Missile Test

The question of victory against an insurgency boils down to the will of occupier versus the will of occupied. In the case of the Iraq War, the will of America, the occupier, has been exhausted. A withdrawal is the inevitable outcome of a war that has already been lost. We have the materiel, the technology, the weapons, and, on a long enough timeline, we should have the correct skills to battle an insurgency. But the most important weapon in battling an insurgency is not killing insurgents. The most important benchmarks are not reviving local economies, stabilizing government, providing security, or even winning the hearts and minds of the local populace. The most important weapon is resolve. In the face of setbacks, or progress too slow to measure in anything less than years or decades, the ability of the nation to absorb slow progress while the conditions mentioned above are given time to reach effect, is the key to defeating an insurgency. Continue reading “The United States Must Withdraw From Iraq”

We have arrived at yet another milestone in the Iraq War. Four years ago the bombs and missiles began to pound Baghdad. To the south, coalition forces began their inexorable flood across the border from Kuwait. We rolled the Iraqi army. They were no match for the most highly trained and technically capable conventional military the planet has ever seen. We were slowed by the unexpected tenacity of some Iraqi soldiers in the middle of the country, and a dread sandstorm, but the fall of Baghdad was epically swift for a city that has been the scene of such sieges from time immemorial. Continue reading “Four Years”

The firing of eight U.S. Attorneys has become a huge scandal for the Bush administration. It has not stopped growing. While the scandal has a slim chance of becoming the catalyst for an all-consuming subpoena-fest, the kind that cripples a lame-duck administration, it could peak shortly with either the firing or resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Continue reading “Hanging by a Rope”

Sometimes, there is little difference between the illegal and legal; between violation and right; between the strictly prohibited and the merely unethical. This is something politicians understand all too well. Politics exists in a murky state, constantly testing the bounds of the law behind closed doors. There is much allowed within the law, and even more when only few are aware the law is being broken. Here is a fundamental disconnect between politics and real life. Politics is Manichaean. It is also Machiavellian. Politics are these and many more things, but it is missing one prominent thing that permeates the wellspring of human life, and that thing is decency. Continue reading “Indecent”

The days are growing longer, the nights correspondingly shorter, and soon, things are going to begin to heat up in Afghanistan as the yearly winter hiatus, the annual break in thirty years of war, comes to an end. It’s a rite of spring in that part of the globe. This year looks to be a particularly important year in the world’s most consistently war-torn country. Continue reading “It’s Getting Warmer”

The denials will continue to issue forth from the White House and the Pentagon until the day the bombs begin to fall on Tehran. The Bush administration has stepped up its rhetoric against Iran. Intelligence briefings for the press and other public statements have painted a picture of a merciless regime in Tehran that is responsible for seemingly every casualty in Iraq in recent months. Continue reading “NEXT!”

The difference that lies between justice and revenge is slight. In the case of execution, it is almost nonexistent. When Saddam Hussein was executed last week, that difference was obliterated. Continue reading ““Moqtada! Moqtada! Moqtada!””

There was a time when making fun of our president was funny. When he stepped in front of camera and microphone, it was easy to picture impressionists, impersonators, and general comedians salivating at the prospect of another executive gaffe. Whether is was mispronunciations (“nucular” for “nuclear”), run-on sentences, general mangling of the English language, such as creating words (e.g. “misunderestimating”), or something subtle like espousing the benefits of obstetricians being “able to practice their love with women,” our fair leader could always be counted on to provide a sound byte ripe for ridicule. Continue reading “Things Fall Apart”

Things are happening fast. While the drawdown of troops has yet to begin, the preparation for a drawdown of the war in Iraq is well under way. Reports in today’s papers indicate the Iraq Study Group’s recommendations to the president include troop reductions. Yesterday in Jordan, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki postponed a meeting with President Bush in the face of stiff resistance from elements of his own ruling coalition. Tuesday night, the New York Times posted a secret memo authored by National Security Advisor Stephen J. Hadley that shows the administration has doubts about both the Iraqi government’s ability and it’s willingness to curb sectarian violence. Many news organizations have had enough of the evasive language of the Bush administration in refusing to classify the conflict in Iraq as a civil war, and have decided to call a spade a spade. But most tellingly, before the meeting between Bush and Maliki was cancelled, when Bush was queried about what he would ask Maliki in their meeting, Bush said, “My question to him will be: What do we need to do to succeed? What is your strategy in dealing with the sectarian violence?” The blame game has been embraced by the Oval Office. Continue reading “Not Our Fault”