Vietnam Redux

[Midwest_Doc]

For those of us old enough to remember, the war in Iraq is an EXACT replay of the Vietnam war:
1. Gross exageration of U.S. military successes
2. Minimization of "enemy" strength and support
3. Manufactured justifications for continued military action
4. Informed U.S. citizens opposed to war
5. Support by U.S. people maintained by fear and jingoism

Look for another manufactured catastrophe (probably near the election) in an attempt to galvanize U.S. support - a la Gulf of Tonkin.

[dbt]

1. Addenda:

6. No viable plan for military victory.
7. Utter lack of understanding of the "enemy."
8. "Light at the end of the tunnel" is oncoming train.

:scared:
dbt

[charlie]

2. and...

9. Marginalization of dissidents as gutless unAmerican cowards, leading to...
10. Extreme polarization of the public, with invective and vitriol the common currencies of "debate" over the war.

[Jacobin]

3. footnote:

11. We "must" succeed or ghastly and horrific things will happen to our country (domino effect), so we have to stay even though we are losing and can't win.

[CWebster]

4. and 50 years down the road...

the expose of military brutality of soldiers blinded and driven by the emotional nightmare of war, followed by national reflection led with a chorus of mea culpas. Count on it, while simultaneously getting entrenched in another patriotically induced quagmire.