sane voice among the fear driven rhetoric of the other comments.
|| Posted by Royston, June 29, 2005 04:51 PM ||Al Qaeda's stated aim at the time of 9/11 was to remove the Americans from Saudi Arabia, nothing else. How Bush has brought 'freedom' into the whole mess is a minor miracle of spin.
Bush and Blair stand in front of us and pull wool over our eyes, a triumph of arrogance.
Al Qaeda's stated aim at the time of 9/11 was to remove the Americans from Saudi Arabia, nothing else.
"To kill the infidels wherever they are, and to allow them no safe harbor."
Al Queda has no "gameplan" per se. They empower their local leaders to set the strategy for the region. In fact, al queda's main contribution to terrorism is to provide training and transport to individual groups.
On rare occasions the higher ups co-ordinate several groups into a major attack, like 9/11, embassy bombings in africa, Kobar towers, etc. These massive attacks are done to raise recruitment and funding.
It is the day to day kidnappings, extortion, and assassinations that you never hear about. THAT is what Al Queda DOES.
|| Posted by Yogimus, June 29, 2005 07:27 PM ||Mikey, my kidneys are 60 years old, and have worked overtime for some of that, considering how much beer I drank in college. They'd probably give you toxic shock.
|| Posted by Cait, June 30, 2005 05:49 AM ||I know.....just joshing ya.
|| Posted by Mad Mikey, June 30, 2005 09:12 AM ||FYI, my donor is 55 years old. I'm 40...
|| Posted by Tetzman, July 6, 2005 03:15 PM ||60 isn't that far from 55....