A Greater Struggle

[Lightning Rod]

http://i.cnn.net/cnn/2003/ALLPOLITICS/1 ... er.afp.jpg


A Greater Struggle
for release 01-29-07
Washington DC

"Now understand me well, it is provided in the essence of things, that from any fruition of success no matter what, shall come forth something to make a greater struggle necessary."--Walt Whitman

I was thinking of these lines when I saw George Bush declaring victory in Iraq almost four years ago. The modest fruition of success that Bush enjoyed while strutting under the Mission Accomplished banner on his aircraft carrier has certainly been followed by a greater struggle.

I don't believe that George Bush is an evil man or even a calculating one. It's obvious that he didn't do his calculations before launching us into this war that has been such a tragedy for both Iraq and America. I'm sure that he had noble intentions, but you don't go to war for noble causes, you go to war because it's necessary.

And this war wasn't necessary. It was entirely capricious. We could have removed Saddam with a couple of good marksmen. There were no weapons of mass destruction, and if we didn't know that after overflying the country daily for a decade and having satellites trained on them twenty-four hours a day, the concept of 'intelligence' becomes oxymoronic. Any amateur historian or military game player could have predicted what was going to happen in Iraq. I predicted it before we invaded. Are these people stupid or just intoxicated by power and greed?

No, this is starting to look more and more like Dick Cheney's war. The only sensible motive for such ham-handed tactics on the world stage is money. For certain sectors of our economy this war (and its associated mythological one, the 'war on terra') is a bonanza. Halliburton can reap billions on non-competitive contracts. Security companies and other mercenaries can get rich and kick some ass at the same time. The defense contractors just love it every time our soldiers launch a hundred thousand dollar piece of ordnance. The oil companies are tickled with the prospect of harvesting the bounty of conquered lands. War is high cotton for some people. But not for the grunts on the ground who come home without a leg or an arm. Oh yes, a greater struggle was necessary.

You can't classify it as anything else but an American Tragedy. A cabal of greedy and power-crazed ideologues has hijacked our government and propelled our country into a war that has cost us respect and treasure and lives, more lives than we lost on 9/11. And ten times that number of Iraqis died just last year. It's a World Tragedy.

You can always fool some of the people all of the time, then there are some people who are just fools so you don't have to fool them and I can't remember if it was Bob Dylan or Abraham Lincoln who said that, but I know that you can fool the American people for awhile but you can't fool them forever. I think I said that.

This weekend's demonstrations in the Capitol and on the West Coast indicate that Awhile is almost over. A greater struggle has become necessary. It's the struggle for peace and a relief from this insanity.


Have the past struggles succeeded?
What has succeeded? yourself? your nation? nature?
Now understand me well—It is provided in the essence of things, that from any fruition of success, no matter what, shall come forth something to make a greater struggle necessary.
My call is the call of battle—I nourish active rebellion;
He going with me must go well arm’d;
He going with me goes often with spare diet, poverty, angry enemies, desertions.
--Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road

[Zlatko Waterman]

Greg Palast has it right:

OPERATION IRAQI LIBERATION . . .
or . . .

"OIL"

Good, clear, forceful column, LR.


--Z

[mtmynd]

right on piece, L'Rod. timely.

i think about his war far too much. it doesn't do me a damn bit of good nor does it make my life any easier... but think it i do. why? because it's there? or is it because it's wrong? yea, it's wrong and i know and we know it was begun on lies. i wrote before that any war that was begun with lies and deceit will never succeed. but who in this great country of ours really wants this to be another failure? not many. i understand that. this is a proud country... and for good reason: we love freedom and we make no apologies about that. this country is generous to the world - what other country would spend 500, 000, 000 dollars in iraq? and there seems to be no end to the amount of money our government is willing to spend to 'free' the iraqis. is this stupid on our part? many, including myself, feel that it is. there's an underlying stench to the whole idea - the iraqis have never had the level of freedom we enjoy. it's too costly. the only freedom they'd really enjoy is freedom from occupation, if we are to believe the statistics that show the iraqis want the u.s. outta their country. the second most wanted thing is freedom of 'muslim-nity' - to continue on the islamic path. this doesn't bode well for the u.s.. more importantly, it doesn't bode well for george and co.. but george has conviction. anyone that disagrees with him be damned. he doesn't care what the iraqis want. he doesn't care what the u.s. public wants. he doesn't care what our allies want. his conviction is disturbing. he hears others but listens only to his ego. his ego is at stake. he's been a dismal person in his business dealings. he has the dubious honor of executing more prisoners in texas than any governor in the u.s.. he claims to be born-again. i believe he has been born again - from a hard drinking, coke sniffin' good ol' boy to an extreme christian that is pitting jesus against mohammed... and the u.s. will pay the cost. it's his call. god called him to do this. god spoke to george and personally told him to lie to his public about dueling it out with islam. god and george are funny entities. god is a neo-con as far as george believes. go ahead... ask him.

throw all this shit in with the u.s. military... the engine that is driving the big 18-wheeler of democracy to iraq. the road is more rutted and pitted than the driver george thought it would be, but like a madman he keeps the pedal to the metal through ied's and cries of danger. george, recklessly driving the truck of democracy, abides by no road rules. he shuns all traffic laws. get the fuck out of his way or else get run over. it's your fault for not moving. never his own. he's on a mission. he's got to deliver the merchandise. he believes the iraqis need it, (and he knows he needs it). the engine of military runs quite well... speeding down the road, ignoring speed limits, it functions better than any engine before it. it's responsible for getting the truck to iraq filled with promise. george, with that fucking smirk on his face, driving towards iraq with his full load of democracy hoping to drive back with a full load of oil. his country needs it. freedom is costly. freedom runs on oil and the u.s. is gluttonous. it's critical for george to deliver the load. it's important he doesn't return with an empty load. the u.s. depends, not on george, but more and mmoe energy. like this 18-wheeler, now's not the time to shift from oil usage to an alternative. democracy cannot be delivered without it. george depends upon the reliablity of the military engine to get their and back with the goods. then the u.s. will understand george (so he believes...).

[enough...]

[Michael]

No, this is starting to look more and more like Dick Cheney's war. The only sensible motive for such ham-handed tactics on the world stage is money.

anyone that disagrees with him be damned. he doesn't care what the iraqis want. he doesn't care what the u.s. public wants. he doesn't care what our allies want.

These two quotes remind me of the non-interview Cheney gave to Wolf Blitzer on CNN.

Blitzer asked a few rather pointed questions – the MSM seems to be gaining courage – and, for the most part, Cheney replied with curt answers or became indignant. It ended up more like a dressing down of Wolf Blitzer than an interview with Dick Cheney.

One example is when Blitzer asked Cheney what he felt about the fact that there are quite a few Republicans who are beginning to criticize The Regime’s actions in Iraq. Cheney told Blitzer that was “hogwash”. Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt.

You’re right, though, The Regime doesn’t care what American citizens or Iraqi citizens want.

If The Constitution is the “supreme law of the land”, as Article VI declares, Congress actually broke the law by abdicating its responsibility to declare war in the case of Iraq. This was done under the Golf on Tonkin Resolution as well.

The president is the commander and chief of the armed forces which means that he is responsible for executing a war should Congress declare war.

If I’m not mistaken, nowhere in The Constitutional Articles or Amendments is the president given the authority to unilaterally declare and commence warfare against any sovereign nation or body foreign to The United States. Nowhere is Congress given permission to transfer its power to declare war.

It really burns me to hear both Bush and his boss Cheney say that they’re going to move ahead with whatever military plans they have no matter what Congress says or does. This is why they are a regime. They function as if they were “a mode or system of rule or government, a ruling or prevailing system or a government in power”. Congress has allowed them to do so and, thus, has misled those Americans who possess a weak knowledge of civics into thinking that the president is a dictator and that arrangement is perfectly normal.

This in not “The Bush Administration”. This is not an executive administration by the standards set in The Constitution. Members of The Regime are supposed to make up only a third of the government.

I believe that a lack of governmental oversight has brought us to where we are today.

People have discovered that, by becoming politicians, especially on the federal level, they can increase personal wealth exponentially. The goal today is to be elected to office as a means of securing an exorbitant income and building an impressive résumé for post political life. American politicians have no social conscience. They merely have a good paying job.

To friendship,
Michael