Shiites fume over Bremer veto threat as violence continues in Iraq

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040217/wl_afp/iraq_us&cid=1512&ncid=1480

KARBALA, Iraq (AFP) - Leaders in Iraq (news - web sites)'s Shiite community warned top US civilian administrator Paul Bremer against the risk of a crisis should he intervene in the drafting of the country's interim constitution.


On the ground, three Iraqi civilians, including a 10-year-old girl, were killed when a stray US mortar round slammed into the backyard of a home near the main US base in Tikrit, a US soldier said.


US commanders described the firings as a "harassment and interdiction" mission aimed at preventing anti-coalition insurgents from setting up positions in meadows across the Tigris river to attack the base -- one of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s former palaces.


Shiite leaders reacted angrily to Bremer's threat to use his veto if the US-appointed interim Governing Council proposes a basic law that challenges the spirit of Western-style democracy.

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[Zeke]

1. Fools!!!!!!!

The Repukes & Bremer are fools!

The Shities and other Muslims will view this as Christians imposing their will onto Muslim Arabs.

It's such an obvious mistake, I almost wonder if Bush Inc. is trying to start an Iraqi civil war, so he can campaign all the more: LOOK HOW DANGEROUS THE WORLD IS. VOTE FOR ME AND BE SAFE.

[0007]

7. I would hope by that time the American voter would realize that

junior is totally out of control and has lost it!

junior's past has been exposed and leaves him as a spurious imitation at it's best and junior's present day sanctimoniousness is losing power in my opinion.

[Fargin Ice Hole]

23. Doesn't matter if he losses any power by now anyways......

His legacy will trickle down for decades..... In other words "The damage has already been done and not even 8 years of a democratic leader is going to solve this mess."

[Fargin Ice Hole]

22. Well, while they are busy fighting eachother...........

we can suck the ground dry!!!!!!! Plus a civil war would help eliminate some of our own opposition.. Then theres less of a challange to our imposed western style living..........

[bluestateguy]

2. Bremer must be fired

as soon as the new president of the United States takes the oath of office.

[Sagan]

3. He'll be gone 7/1.. they're handing the whole mess to Powell...

In other times, I might feel sorry for Powell. Now, I have to say that he made his bed, he has to lie in it.

[NNN0LHI]

5. Didn't Condlie Rice take over the Iraqi mess not too long ago?

Or was I imagining things? Almost like it is a hot potato or something. Here, I don't want it, you take it.

Don

[Sagan]

6. That's exactly what it is...

On 7/1, so the plan now goes, the CPA turns into the American Embassy in Iraq. Thus,the mess is shifted from Rummy's boy Bremer to the State Department and Colin Powell.

No one ever seriously believed Condi would be in charge of the Iraq fiasco. Rummy threw a temper tantrum and that's the last we heard of it.

[coldwatercyn]

19. Condi Rice

"the unsticker" is what GWB called her. It looks like her rice is stuck and our troops with her. What a mess.

[Zeke]

4. And...

Greenspan---gone!

FBI Director Mueller---gone!

CIA Tenant---Hit the bricks pal because a loser is a loser!

[Dhalgren]

17. Was I asleep during a news cycle?

Greenspan is gone?! I never really liked the bastard, but at least he was kind of consistant! Jesus, what next?

[fob]

24. No he's not gone. The poster was replying to #2 who said bremer

must be fired and they listed others who need a boot to their ass once bush* is out.

As for Greenspan being consistent, if you mean raise interest rates to try and stifle a roaring economy under Clinton to try and affect an election and then immediately start lowering same said rate once the Texas Souffle* got in there in order to affect the economy and another election then yes, he is consistent. But, he still must go! He's terrible. Our Dem President will replace him with Larry Summers or possibly Richard Rubin. My guess is Rubin will be put forward and withdrawn under withering complaint from the repukes, and then they will have to accept Summers(the better choice anyway).

[kskiska]

8. Killing their leaders

and converting them to Christianity. Where have we heard that before?…

[Rebel_with_a_cause]

9. Bremer's greatest accomplishment

inciting Iraqi civil war--just doing his bit for the war effort~.

[markses]

10. They're firing H&I from the base in Tikrit?!?

Are you fucking kidding me? How bad is the insurgency there? You don't fire H&I that way unless you've got a full-fledged resistance movement travelling around in groups of at least platoon strength. Absolutely amazing.

This is also the second time today that the AP has scare-quoted a term that came to public consciousness for its folly during Vietnam. "Harassment and Interdiction" (H&I) fire in Vietnam was a notorious horror, with many incidents such as this "stray mortar hitting a house." We also saw in the story of Spring Offensive for bin Laden, the general used the term "hammer and anvil" - the fabled ARVN hammer and anvil sweeps in the Delta became a comedy, as the ARVN either forgot to "swing the hammer" or neglected to "form the anvil." If they think that they are doing hammer and anvil sweeps in northwest Pakistan without an absolute humanitarian (and possibly military) catastrophe, they are good and goddamn insane.

[hatrack]

11. The Vietnam analog here is chilling

And I thought immediately of Neal Sheehan's description of unobserved H & I during the Vietnam War, circa 1962-3. Unbelievable.

[markses]

13. I thought of Sheehan's

descriptions of the hammer and anvil sweeps that John Paul Vann viewed with bemused horror. But yes, the unobserved H & I is also relevant. I'm reminded of Michael Herr's description of the Americal Division base's H&I...

Extremely disturbing story, this is, if you read between the lines. I think they highlighted H&I for a reason, and not simply because it was what the colonel said. Very, very disturbing hint about the actual conditions in and around Tikrit. I'd bet that the US base in Tikrit is under fairly frequent rocket and mortar attack from this cast off story alone.

[baldguy]

12. Democracy in Iraq by June 1.

Just as long as it's PNAC's version of "democracy".

[coldwatercyn]

21. or Halliburton's

yeah, let's let them take care of it. How much could it cost?

[GreyV]

14. "stray US mortar round..."

"stray US mortar round"

Why is the army using mortars? Mortar use always implies complex and direct conventional ground warfare. It doesn't sound like they are fighting bunch of raggedy rebels.

[The_Casual_Observer]

25. Why indeed

Mortar rounds when they supposedly are occupying the country?
Why couldn't they simply walk or drive over to where they think these people are and sort it out?
These kind of details, when they leak out, betray the lies we are being told about how well things are going over there. However, we aren't hearing very much of this anymore.

[Jacobin]

15. Bremer is either a madman or a fool

There is no other choice.

[PurityOfEssence]

16. Another slick move from the Viceroy of Hell

Why didn't he just have Boykin make the announcement?

[MasonJar]

18. Bremer will be lucky to live until June 30. Boy, the big bad US

weapons and war plan just killed another precious Iraqi child. Surely if all hell breaks out the Americans are smart enough to realize that it was Stump who got us in this.

[Mari333]

20. In the meantime our kids are sitting ducks over there.

sigh.

[smb]

26. Well, Duh

Really, now, would we have let Germany in 1946 write a new constitution that paid homage to "National Socialist principles"?