Fantasyland
One more time last night, I attentively sat on the end of the couch to hear President Bush address the nation. One more time I cleared my mind and hoped for substance; for the courage to offer a new direction. In the back of my mind where hope still lives, I thought that the five year mark since 9/11 and the knowledge of things gone awry abroad would finally bring the President into reality. Sadly but not surprisingly, Bush again used the most powerful office in the land to offer nothing but rhetoric. He need not offer a huge omission or signal of change, but just something modest about how we are really going to win the war on terror….. Instead we got nothing but lofty Bush-speak.
Bush used Roosevelt and Truman analogies and spoke about how this war against Islamic extremism is the defining struggle of the 21st century. Did he offer something about how will we prevail in this defining struggle? Nope, he just again reiterated that unilateral pre-emptive military strategy is here to stay. Although this strategy has been a profound disaster that has emboldened our enemies and enflamed the Middle East, Bush still chooses to live in fantasyland.
Two phrases struck me more than the rest: when he asked for our continued “sacrifice and determination” and that “we must put our differences aside.” These two phrases are completely empty and insulting. Bush will not sacrifice his pride or ego to admit that he has failed and that he needs to cross the aisle to create an actual real strategy to win the war on terror. He will not put some of his differences aside to create national unity. This man has done nothing but fail the American people and he asks these things of us with nothing in return.
These days we get rhetoric filled, hollow, and politicized speeches that mean nothing. We get nothing about a new foreign policy direction, instead just nonsense using the age-old tactic of comparing every threat to Nazi Germany. This comparison will not help us win the war on terror and is blatant fraudulent electioneering. If we must reach back into history, the Marshall Plan is the one piece of WWII history that we can actually learn something from. However, Bush and the GOP won’t even invest in the infrastructure of their own country let alone try to create an economic climate in the middle east where there are jobs to lure young Muslims away from extremism. Instead, the Bushies prefer an economic climate where the wealth is sucked upward.
I admit the above rant is off the topic. However, the foreign policy fantasyland and the economic fantasyland that both Bush and the GOP live in is very much intertwined. It is a world where no changes ever need to be made as long as the money flows to the top. Fantasyland ain’t workin’ so well, save for those few executives over at Exxon-Mobil. I also admit that blasting Bush is all too easy and that he is not running in November though many Congressional Republicans that have served Bush’s every desire will be. These Republicans who have neglected their basic duty to oversee the Executive branch must not be allowed to continue failing the American People. We must defeat the GOP in November and begin to rescue America from the hollow delusion we again witnessed last night.
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically each day to your feed reader. If you don't have a feed reader, you can always have these articles delivered to your email inbox every day. Click here to sign up.
Trackbacks & Pingbacks
Comments
Leave a comment
Line and paragraph breaks automatic, e-mail address never displayed, HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
He did speak of reality. The reality that there are people who want us dead if we don\'t convert to their way. Right now they are killing our troops in many places, among them is Iraq. Reality is, we are there and so are those who want us dead. What else should Prs. Bush have talked about on 9/11/06… the weather?
This past week, especially on the talking head shows, has been most annoying. The 9/11coverage was fine, it was the political speak, double speak that was annoying. \"We safer, but not yet safe..\" Oy! You know whats annoying? My mom\'s side of the family lives well in to their 80s. Just my luck, I will live to be 90. Don\'t get me wrong, l love this country with my whole being, but there are days. There are days…..after all, its just another day in paradise…..and I can take it.
We were sold a lie as the reason for going to Iraq. We were told Saddam and al-Qaeda had buddied up… another pre-war lie. We have been repeatedly told that we\'re making progress in Iraq… when the reality is a civil war is rising from the sands of Mesopotamia. We were told the \"insurgency was in it\'s last throes.\" We have been told that fighting the terrorists over there keeps us from fighting them here… and that\'s one frame I have never bought.
We have been told all of this time and time again, yet not one of the above had held fruition in a court of public opinion.
The BIG \"reality\" is the American people are not as safe as the Bushies want you and I to believe. Many Americans believe another attack is on the horizon, thus the situation in Iraq actually makes it tougher for us and as a people to believe we\'re safe. The Republicans offer the American people fear and a false sense of security, when Democrats offer hope and a return to a safer and more secure America.
No more increasing the terror threat level to code red for political convenience.
Enough is enough!
Lets\' face it… the U.S. military occupation of Iraq created the \"central front\" in war on terror and thus those responsible need to own up to that fact, so let\'s put their faces to a hot iron and get the truth!
By occupying Iraq, our military presence is the best recruitment tool the terrorists have and they will keep using it until we have seized occupation. NOW… That\'s reality!
—
\"Dissent is profoundly American\"
A big part of the problem here is that the Bush administration declared a \"war on terrorism\" in the wake of 9-11-01. This was an incorrect declaration. The \"war\" that President Bush announced should have been called what it is… a war against Islamic extremism. I was disappointed in President Bush\'s 9-11 speech the other night not by what was said, but rather because of what was not said.
Unfortunately, it seems as if the President and his speechwriters are still living in fear of PC thugs across the planet, as he still insists on using the outdated (and incorrect) \"war on terrorism\" moniker for our current military campaign. Going forward from here, we ought not live in fear over calling the enemy by name: Islamists who seek to weaken America in order to enslave it, as they have already done to most of Europe (see the \"cartoon\" riots from last winter for an example).
I think that the American people already understand this. For whatever illogical reason, President Bush and most elected officials in Washington are unwilling to say what We, the People already know.
While I strongly disagree that everyone who opposed the Iraq War should be called an \"appeaser\" or whatever the Rovian language suggests that we call them, I do believe that those who overlook the real enemy, as mentioned above, seek the easy way out of a war that was declared against us decades ago. I hope that by the time we have the sixth, seventh, even the tenth 9-11 anniversary; our leaders and all of our people have the courage to correctly identify the enemy.
—
\"Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the Democrats believe every day is April 15.\"
–Ronald Wilson Reagan
I am in agreement with Nathan that there is an enemy in the Middle East that goes well beyond the title of \"terrorists\", and is an entity that a great number of Americans have already identified.
My arguement goes beyond partisan rhetoric and places blame upon both parties for a failure to direct us towards any path that coherantly explains to the American people what our long-term objective is within the Middle East. the \"Bushies\" are fighting a war against \"terrorism\", and while Bush explained in his address that the goal of fighting now is to prevent future generations of having to live in fear of terrorism, I would argue that the lack of progress made in the past four years in only indicative of a war that is apt to last AT LEAST a few more generations. Without a change of battle plan, we\'re going to not only be living in fear of terrorism, but also fighting nation-states that reportedly \"support\" terrorist networks.
Meanwhile, the Democrats are quick to make proclamations such a \"wrong place, wrong time, wrong war,\" but what they lack is a substantive plan to draw us away from the turmoil in the Middle East.
Basically, what we need is Leadership. Not a leader who naively makes brash decisions that threaten the lives of both troops and innocenent civilians. Nor a leader that simply uses the podium to point fingers and criticize. We instead need leadership that shares with the American people the true depth of our struggles in Mesopotamia. A leader who admits his miscalculations and continuously strives to find a better method to achieve victory. We need a leader who has an ultimate goal, and will do what neccessary to achieve that, even when that means admitting mistakes and moving back to the drawing board.
He did speak of reality. The reality that there are people who want us dead if we don’t convert to their way. Right now they are killing our troops in many places, among them is Iraq. Reality is, we are there and so are those who want us dead. What else should Prs. Bush have talked about on 9/11/06… the weather?
This past week, especially on the talking head shows, has been most annoying. The 9/11coverage was fine, it was the political speak, double speak that was annoying. “We safer, but not yet safe..” Oy! You know whats annoying? My mom’s side of the family lives well in to their 80s. Just my luck, I will live to be 90. Don’t get me wrong, l love this country with my whole being, but there are days. There are days…..after all, its just another day in paradise…..and I can take it.
We were sold a lie as the reason for going to Iraq. We were told Saddam and al-Qaeda had buddied up… another pre-war lie. We have been repeatedly told that we’re making progress in Iraq… when the reality is a civil war is rising from the sands of Mesopotamia. We were told the “insurgency was in it’s last throes.” We have been told that fighting the terrorists over there keeps us from fighting them here… and that’s one frame I have never bought.
We have been told all of this time and time again, yet not one of the above had held fruition in a court of public opinion.
The BIG “reality” is the American people are not as safe as the Bushies want you and I to believe. Many Americans believe another attack is on the horizon, thus the situation in Iraq actually makes it tougher for us and as a people to believe we’re safe. The Republicans offer the American people fear and a false sense of security, when Democrats offer hope and a return to a safer and more secure America.
No more increasing the terror threat level to code red for political convenience.
Enough is enough!
Lets’ face it… the U.S. military occupation of Iraq created the “central front” in war on terror and thus those responsible need to own up to that fact, so let’s put their faces to a hot iron and get the truth!
By occupying Iraq, our military presence is the best recruitment tool the terrorists have and they will keep using it until we have seized occupation. NOW… That’s reality!
—
“Dissent is profoundly American”
A big part of the problem here is that the Bush administration declared a “war on terrorism” in the wake of 9-11-01. This was an incorrect declaration. The “war” that President Bush announced should have been called what it is… a war against Islamic extremism. I was disappointed in President Bush’s 9-11 speech the other night not by what was said, but rather because of what was not said.
Unfortunately, it seems as if the President and his speechwriters are still living in fear of PC thugs across the planet, as he still insists on using the outdated (and incorrect) “war on terrorism” moniker for our current military campaign. Going forward from here, we ought not live in fear over calling the enemy by name: Islamists who seek to weaken America in order to enslave it, as they have already done to most of Europe (see the “cartoon” riots from last winter for an example).
I think that the American people already understand this. For whatever illogical reason, President Bush and most elected officials in Washington are unwilling to say what We, the People already know.
While I strongly disagree that everyone who opposed the Iraq War should be called an “appeaser” or whatever the Rovian language suggests that we call them, I do believe that those who overlook the real enemy, as mentioned above, seek the easy way out of a war that was declared against us decades ago. I hope that by the time we have the sixth, seventh, even the tenth 9-11 anniversary; our leaders and all of our people have the courage to correctly identify the enemy.
—
“Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the Democrats believe every day is April 15.”
–Ronald Wilson Reagan
I am in agreement with Nathan that there is an enemy in the Middle East that goes well beyond the title of “terrorists”, and is an entity that a great number of Americans have already identified.
My arguement goes beyond partisan rhetoric and places blame upon both parties for a failure to direct us towards any path that coherantly explains to the American people what our long-term objective is within the Middle East. the “Bushies” are fighting a war against “terrorism”, and while Bush explained in his address that the goal of fighting now is to prevent future generations of having to live in fear of terrorism, I would argue that the lack of progress made in the past four years in only indicative of a war that is apt to last AT LEAST a few more generations. Without a change of battle plan, we’re going to not only be living in fear of terrorism, but also fighting nation-states that reportedly “support” terrorist networks.
Meanwhile, the Democrats are quick to make proclamations such a “wrong place, wrong time, wrong war,” but what they lack is a substantive plan to draw us away from the turmoil in the Middle East.
Basically, what we need is Leadership. Not a leader who naively makes brash decisions that threaten the lives of both troops and innocenent civilians. Nor a leader that simply uses the podium to point fingers and criticize. We instead need leadership that shares with the American people the true depth of our struggles in Mesopotamia. A leader who admits his miscalculations and continuously strives to find a better method to achieve victory. We need a leader who has an ultimate goal, and will do what neccessary to achieve that, even when that means admitting mistakes and moving back to the drawing board.