Eric Margolis (Toronto Sun): Amateur warlords

[Dudley_DUright]

For a leader who styles himself "the war president," U.S. Commander-in-Chief George W. Bush's military record now stands at 0 for 4. Even Italy's born-again "imperial Roman conqueror," Benito Mussolini, fared better.

- Fiasco I: Five years after Bush ordered Afghanistan invaded and proclaimed "total victory," U.S. and allied forces are fighting a losing war against Afghan resistance groups. Afghan heroin exports are up 90%. The U.S. just quietly deployed thousands more troops to Afghanistan to hunt Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri in a desperate attempt to save Republicans from getting clobbered in November midterm elections.

- Fiasco II: "Mission accomplished" in Iraq. Bush's war in Iraq is clearly lost, but few dare admit it. The U.S. has spent $300 billion on Afghanistan and Iraq, with nothing to show but bloody chaos, deficits, body bags, and growing hatred of America. The Bush/Dick Cheney "liberation" of Iraq has now cost more than the Vietnam War.

- Fiasco III: The White House had the CIA and Pentagon spend tens of millions bribing Somali warlords to fight Islamist reformers trying to bring law and order to their strife-ravaged nation. The Islamists whipped CIA-backed warlords and ran them out of Somalia. Following this defeat, the U.S. is now urging ally Ethiopia -- shades of Lebanon -- to invade Somalia, thus raising the threat of a wider war between Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea. Good work, Mr. President.

- Fiasco IV: Bush and Vice President Cheney egged Israel into the hugely destructive but militarily fruitless war in Lebanon over the past month, in what many view as the first part of their long-nurtured plan to militarily crush Hezbollah, Syria and Iran. They did there best to thwart world efforts to halt the conflict.

more...

http://torontosun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/Margolis_Eric/2006/08/20/1766266-sun.html

[acmavm]

1. Hey Cheney, the jig is up. Everyone's on to ya.

<snip>

The "war president" has become the fiasco president. The White House should stop listening to bogus military advice from neocon couch commandos who thirst for Muslim blood, and start listening to experienced Pentagon officers who understand the meaning and cost of war.

<snip>

Like bush** is really running anything. That's the only flaw in this article.

[pretzel4gore]

2. can't eric see it? the 'wah' is against us....

too many people see it as tea leaves and animal guzzards (which reveal clues to the troot) but it's really all very banal (and margolis know it too) and in plain sight, to wit: stealing the 2k election proved to be a bigger achievement then anyone guessed - and since then, buying time, by running media operation one after the other (starting with chandra levy, then 911, then the wash. snipers/anthrax/hunt for bin laden/crash of flight 587/war in afghanistan/tom and nicole and going on to war in iraw, saddam statue, mission accomplished britany and brad etc) and running on in every direction, the purpose being so that the bush criminals' illegitimacy always pushed back, pushed away but the problem is, the 'loot' stolen in 2000 prez election has proven too damn big to hide! but they must hide it, somehow. and they just can't! ergo all the rest....
(btw i have a copy of a margolis column published on april 8/93 in which he asserts that 'gulf war 1' was the 'mother of all frauds' and the loses were only 1500 iraqis and a handful of coalition troops etc. iow the entire thing was staged, for western consumption, and the news we were given was all bullshit)...margolis wouldn't be getting his crap in a neocon newspaper like the 'sun' unless he's a snakeoil salesman....
'blame it all on bush. yeah, that's the ticket!'

[struggle4progress]

3. His list probabaly just scratches the surface: no one should overlook ..

.. the Administration's role in the overthrow of democracy in Haiti (including the midnight kidnapping of President Aristide who was transported to the Central African Republican) or the continuing flow of US troops and materiel to Colombia (a slaughterhouse for trade unionists and other progressive activists), for example; and continued attempts by the Republican White House to intimidate countries (like Venezuela, the target of a US-supported coup attempt) that exhibit economic independence certainly contribute to further hardening of attitudes against US.

[bvar22]

4. I prefer "FAILURE President" to fiasco president.

*

[Phrogman]

5. ....pass the failure fries

Sticks in my head, what a great simple cartoon

[applegrove]

6. Who here thinks that the "new assumptions" Rummy talked about

but didn't divulge have to do with starting wars.. having them drag on... not winning... then having all the wars link up to each other... as one big one...that the USA will then try to win?

Seems the neocons want what the WWII was... allies took 5 years to get their act together and then trounce the Axis PERMANENTLY!

That may be why the French are so afraid to go to Lebannon.. cause they smell a rat. I mean Canadians are in Afghanistan because of 9/11 only. And the Americans keep pulling out even though things have gotten worse there.

I don't think the Feith is stupid or that Cheney is incompetant. I think this is all going according to plan.