* and the (credit card) Republicans are Pouring Sand Down a Rat Hole.

[The Lone Liberal]

Bush and the Republicans are dead set on spending unending billions on Iraq which in all likelihood will be in the midst of a civil war by this time next year. From the beginning of this misadventure it was apparent to anyone who was smart-enough to pour piss out of a boot that Iraq would be a sinkhole for money. The question should be why didn’t this crowd of bobos see this when the average Joe was talking about it long before the war started. Maybe this invalidates the theory of Meritocracy.

[greatauntoftriplets]

1. Or could that have been part of the whole diabolical plan?

Enrich the regime and its buddies, while bankrupting the rest of the country.

What I really wonder about is how all these "genius" oilmen could have so badly midunderestimated the amount of oil revenues to be derived from Iraq. From $100 billion a year immediately, if not sooner, it is now down to $12 - $20 billion a year for the next several. Fuzzy math, if you ask me, and deliberately so.

[JHB]

2. Colossal Arrogance

None of these clods have actually been in power before, they've always been at least one step removed and counterbalanced by more traditional types, even within conservative circles. They've been in positions to huff and puff and convince themselves of their own brilliance, but they've never had the responsibility of actually doing the real job before. And it has nothing to do with Meritocracy, because merit has nothing to do with them.

With apologies to Pogo: "They has met the 'ivory-tower pointy-headed intellectuals', and they is them."