"Startling" comments from WP's Thomas Ricks: U.S. May Still Be at War in Iraq 15 Years from Now

[DeepModem Mom]

Editor&Publisher: Ricks of 'Wash Post': U.S. May Still Be at War in Iraq 15 Years from Now
By E&P Staff
Published: September 20, 2007

NEW YORK Even in a time of growing pessimism over the prospects of disengaging from Iraq -- and on a day when the U.S. Senate turned backed another serious effort to do that – the comments from Thomas Ricks, military reporter at The Washington Post, on Tavis Smiley’s PBS interview show last night were startling. Ricks, author of the acclaimed book about the war called “Fiasco,” has long offered a frank and balanced perspective on the course of the war. He did so again in the Smiley interview, suggesting that in some ways Gen. Davis Petraeus’s recent report on the “surge” left much to be desired.

Then, in closing, he remarked that President Bush’s current strategy was simply to make sure there are at least 100,000 troops left in Iraq when he leaves office in January 2009. Further, Ricks said he wouldn’t be surprised if “we are still fighting in Iraq” when the next president’s term ends. Smiley, perhaps not believing his ears, asked if he meant the next president’s first term or possibly his second? Ricks said it could be the latter. Then Ricks added that he had been watching kids in kindergarten going off to school lately and the thought occurred to him that they might very well be fighting in Iraq “when they grow up.”

Earlier this week, in an online chat at www.washingtonpost.com, Ricks replied to a question about antiwar Americans feeling helpless this way: "This sense of despair worries me. I was on tour last month for the publication of the paperback edition of 'Fiasco' and as I gave talks and readings from Massachusetts to Texas to California I was struck by how many expressed this sense that they hate this situation but feel they can't do anything about it.

"I would say that however you feel about the war, you can have an effect. Talk to your member of Congress. Write letters to the editor of your newspaper. Speak up. Iraq isn't going to go away anytime soon, so the participation of American citizens could help the situation."

Then there was this exchange:

Silver Spring, Md. "Why does the media always concentrate on the bad news from Iraq? From what I hear, we are doing great things there, and everybody just wants America to look bad."

Thomas E. Ricks: "Are you serious?"

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003644061

[EVDebs]

1. McCain said we'd be in Iraq "ten, twenty years, That's not so bad'

http://www.spectrumz.com/z/fair_use/2004/09_04.html

"When asked this week on CNN how long the U.S. military is likely to remain in Iraq, Senator John McCain replied "probably" 10 or 20 years. "That's not so bad," he said..."

I'm not startled at all, I'm disgusted.

[OHdem10]

2. This should not e startling--Bush and GOP told us last

week. This is an unending war. Not one person has been
willing to push the GOP: How long will be in Iraq?
They permit the GOP to weasle around and never answer.

Bush was honest. Iraq will be like Korea. We have been
there about 50 years.

They accuse the Dems of Precipitous Withdrawal or cut and
run. No Democrat has been willing to stare them down and
not stopping until they answer the question before the cameras.
Do you have any point at which you would say, this is it,
we have done all we can????

Anyone with common sense knows they have set it up so matter
who is the next president--we are there to stay.

[RaleighNCDUer]

4. Except iraq is not like Korea.

If we were losing a thousand people a year in Korea, we would not be there as we are today.

We have forces there, as in many other places, but they are not combat forces under daily attack. Why does no one mention that?

Huge difference.

[tuckessee]

3. Iraq will be completely depopulated by then.

Mission Accomplished!!

[EVDebs]

5. McCain/Bush both are following the '73 Nixon plan to 'seize oil fields'

Document reveals Nixon plan to seize Arab oil fields
'70s embargo sparked 'last resort' measure, says British memo

Lizette Alvarez, New York Times

Friday, January 2, 2004

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/01/02/MNG8G427D61.DTL


This story was posted in print on a holiday time when no one would seemingly notice; also, foreign press broke the story, not US press.

The document also had this to say about how long would be required,

"The British warned in their assessment that any occupation of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi might have to last as long as 10 years. The use of force would also anger and alienate Arab countries and irritate the Soviet Union, although a military confrontation with the country would be unlikely, the document stipulated."

No rationale as to 'why' 10 years was a possibility.