War Widows

Just found a very interesting article pertaining to one Honorable <ahem> George W. Bush and a war widow. The topic? Iraq. The setting? Maine.

While reading the recount of the meeting, I was struck by how cold, impersonal, and genuinely disinterested the POTUS was in concern to the human collateral that has been offered up in the name of a war founded in lies, deceit, and treachery. (Yes, treachery, there is no other way to view the Valerie Plame and Joseph Smith affair.) The number one thing that can be seen when parsing through government records, reports, and data provided by the GAO is that this war was almost entirely founded on the notion of enriching the compatriots of those associated with the Foundation for a New American Century. No one else has been enriched by this. The “value” of this war is questionable, at best. Not to mention the fact that by going into Iraq has drained resources needed to keep North Korea, Iran, and China in check when it comes to nuclear weapons and economic extortion. From the journal:

‘But Halley has just given me a much more detailed account of her meeting with Bush. She told me that she went much farther in her criticism of the President, telling him directly that he was “responsible” for the deaths of American soldiers and that as a “Christian man,” he should recognize that he’s “made a mistake” and that it was his “responsibility to end this.” She recounted to me that she was “very direct,” telling Bush: “As President, you’re here to serve the people. And the people are not being served with this war.” ‘

Before some of you criticise me, there is one thing that I want to make very clear here: I am not a “peacenik”. I do believe that War is a tool that needs to be used from time to time, as human greed, stupidity, ego, and corruption are everywhere and does not seem inclined to disappear anytime soon. However, before this most potent and lethal of all tools is used, I believe that other options have to be exhausted first. World War II was a mistake, in my opinion. We should have entered into the fray sooner. Vietnam was another mistake. The policy of the “Communist Domino Effect” had no basis in reality, but, then again, no one was able to actually study Communism without be branded a Communist themselves during that era. (Also for the record, I loathe communism as it makes everyone a slave to everyone else, a notion that I find despicable.) We should never have entered into Vietnam, no matter how hard the French pleaded with us.

In effect, wars such as Iraq are lost as soon as started, as there is no objective, no concise analysis of the geo-political structure, no plan for the aftermath, no framework that has been developed to deal with guerrilla insurgents. It was most especially lost when the one goal that was defined was “Democracy”. This is a mistake, as Freedom and Liberty only exist when a person wants to fight for it. It cannot be imposed from the outside, just like any other value.

Continue on to read the Journal from TPM Cafe.