Op/Ed: Why did Bush tick off Putin with sudden threat of European Missile Shield?

[Mugsy]

via "Mugsy's Rap Sheet":

Why did Bush tick off Putin with sudden threat of European Missile Shield?

You’ve probably heard this past week about a possible “resurrection of the Cold War” thanks to President Bush’s impetuous suggestion of putting a new “missile defense shield” over the NATO countries in Europe. Russian President Putin naturally saw this as a threat to Russian national security (a country with a shield can attack with impunity).

The rhetoric only grew after Commander Guy criticized Vlad’s recent rollbacks of numerous democratic reforms (sorry if you almost swallowed your gum over that one). And despite President Bush’s clueless reassurances that such a shield was intended only as protection from Middle Eastern terrorist states and that Russia had nothing to fear, Putin still condemned the system as a threat that could resurrect the costly arms race of 1980’s.

Putin caught the Bush Team off guard Thursday with a reasonable offer of putting the systems’ radar control center in the former Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan. Not expecting the former KGB officer to act reasonably, after a quick confab (see photo), the Bushites hailed the compromise as “an interesting idea“. (Hey guys, easy does it with the enthusiasm!)



Never mind the fact that our so-called "missile defense shield” is only a little further along than the GOP’s plan to resurrect Ronald Reagan’s dead corpse and run him for President in 2008, why on Earth would G-Dub choose now of all times to start ticking off Russian President Putin just days before the G8? And why such a lukewarm reaction to such a welcome compromise that seems to give us everything we want?

I was pondering those very questions and getting nowhere until I remembered to think like a NeoCon (not an easy task mind you! Part of your soul must be sacrificed). That’s when it struck me: the Bush cabal wasn’t happy to be given an “easy out” because they don’t WANT an easy out. Despite all their assurances to Russia that such a missile defense shield was no threat to Russia, that is EXACTLY what it is meant to be.

Now, at this point, your average cynical Democrat like me would just assume The Bush White House WANTS to restart the Cold War as a gift to all their contractor buddies. But that’s not “Neocon-warped“, that’s ordinary “greedy bastard”. No, to understand the reasoning behind the Neocon’s sudden “piss off Russia” strategy, you need to think a little darker: Think Iran.

(...)

So what are the Neocons thinking then? Simple: they want to bomb (bomb bomb, bomb bomb) Iran, a move that would almost assuredly put Russian President Putin in the uncomfortable position of having to defend their ally. So what’s to stop WWIII and a U.S./Russia conflict over Iran? The threat of missile strikes from neighboring NATO allies around Russia perhaps? And the liklihood of them doing so is greater if they knew they could do so with impunity. So, the Bush White House can then say, “don’t get involved in our attack on Iran or all these tiny countries in your backyard might just launch a few warheads in your direction.”

(...more...)

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[rodeodance]

1. cause he wanted to keep the terror stuff on instead of climate change. bush started it.

[Demeter]

2. Yes, I Think Bush Did Mean It As A Threat to Russia

as well as the stated Iran threat. But the biggest threat of all is to Reality. The damn thing doesn't work, by the Laws of Physics as we know them, it CAN'T ever work, and money just keeps pouring out of our pockets into this Black Hole opened by Reagan and beloved of crooked pols and contractors ever since. Bush is trying to stake a claim for another US military installation, just becuase he wants to, and on the off-chance that engineers come up with something that works, the site will already be secure.

Many a swimming pool and second home owes its existence to the Star Wars program, as well as several campaigns for public office. I'll vote for anybody who shuts this program down forever!

[Mugsy]

3. As noted in the Op/Ed.

(Note line just below photo.) :)

[Octafish]

4. A New Cold War would be Most Profitable for BushCo.

Death. It's the family business.

[Mugsy]

7. You're not thinking like a Neocon.

Think darker.

[Jackpine Radical]

9. I understsnd your point in re: Iran, but something that has always

perplexed me is that the Russians keep acting as if they thought the Star Wars shield would work. I mean, every publicly available piece of information suggests that the whole thing is a boondoggle dreamed up by Reagan, who--in one of his more demented moments, no doubt--figured the Special Effects guys could whip him up a missile umbrella on demand. But the Russians always react as if they thought they were actually being threatened. In reality, why should Putin care if we throw a couple of trillion bucks into concretizing Reagan's delusional system?

[Mugsy]

10. No matter how badly it may work, even .01% success would be tragic.

Would you take that chance?

[MiniMe]

5. Because he is an ass who doesn't know the meaning of diplomacy

Short, sweet, and to the point. Also true.

[Supersedeas]

6. the timing is very curious

[Mugsy]

8. Not if you read the story.

There's a method behind their madness.

[cqo_000]

11. Russia to Take Military Steps on U.S. Missile Shield

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=aMg4wS0tbm9Q

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, visiting Moscow Feb. 21, rejected the accusations that the missile-defense system would pose a threat to Russia and said there had been ``a lot of consultations'' with Putin's government.

snip//

The commander of Russia's strategic air force, Lt. Gen Igor Khvorov, told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency March 5 that Russian bombers had the ability to destroy any missile- defense sites or disarm them electronically.