quote:

ORIGINAL: Level

Ex-general: Iraq a 'nightmare' for US
By STEVEN KOMAROW, Associated Press Writer 25 minutes ago



The U.S. mission in Iraq is a "nightmare with no end in sight" because of political misjudgments after the fall of Saddam Hussein that continue today, a former chief of U.S.-led forces said Friday.

Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who commanded coalition troops for a year beginning June 2003, cast a wide net of blame for both political and military shortcomings in Iraq that helped open the way for the insurgency — such as disbanding the Saddam-era military and failing to cement ties with tribal leaders and quickly establish civilian government after Saddam was toppled.

He called current strategies — including the deployment of 30,000 additional forces earlier this year — a "desperate attempt" to make up for years of misguided policies in Iraq.

"There is no question that America is living a nightmare with no end in sight," Sanchez told a group of journalists covering military affairs.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071013/ap_on_re_mi_ea/sanchez_iraq;_ylt=AreCkp7_WDxX2x0k9le7ZjL2_sEF

quote:

ORIGINAL: UtopianRanger


Here's another from the Army times :

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/10/army_sanchez_071012w/


So much for political expediency.... I love when the neocons get kicked in the balls by one of their former subordinates.

Like Bernie Sanders said in a speech a while back.....''bring back whistle-blower protection to the highest echelons of government - So the American people can hear the truth come out.''

General John Abizaid kicked them in the balls a few weeks ago when he basically explained to the world that it was a workable scenario with regard to ''mutually assured destruction'' should Iran ever fully develop a deployable nuclear weapon.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1189411429430&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

No attack on Iran!!



- R

quote:

ORIGINAL: philosophy

..what i feel most sad about here, is that those of us who were against the idea of Iraq2 from the beginning predicted all of this mess from minute one. We were reviled by many as unpatriotic or naiive or even as traitors. Now that we have been proven correct by events, we are accused of demanding 20/20 hindsight.
The mess is Iraq didn't need any hindsight to be predicted.......it was obvious to anyone who treats the utterences of governments in a skeptical way, it was obvious to anyone who reads history, it was obvious......all too obvious........

quote:

ORIGINAL: philosophy

..what i feel most sad about here, is that those of us who were against the idea of Iraq2 from the beginning predicted all of this mess from minute one. We were reviled by many as unpatriotic or naiive or even as traitors. Now that we have been proven correct by events, we are accused of demanding 20/20 hindsight.
The mess is Iraq didn't need any hindsight to be predicted.......it was obvious to anyone who treats the utterences of governments in a skeptical way, it was obvious to anyone who reads history, it was obvious......all too obvious........

I do think that many people that claim it was "obvious" that there was no reason to go there are engaging in Monday morning quarterbacking (using hindsight, for you non-American football fans ), or that they, quite frankly, have their head shoved so far up their ass, as to be blind to the possibility of anyone that is conservative, possesses anything of value to say. These "analists" automatically oppose anything a conservative may say, they immediately claim they're wrong, so, on the occasions that the conservatives are wrong, the analists are right, by default, if nothing else.

quote:

I thought it was quite possible that they still were in possession of chemical and biological weapons (I mean they did have them at one point; the U.S. provided them). While I put no faith into the bulk of the administration, I was also naive enough to believe that Powell of all people would be wise enough to thoroughly validate the reliability of the data he was presenting to the U.N.

quote:

ORIGINAL: cloudboy


What was really funny (but pathetic) was Lynn Cheney on John Stewart citing the US revolution and its post war era as a comparitive example to what's going on in IRAQ. It was really entertaining, tho, to see Stewart interviewing Cheney's wife.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Level

quote:

ORIGINAL: cloudboy


What was really funny (but pathetic) was Lynn Cheney on John Stewart citing the US revolution and its post war era as a comparitive example to what's going on in IRAQ. It was really entertaining, tho, to see Stewart interviewing Cheney's wife.

I can only imagine the look on his face.