Sometimes the propaganda machine gets ahead of public perception and more obvioiusly, the political perception.
The recent noise machine push to refashion the Iraq War as a victory in the making seems to have hit a bit of a snag.
The standard GOP talking point, uttered by the President and the party hacks, is that setting a date for withdrawl of US forces from Iraq is not only premature but hurts the troops. The point that is made is that withdrawl talk is treason talk.
Thus, what to make of this statement by Iraq’s national security adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie, from Fox News:
Al-Rubaie also said he believed the security situation in the country would improve enough to allow a large number of U.S. and Coalition forces to leave Iraq by the end of this year, and a majority to depart by the end of next year. “And maybe the last soldier will leave Iraq by mid-2008,” he said. (emphasis added)
Doesn’t that constitute treasonous talk? Aren’t the Iraqi’s calling the shots?
Of course not, when there is an election in the US to be won. The Iraq War and any possible pullout has become political fodder. It’s much too valuable to the Rovian tactic of painting Democrats as weak to consider any serious debate or public policy on an actual Iraq withdrawl. From CNN:
In a 256-153 vote that mirrored the position taken by the Senate earlier, the GOP-led House approved a nonbinding resolution that praises U.S. troops, labels the Iraq war part of the larger global fight against terrorism and says an “arbitrary date for the withdrawal or redeployment” of troops is not in the national interest.“Retreat is not an option in Iraq,” declared House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio. “Achieving victory is our only option … We have no choice but to confront these terrorists, win the war on terror and spread freedom and democracy around the world.”
So, the question becomes: Are we actually winning the war in Iraq or not? The goal has always been to engage the US in a “long war”. Any talk of withdrawl does not allow the Pentagon to establish new and permenent bases in Iraq and thus to maintain a certain amount of control of the oil rich Middle East as a whole.
It’s a missplaced policy because it relies upon the oil paradigm. My initial stance against the war in Iraq was based entirely upon my understanding that a military campaign in the Middle East was doomed to fail on multiple levels and was ultimately going to create more terroristst around the world than it killed.
The world sees the war in Iraq for what it really is. Colonialism based upon sheer greed for oil by the US.
And, that will come back to bite us in the ass in a much harsher way, down the road.
9/11 was just the tip of the iceberg. And, rather than engage the real issue – US over relience upon oil and finding a substitute system – the friends of big oil have decided to go for the old school solution.
The “long war” is going to get worse before it gets better because rather than engaging not only their fellow citizens but the larger Muslim community around the world, the extremists in power have turned it into a culture war- both at home and abroad.
And, for that, we shall all pay most dearly.
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