How do you tell a man to be the last soldier we have?

[lwcon]

How is it that Colin Powell's appearance on yesterday's "Face the Nation" is not, at this moment, noted on the home pages of msnbc.com, abcnews.com, foxnews.com, or cnn.com?

It's not even featured on CBS News, ol' one-eye being the network that hosts the show.

Powell's critique of the war is as insanely late as the original Macintosh was insanely great.

But guess what? It's a genuine shot across the Bush bow:

Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell said yesterday that the United States is losing what he described as a "civil war" in Iraq and that he is not persuaded that an increase in U.S. troops there would reverse the situation. Instead, he called for a new strategy that would relinquish responsibility for Iraqi security to the government in Baghdad sooner rather than later, with a U.S. drawdown to begin by the middle of next year.

Powell's comments broke his long public silence on the issue and placed him at odds with the administration. President Bush is considering options for a new military strategy -- among them a "surge" of 15,000 to 30,000 troops added to the current 140,000 in Iraq, to secure Baghdad and to accelerate the training of Iraqi forces, as Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and others have proposed....

But all that is burying the lead:

"If somebody proposes that additional troops be sent, if I was still chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, my first question ...is what mission is it these troops are supposed to accomplish? ...Is it something that is really accomplishable? ...Do we have enough troops to accomplish it?"

Did you you catch that last litle detail? THE FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION SAYS WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF TROOPS!

Okay, I'll calm down. Maybe he didn't mean it quite like that.

He also said: the "active Army is about broken." OH MY GOD, THE FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION SAYS OUR ARMY IS BROKEN!

Before any decision to increase troops, he said, "I'd want to have a clear understanding of what it is they're going for, how long they're going for.

Alright, he's just being prudent. Sorry about all that shouting.

And let's be clear about something else.... There really are no additional troops.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT, THE FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION SAYS "THERE REALLY ARE NO ADDITIONAL TROOPS"!

Thank God for the NRA and the Second Amendment, because if Bush is right that they're going to follow us here, it's down to you (no wonder you were Person of the Year!), your Gat, and whatever you can learn by watching Red Dawn.


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[partylessinOhio]

1. Colin is used up. He threw his credibility away when he made that

BushSpeech at the UN. We know he lied for Bush about WMDs and the urgency for invading Iraq. Now nobody will believe anything he says.

[lwcon]

2. Powell's UN speech was an unforgettable moment...

... of personal and national abasement.

That said, when someone who almost literally sold his soul to Bush's Iraq cause speaks out against it, it does have a certain resonance.

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[wisteria]

3. Powell got some air play today. The thing is the media is back to playing games

again, and now they are taking a wait and see attitude which is helping Bush out. They are waiting for his plan. What Powell has said runs counter to what the Administration is saying and wants to do, so they are not making Powell's comments big news.

[lwcon]

4. Yup, that's how it looks to me...

... especially weird because Powell vs. Bush is always a juicy story.

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[BoneDaddy]

5. How?

You tell him he might be the last soldier, then you let him make a choice. There have been a good number of soldiers who have refused to return.

[lwcon]

6. OMG

If we have refuseniks, then we have even fewer soldiers at the ready!

Henny Penny, the sky is falling!

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[BoneDaddy]

10. Dunno

guess they will have to draft the Bush twins.

[hijinx87]

7. it is even more explosive than that

not only is he the former sec'y of state, he is also the former chairman
of the joint chiefs of staff. viewed in that light, this critique of the
administration war policy and his views on the current state of the military
is simply devastating.

[lwcon]

8. Indeed

With all the stupid topics like Kerry's botched joke getting 24/7 coverage, wouldn't you think this man saying our army is completely tapped out might be a tad newsworthy?

Aren't all the "America, Fuck Yeah" guys concerned that we don't have enough troops to blow up a bunch of other countries? Shouldn't they all be enlisting?

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[hijinx87]

9. it's staggering.

colin powell is probably the foremost expert on american military
affairs and military readiness on the planet.

not to mention he has served exclusively in rethug administrations.

this is devastating. game. set. match.