What a stupid stupid country we are.

What an embarassment.

Our collapse will be spectacular.

Afghanistan:
Throughout history Afghanistan has been a black hole that consumes all the blood and treasure that invaders and would be conquerors have poured into it. Lotsa luck!

Over seven years ago our miserable excuse of a Congress gave to Bush the authority to wage an unwinnable war.

For over seven years nobody in our miserable Congress has ever explained what they meant with their words 'preventing future terrorism' and how we can ever accomplish that, in order to declare victory.

Most of those pathetic failures are still in office. No surprise that they won't even sign a letter to end this madness, since that would be an admission that they were wrong and that they are the pathetic miserable scum that most everybody thinks they are.

2010 - time to sweep out the House.

The commanding general, Diehl added, does not anticipate that the Afghan army "can defend the country on its own". . .

Have you noticed that (beginning in Korea in 1950) the United States always, always goes into places where the indigenous military can never defend its own nation? And under equipped enemies with bolt action rifles and no boots always kick our asses.

Another excellent statement, Norman Solomon.

For what it's worth I've contacted my Congressman, Bruce Braley, and urged him to sign on to this letter. If he hasn't signed it by now... A few years ago, he likened his politics to Dennis Kucinich who did sign it.

What an evolutionary leap it will be for humans to wholly support MLK's "programs of social uplift" over militarism, racism, and poverty.

smipypr

Yes, indeed, Congress is still stuffed with dipsticks. They will go to their states and districts, and tell their constituents how tough it is in Washington. The economy is heading to hell in a first-class handbasket; we are paying to keep the same mooks working at the banks who broke the banks. We have the same basic batch of generals running the day-to-day military operations throughout the empire. When people, now on the alleged left, start talking about throwing the bums out - ala Newtie in '94, they better be careful what they wish for. Do we really want, or need, a few dozen freshman representatives in the House? They will not be in any position to accomplish anything - House and Senate leadership would likely not go to anyone new or different. Unless the Democratic leadership can grow a collective spine, nothing will change. After all, they are accessories to the Bush administration's war crimes. I just can't see them all at the podium, in front of the cameras, saying "We were wrong. Here's how we're going to make it right."

Hello All,

My congressman, Peter Welch, a useless poser who staked his political "character" on ending the conflict in Iraq and bringing the troops home, is not on the list of signers. Remarkable. I probably just misunderstood his intentions when I foolishly backed him. He must have meant that he would work tirelessly to get our troops out of Iraq and into Afghanistan! Imagine that, the will of the people betrayed by yet another careerist.

Can't even run itself properly without making its own population miserable (and worse), so how is it gonna run another country?

The whole thing would be risible, if it weren't so sickening and so profoundly pathetic.

How about the U.S. learning to mind its own business and putting some genuine health- and happiness-promoting order on its own turf? Even Obama, who is now the captain of a sinking Titanic, is constantly mouthing the U.S. as world leader refrain. What will it take for that self-deceiving talk to stop? Will it finally come to an end when the ship is at the bottom of the ocean under several thousand feet of water?

Poet Alan Ginsberg once said that he wanted written on his tombstone "He gave great head." The tombstone of the dead US Empire can read "To the American People: They Gave Great Head."

Afghanistan = Tar Baby

Hey all you optimistic rational, compassionate thinkers the MIC has a new horror show behind the curtain, fun and profit for every demented contractor, and the unemployed can kill people close to home. Mexico, yes sunny Mexico short supply lines and fabulous beaches. The next nation our imperial stormtroopers will uplift to hell on your tab.

Major corporations that supply the massive military industry are intentionally spread throughout the nation, in nearly every state. The congressional reps in those areas are not going to vote against their districts economic interest, namely keeping the war games going. If there's no enemy and no war, then no war toys and less jobs. That's the bottom line of the current US economy. It not about bullshit security, it's about keeping the funds flowing into a war economy funded by the War Party.

"..those who must die will not have died in vain..."

Vietnam = 56,000 dead Americans for what? McNamara's apology wasn't good enough, Kissinger never visits any graves, and our military considers people of differing skin color and cultural diversity "THE ENEMY"

"WAR...what is it good for...absolutely notin!"

Peace

The American public is getting the government it wants. We here at CommonNightmears say differently, but nothing changes. So who is to blame? The American public.

Get it?

Obama promised to escalate and win the war in Afghanistan before (Norman Soloman and)I voted for him. He is keeping his promise. I'm not complaining. I don't want another 911.

Bush languished in Afghanistan with his vague mission of promoting "freedom and democracy". Obama has clarified what our mission actually is:

"Making sure that al-Qaeda cannot attack the US homeland and US interests and our allies. That's our number one priority."

How can anyone argue that his goal is not worthwhile?

there is no war to worry about. MoveOn said so. None of the powerful (so called) liberal newspapers even report about the wars anymore. They don't exist just keep bowing to Obama. Don't dissent, just agree.

"joehope March 24th, 2009 9:23 pm

I get it. 911 didn't happen. We were never attacked. 3000 people didn't die. Therefore there is no threat of terrorism."

Sure 9-11, not 911, unless you dial it on your phone say, happened. And sure there's a "threat of terrorism", but the question is where from? The threat is from within far more than it is from external actors!

Did you also have difficult graduating from grade 1 elementary or primary school to move on to grade 2, too, hopelessJoe or JoeTheHopeless?

============================

"lord_buckley March 24th, 2009 8:27 pm

We should also make sure that the Poles cannot attack our homeland, so I think we should bomb Poland."

I thought you were going to say that "we should bomb the North and South Poles". Hey, the loonies running Washington, the govt, are insane enough to believe that the No. and So. Poles might attack us and therefore dumb animal enough to wage war on these Poles, where virtually no human exists, except for researchers, f.e. Oh-oh, maybe those researchers are looking into how to turn ice into nuclear missiles. We should bomb them pre-emptiviely then.

Of course the people ruling Washington are not quite that dumb; but they're perhaps borderline to it though.

================================

"Abendland March 24th, 2009 6:20 pm

U.S. imperialism out of Afghanistan!

Thank God there is Al Qaeda, otherwise the military-industrial complex would have to invent it."

The CIA beat the MIC to the creation of Al Qa'ida; the CIA working with the Pakistani ISI, perhaps, but still the CIA was key orchestrator in this.

And the Bush-Cheney administration made sure that many, very many Al Qaeda members were allowed to flee Afghanistan, calling off U.S. troops, etcetera, to make sure the flight would happen; fleeing from Afghanistan to Pakistan. It's a little vague in memory for me right now, but I believe to recall that Pat Tilman's unit was on the trail and close to plenty of high-ranking Al Qa'ida members who were allowed to flee because of the orders from the Bush-Cheney administration, I believe through the Defence Secretary, so Rumsfeld, stating the orders for the U.S. troops hot on the trail of Al Qa'ida heads to back off.

There have been plenty of articles about this latter little feature and I think some of it was mentioned in articles about the ... apparently assassination of Pat Tilman by some jerk U.S. military sniper at close range and with Pat Tilman quite full in view and unmistakably of the U.S. forces. Perhaps Kevin Tilman had mentioned the above in one or more of his articles; but there were other people who also wrote about the above flight of Al Qa'ida, that it was ensured by the Bush-... administration.

Anyway, the war on Afghanistan is not about the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, which were only a basis upon which the Bush-... administration could claim to Americans as justification for launching war in Afghanistan, all while Bush said, prior to the launching, so prior to Oct. 7, 2001, that the Taliban had had nothing to do with the attacks in the U.S. on 9-11-01.

The war is just another part of the "full spectrum dominance" project the U.S. has on its books. Those don't necessarily or explicitly say that the U.S. is to war on Afghanistan, etcetera, but do specifically speak of achieving "full spectrum dominance" in the DoD's or Pentagon's Vision 2020 project. That's about establishing full spectrum dominance by expanding militarism of the U.S. into space or outer space, but the whole project really does consist of full spectrum dominance in global planet Earth terms; politically and economically, which of course requires the military strong arm.

It's about spreading empire, western imperialism, with the U.S. as top "tough guy".

Norm, you mean, your Congressional rep didn't read your letter saying, "No" to an Afghanistan war escalation?

Golly gee! :(

Oh well, better luck next time in another three years or so. But what a rush that Obama campaign was, eh? All of the balloons and streamers paid by Goldman Sachs and AT&T. And you were an Obama delegate!

Now let's turn all of the frowns in this thread upside down. :) Sure, the United States may be bombing innocent people to bits, but a little positive emotions never harmed anyone, right? And the Democrats are in power now so everything's changed that we can believe in. Yes we can pretend, and feel good again.

-TIA

The Taliban controls most of Afghanistan. Pakistan would have imploded if Chaudry had not been reinstated. Zardari did it at gunpoint, figuratively. The Swat Valley is Sharia administered & militant Islam there is set to pour 50,000 fighter into Afghanistan in the next 12 weeks. The US is bracing for this Spring Offensive. A tactical challenge. But what the US is REALLY fighting, Strategically, is this- To stop militant Islam's sweeping from Kabul to Cairo. From Khandahar to Khartoum. From Syria to Iran. And their eye is off the ball because the spark that will ignite this will be Israel's attack on Natanz and Iran's response.

That firestorm may have blowback that burns Tel-Aviv and changes MY dynamics for good. Palestine is not deceased. She is being held down and raped, yes, but her resurrection is coming.