Friday, April 06, 2007

A war without end, a military under strain

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Troubling news from NBC's Jim Miklaszewski:

Coming on the heels of a controversial "surge" of 21,000 U.S. troops that has stretched the Army thin, the Defense Department is preparing to send an additional 12,000 National Guard combat forces to Iraq and Afghanistan.

As well, SecDef Gates has indicated that the surge will last longer than expected -- or, rather, longer than the warmongers, both in and out of the White House, have been saying it would last. Which hardly comes as a surprise. This was clearly their plan all along. Which is why Democrats and the war's other critics and opponents, both in and out of Congress, must continue to fight aggressively not just for an end to the escalating surge but to the war itself.

(And why, ultimately, the key will be winning in '08.)

Taking the warmongers at their word -- taking the president at his -- is for suckers.

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3 Comments:

  • You supported a war that you knew was based on lies, Mr.Stickings. We must deal with the consequences of our bad decisions and not run away. That would just be irresponsible and would lead to a full out massacre. Are you a humanitarian?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 1:46 AM  

  • That may be so, Anonymous, although at the time I, like others in my position, were not aware of those lies. But I hardly think that opposing the war now, and supporting withdrawal, amounts to running away. As I have argued before, I think the ongoing U.S. presence in Iraq is only making the situation worse there. And I have never called for a withdrawal of all U.S. forces -- nor are Democrats now. Some forces would remain to train Iraqi military and police units, conduct operations against terrorists, and protect U.S. interests. Those who continue to support the war -- and the surge -- like to defend their position by arguing, seemingly without much basis, that U.S. withdrawal would lead to chaos and, as you put it, "massacre". That is a possibility, yes, but it will always be a possibility. It should hardly govern U.S. policy. Besides, a U.S. withdrawal could stimulate international cooperation that would work to prevent such chaos, which is hardly in anyone's interests, including Iraq's neighbours.

    By Blogger Michael J.W. Stickings, at 2:25 AM  

  • By Blogger mirckeyfi, at 11:52 AM  

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