A Nation on the Edge

Post trauma, long after the injury, the true effects are realized facing life with new limitations and so a Nation faces future in dire need of leadership and direction, and a reminder of the resilient faith that made it great from its beginning.

A nation borne on backs of misery and misfortune, some have always found great fortune and the dangling possibility of "happiness" has been our sacred touchstone. Now we face self imposed cruelty and ruin...we have ignored our face to smite the ghosts of our enemies, squandered a national treasure in Iraq misadventure; oversaw a civil war not yet ended; and allowed the American middle class - their dreams and security- to be exported to the whim of corporate bottom line.

The middle class in America in in need of careers, futures in business, leadership concerned with their well being. There is a great divide in American politics, the so-called leaders thrive as never before, friends of the leaders thrive on the profits of politically inspired wars, and the middle classes drift into insecurity and dimming prospects... Mr. Obama, if elected, you will have a difficult job, but also the prayers and best hopes of many millions.

No Democratic Loser on Super Tuesday

Obama blew away the underdog label, and has become the frontrunner for the nomination with Clinton gaining strength from the must wins in NewYork and California... rarely has a Democrat won the modern Presidency without winning both NY and Cal, Obama has shown a nationwide base of strength that has been lacking for nearly two decades...grass roots enthusiasm among young people

... Seduced by the Dark Side have they been...

this amazing contribution to the body politic makes Obama the choice here to be the nominee, positional differences and experience differs little in substance between the two[ sitting Presidents, and Vice Presidents have some claim on job expereince, all others bear a similar risk of becoming puppets of unelected puppetmasters]. The young so vital and so less likely to fall victim to Republican devices...oh like Saddam was behind 9-11... and then WMD in Iraq, and how we are all better off giving up our freedom we are supposedly fighting for...and the world environment...this is going to be an interesting election season...

Veterans Care...

The Iraq story just took a turn that many had foreseen, the care of the injured soldiers as a measure of how much this Administration and ruling political party really care about the heroes of their war in Iraq. The first middle east war was far more righteous following the incursion into Kuwait but the treatment of gulf syndrome as a political football bothered a lot of people...this one shocks the conscience of a nation.
Yet we have really seen this before, once taken away from creating political divisions, this group has not shown an adequate ability to manage. It boasts often of the contracting out of it's work but rarely of it's own demonstrable achievements in management. Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans showed that even in a crisis that takes lives of innocent Americans, political considerations remain at the top of the agenda and the costly hours spent on how to create political gain in Louisiana in the face of the killer storm has come to light and may not go away.
This administration also gets very high marks for its news management and even from the ridiculous spectacle of "embedded reporters" in the Iraq invasion to now, they have shown excellence in keeping certain news items in a narrower range than expected or due...this will be a test given the new makeup of Congress. Shabby treatment of wounded soldiers makes the pro-military positions and attitudes seem like something completely insincere.

More Hiding Behiond the Troops

Don't they have enough to do...trying to keep count of things in Iraq: tons of money, tons of weapons and Munitions; tons of terrorists bent on attacking the U.S.( they really say this stuff); keeping track of who is whom in a layer caked civil war;.... and now ON TOP OF ALL OF THAT they have to protect the politicians who blundered into this mess. Yes we cannot even debate the war and its civilian management or the hundreds of billions that we have been ordered to spend BECAUSE..it would be disloyal to the troops... now why didn't i think of this ..in my own life...got a bill at MasterCard that you can't pay..send in some troops and nobody should even mention it again...might discourage the troops.. OK...enough said. Our troops deserve the benfits of the democratic process they the so bravely defend including debate and the will of the people on the important question of wheter we go to war. I think the real problem is that people will become so cynical from hearing this lame brained stuff that they really will stop thinking about our service people..who are not part of the money grab in Iraq nor the politics of wars for elections... .

Hiding Behind the Troops

Americans love and support its military...no, not the billionaires that have been created by the spending associated with the Iraq invasion...the real troops --your children and mine who serve. We want them to be safe and back home after doing the brave parts to protect our country. The civil war in Iraq is a threat to world peace. True and the nations of the world should be fixing it. Now service in Iraq was directed by a civilian non-combatant and now it is proposed that if anyone disagrees with the civilian decisions on Iraq THEY ARE DISLOYAL TO THE TROOPS.... Well... Imagine you are the survivor of a soldier killed in Iraq and you oppose the war...so this is a disloyal person? or you gave up a child in Vietnam..disloyal now? And who is making this loyalty call... probably a man who never served in combat or one who is simply hiding behind the troops for political convenience. There is a shamelessness to this which is appalling in the context of the sacrifices this nation has made to pursue what history may properly regard as a "folly" in Iraq- a policy that had virtually no chance of success from its start...unless you consider the re-election of Bush and GOP domination of government as success ... to most hardly.

If Iraq recovers then what

What does it mean to Americans if Iraq pulls itself back into a path towards peace and civil order? Victory? Well this might be the most shallow victory pool in the history of the country even less rewarding than Reagan's stunning triumph over Grenada. A success in Iraq would mean mercifully that a few troops might return before Bush leaves office unless they move on to Iran. It might mean increased oil production and higher prices... nothing like peace or war to drive up oil prices and Iraq needs money to rebuild where they can pick the contractors.
And in America the Republican Party would stick out its Elephant and claim credit, the military would be in for more praise than we could give; and President Bush would be hailed as the greatest President of all for defeating the nation that attacked us on 9/11 with video of operation Thunder and Awe embedded like newsmen during the invasion. Still for most Americans it would not resonate... 600 Billion dollars could have changed life here for the better( except for that rule against Americans helping each other to better lives) but now it is a mountain of debt that will be felt and then when the new Iraq charges us $3.00/gallon...whew!

Can Iraq Save Itself?

Perhaps with a typical error of focus we look at Iraq as political or military theater: as a contest of interest to the U.S. domestic political agenda. Iraq is also a home to millions with little connection to the U.S. except that we have seized control of a part of their physical place with our military, displaced an autocrat, and have presented them with an opportunity to select government leaders. The civil war-- that has gripped the country almost as soon as the U.S. military deposed Saddam has apparently worsened and has had a dreadful cost in lives and casualties-- has had little to do with global forces but rather with the willingness of a population to find a common interest in security. Thus far a significant number of people have actively engaged and a more significant number seem to acquiesce in the cycle of violence/vengeance among warring factions. As with Saddam, one faction seems in control of the Government...people are treated with regard to their ethnic or religious affiliation. It is unclear how much effort from the U.S. and allies has been aimed at fostering understanding and civil acceptance among these groups... but that would seem far more useful than more weapons or more soldiers...or a new front against Iran. The elements for an ascendant nation of Iraq are in place... but it remains: Can they stop the violence and save their country?