Iraq

[Fe 26]

I question your anti-war dedication. Did you go to Iraq as a human shield? Seriously, one does not have to be a soldier to serve his country. Benjamin Franklin was as instrumental as any soldier during the American Revolution, and yet he did not carry a rifle.

No, he just went to france and screwed enough rich peoples wives and sweet talked enough rich old men to get millitary aid.

I love Benjamin Franklin. He was such a colorful man, who did some real good in his life.

[Nick]

But do we know if these pictures were just soldiers . . . er, asshole soldiers . . . screwing around, or were they snippets from a military-sanctioned effort to break the prisoners' will? Don't always assume the worst, but know if you always assume the best you will get the wool pulled over your eyes time and time again. Remember how many people assumed the best when Colin Powell and the President told us we needed to go to Iraq? They would never undertake such a decision lightly, right? Our military intelligence clearly shows A, B, C, right? Assume the best, right?

I'm not going to sit here and tell you that orders came from higher up in the military chain of command, but don't just blindly think this is an isolated incident or an instance of "boys will be boys." Keep your mind open to either possibility. Just like you should keep your mind open to the possibility that we are pretty much writing the terrorists' recruitment brochures for them, while shoveling more innocent lives into the furnace.

[Hero]

Geez, I don't want Kerry handling this, and I don't Bush dealing with it anymore.

November's gonna be a fun election... =|

[Stone]

But do we know if these pictures were just soldiers . . . er, asshole soldiers . . . screwing around, or were they snippets from a military-sanctioned effort to break the prisoners' will? Don't always assume the worst, but know if you always assume the best you will get the wool pulled over your eyes time and time again. Remember how many people assumed the best when Colin Powell and the President told us we needed to go to Iraq? They would never undertake such a decision lightly, right? Our military intelligence clearly shows A, B, C, right? Assume the best, right?

Too stupid to dignify with a response. (Other than that one.)

[Hero]

I'm simply saying that it's easy to be a hawk when you have nothing to lose. That's why I think the draft is a good idea. At best, it'll cause more people to wake up to the seriousness of military action and prevent the American public from supporting another disaster like Iraq. At worst, it'll force armchair warhawks to put their money where their mouth is by spending some time in harm's way with a rifle at their side.

With a draft, that means you get forced to go, too.

And you would, right? Since you think the draft is a good idea and all.

[Stone]

Kerry's got no reason to watch Iraq get further fucked up on his watch - I think he's capable of doing the job.

The move for Kerry, right now, would be to criticize Bush for being a coward who is destroying the credibility of American troops by pulling back when we finally need to demonstrate courage. It'd be another 'flip-flop', but I think he could gain some traction with it.

[Diff-chan]

Just thought I'd pop in to say that I just saw a writer for the New Yorker on the news who was convinced that this behavior (humiliating the captured, to be specific) was actually an order, as a form of interrogation. Also that the people were "random people". I don't have time to look for a link, but I will later if I remember (or someone else can).

It doesnt matter if its an order. Remember Nuremberg? Well of course you dont, but Im sure you learned about it in school or something.

Oh and what people are you referring to? The soldiers or the prisoners?

[Stone]

I'm simply saying that it's easy to be a hawk when you have nothing to lose. That's why I think the draft is a good idea. At best, it'll cause more people to wake up to the seriousness of military action and prevent the American public from supporting another disaster like Iraq. At worst, it'll force armchair warhawks to put their money where their mouth is by spending some time in harm's way with a rifle at their side.

Ahh, insightful. (It's easy to do anything when you have nothing to lose.)

And, yeah, the draft'll really shut up armchair warhawks like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, right? Ah, no, most of the people who would/could get drafted are dumb kids who either don't care about the war or who think BUSH IS A NAZI!?@$@.

What you ought to be asking for is a Patriot Tax or something along those lines.

The idea would be that the cost of a war would have to be paid for by a commensurate increase on gas taxes (or milk or something similar). If the war costs $87 billion, then $87 billion needs to be quickly raised by doubling or tripling the cost of gas. People would know that a war meant that they would be paying $6/gal for gas for the next year.

It'd be a financial draft, in a sense - people would be thinking about at least one of the costs of war every time they went to the pump.

[Mr-K]

And, yeah, the draft'll really shut up armchair warhawks like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, right? Ah, no, most of the people who would/could get drafted are dumb kids who either don't care about the war

*waves*

[Fe 26]

Ahh, insightful. (It's easy to do anything when you have nothing to lose.)

And, yeah, the draft'll really shut up armchair warhawks like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, right? Ah, no, most of the people who would/could get drafted are dumb kids who either don't care about the war or who think BUSH IS A NAZI!?@$@.

What you ought to be asking for is a Patriot Tax or something along those lines.

The idea would be that the cost of a war would have to be paid for by a commensurate increase on gas taxes (or milk or something similar). If the war costs $87 billion, then $87 billion needs to be quickly raised by doubling or tripling the cost of gas. People would know that a war meant that they would be paying $6/gal for gas for the next year.

It'd be a financial draft, in a sense - people would be thinking about at least one of the costs of war every time they went to the pump.

You let me know when they start that. I'll invest in ever US motorcyle brand out there. I should have done that the first time gas prices went up. The pains of having insight but no money.