The Iraq War - Chapter 2 [Archive]

Kalihiboy

December 28th, 2004, 12:02 AM

that generic slogan is too shopworn and ubiquitous to have any pointed effect or meaning any longer.
IF... kerry had won, of course, we woulda had bumber stickers and t shirts saying the opposite. with equal effect.

(I see a bumper sticker now and then sez:
"Don't blame me, I vote for Lingle"...

what daaah!?

ok, so I blame you... because you voted for Lingle....)

We have a difference of opinion. I wear the shirt with pride because I didnt favor his lame tax cuts, his stupid war in Iraq, etc. I have nothing but
disrespect and utter disdain for this moron of a President. I am embarrassed to be an American for what he has done which is lose the respect of the world which we once used to have, he never admits a mistake even when he fires some of his own cabinet members, and thinks the current pace in Iraq is the right way to go!? Is he smoking crack again or what?

I didnt vote for this garbage, so dont blame me. At least with Kerry changes could have been made in domestic and foreign policies. But a election can never be won in the United States as long as the GOP controls the machines we vote on.

I can bitch all I want about this President because I didnt vote for him either time. So if anyone who failed to vote or regrets voting for Bush, dont blame me, I voted for Gore and Kerry, who won both elections as far as I'm concerned.

For the record I didnt vote for Lingle either and I'd like to see a single accomplishment the lady has made in 2 years. She ran on a "time for CHANGE" platform that struck a chord with voters, but I'm sure she wont be using the same platform again.

KalihiBoy

Miulang

December 29th, 2004, 08:44 AM

Support our troops by bringing them home and sparing them anymore harm in this war that we cannot win!

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7558.htm

Miulang

Karen

December 29th, 2004, 09:09 PM

Hi Miulang!

You speak over & over about oil, as if it isn't a grave concern! You think the Iraq war is about oil? I see wisdom in this war being about MULTIPLE things. We got saddam, his two maniacal sons are dead, and Iraq is voting, something we hold dear, and they apparently see how delicious it is to choose your own leader, too.

I think we killed more than two birds with one stone, by marching into Iraq. Christmas morning, my first phone call was from about 20 minutes outside of Baghdad, from a soldier that is more than proud to be there. I know two people there, both about to rotate home, and they say the Iraqis are damn glad we got saddam, and only wish he were dead with his sons, but back to OIL.

Miulang, you do know we don't have enough oil under our own soil to serve our gluttonous needs for long, don't you? Do you understand that those that hate us happen to own most of the oil, and they hate us for much bigger reasons than what we are doing there, now, and they have hated us for many more years than the first Iraq war, and they know they, if they all got together and crippled/choked off our oil supply, could cripple our country! I see this, do you?

Miulang, do you like driving your vehicles? do you appreciate the electricity that gives you internet, etc? Is it nice, if you are in the chilly Pacific Northwest, to be able to heat your home? Do you understand how DEPENDENT we are on oil?!! Wanna live without it? Do you see that our country must keep the flow of oil going to us, and the rest of the world? Hell, we PAY for it, and do have a right to make sure it keeps flowing, since WE turn around and not only use the oil for our needs, but we produce and share with the world.

Miulang, why is it bad if part of the reason for the war IS oil? You surely won't try to deny that there are other reasons for the war, even if oil is one! There is not one country that we BUY oil from that has not benefitted from us in other ways than selling us oil.

You try to make Bush look bad by speaking of this war being about oil, and I say your argument is a foolish and even childish one. Nuttin wrong if this war is about oil, too. It clearly is not JUST about oil, but you sit and seriously envision YOUR Life suffering under a true oil shortage, and I mean mos. of severe lack, and tell me that you don't think we have a right to fight for the free flow of oil.

Good for us if we fought for oil at the same time we fought FOR the Iraqis. The majority of Iraqis are GLAD we freed them from saddam. I hear that FROM Iraqis, one of them living right here on Oahu, and saying soon as it's stable there, he is returning to live in Iraq, back with his loved ones that are there, and he spoke very nicely about this Iraq war that you speak against.

Bring our troops home right now?! You haven't thought this through, have you? Not one of them was drafted, and most of them are not cursing the fact they are there. THEY KNOW what you apparently do not.

Support our troops by bringing them home and sparing them anymore harm in this war that we cannot win!

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7558.htm

Miulang

Kalihiboy

December 29th, 2004, 09:40 PM

I realize you didnt write this piece to me, but since its a public forum I read it and I'll respond.

First off the American dependency on oil is ridiculous, your absolutely right it would cripple this country in so many ways it isnt funny. Our airlines, our cars, the right to travel, shop and work would be crippled. Glad I dont drive and I am fortunate to work at home. Isnt American Capitalism something to be so proud of it makes us all greedy and dependent on things, sounds like a drug addiction if you ask me.

You gloat over this war as its a justifiable thing because you spoke to a few troops stationed there as well as some Iraqi's. I'm sure one could find many stories that are positive, but have you asked any of the estimated 100,000 plus family members of those that died in this war how they think its all worth it? Is it any better if these same people suffered poverty, death and dangerous conditions under Sadaam's regime, yet they have to suffer the same fate under US occupation? Or was it really that bad under Sadaam and not just another form of American propaganda showing its finest rear for everyone to see.

One must understand that the United States has forced this country into their current predicament. We have told them they must live like us and have a free democratic election which I find a farce given the last two elections we have had in this country. Who are we to police the nation and tell others what to do?

The unemployment line has risen to great lengths since US occupation began nearly 2 years ago. But wait, we have created jobs called the Iraqi police force, but didnt they have a similiar force under Sadaam? People have been without electricity for months because the US soldiers or friendly fire on our part or the simple case of defending their own country in turn knocked out power lines to homes nationwide. I'm sure they all appreciate that.

Over 50% recently polled in the United States no longer support this sham of a war. Bush's approval ratings are at the worst of any recently elected President. But we're stuck with this moron for at least another 4 years because I'm certain he'll either want to change the constitution and allow himself to run again or endorse a Manchurian Candidate clone of himself.

You have yet to convince me of one single thing this war was worth not only fighting for, but losing a limb or a life over. I dont get it. I dont get this President nor do I understand this nation for allowing this crap to continue for another at least 4 years.

KalihiBoy

Linkmeister

December 29th, 2004, 10:04 PM

You try to make Bush look bad by speaking of this war being about oil, and I say your argument is a foolish and even childish one. Nuttin wrong if this war is about oil, too. It clearly is not JUST about oil, but you sit and seriously envision YOUR Life suffering under a true oil shortage, and I mean mos. of severe lack, and tell me that you don't think we have a right to fight for the free flow of oil.

Fine bit of rationalization there. So might makes right? We want/need oil, so we should go take it?

Hmm. Saddam made a similar argument when he invaded Kuwait in August of 1990, and we fought a war to throw him out.

Sorry, Karen. Doesn't wash.

Miulang

December 30th, 2004, 07:38 AM

Hi Miulang!

Miulang, do you like driving your vehicles? do you appreciate the electricity that gives you internet, etc? Is it nice, if you are in the chilly Pacific Northwest, to be able to heat your home? Do you understand how DEPENDENT we are on oil?!! Wanna live without it? Do you see that our country must keep the flow of oil going to us, and the rest of the world? Hell, we PAY for it, and do have a right to make sure it keeps flowing, since WE turn around and not only use the oil for our needs, but we produce and share with the world.

Karen, you're going to believe what you want to believe. I believe the troops volunteered to be in Iraq, but I also bet that if they had their druthers, they'd rather be back here in the States, with their families. I bet they would rather not be staring death in the face every single day. What the popular press reports is not what's really going on. As time goes on, even the Bush Administration is having to admit that "gee, maybe we underestimated what it would take to win this war." We will have to be in Iraq for another 5-8 years, even after the bogus elections next month, according to Pentagon estimates. The more we keep meddling, the less the Iraqis will like us and the more the insurgents will have their way. Do you know what's happening in Saudi Arabia? After bin Laden sent out his last videotape and told his followers to start blowing things up in Saudi Arabia, within a few days, the bombings started there, too. If it had not been for the coalition and the war, bin Laden and al Zarqawi would have been mortal enemies. Now they have coalesced into a much larger, more powerful invisible enemy.

Oh yeah, and about oil...you, of all people should know about the economics of oil because you lived in Texas. The people up here in the Pacific NW don't rely on oil for electricity. Ours is mostly hydroelectric, which is a renewable, sustainable energy source. We meddle in the Ukraine elections, which pisses off Putin and the Russians who hold the second largest oil reserves. You would think that the Administration would want to stay on good terms with that government, since they could supply us with oil, wouldn't you? Well the Chinese, who are consuming more and more of the world's oil, are on the hunt, too. They are working closely now with the Russian government on oil projects. The Russian government has within the last couple of weeks nationalized Yukos, which is the largest oil refinery in Russia (the US had been running the plant for years), which means probably that China will get most of the Russian oil. So where does that leave us? Either fighting for oil in the Middle East or drilling for oil in ANWAR, which would damage the environment forever.

I definitely support our troops, and want them home. If the terrorists had landed on our shores and were fighting us here on our own land, I personally would pick up a rifle and join the battle. Nothing is being accomplished by our being in Iraq right now. We have to admit that we are no longer the world power we used to be and act accordingly. Our dollar, once considered the monetary standard is nothing compared to the Euro; this is partly due to the Administration's putting us into trillions of dollars of debt. The people who are going to benefit from this are the Europeans, who will find it cheaper to come visit, which I suppose is a good thing in a way.

Anyway, I support our troops but I don't support the leadership that put them in harm's way.

Miulang

P.S. One good thing the military is doing is the Pacific Fleet command has sent the USS Abraham Lincoln and its battle group to SE Asia to help with the tsunami assistance. This is a good use of the military because it is for humanitarian reasons.

Miulang

December 30th, 2004, 04:44 PM

If the stats below are an indication that our side is "winning", I sure as hell have to shudder at the thought of what the toll would be if we were "losing" the war. I think the Iraqi civilians, like the majority of non-Zionist Israelis, just WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE. They are now being intimidated by the Islamic jihadists into not voting next month. And we, on the other hand, have instructed our troops to kill indiscriminately because we can't differentiate between a friend and a foe. So who will win this battle of intimidation?

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=535&ncid=535&e=3&u=/ap/20041230/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_us_troops

Miulang

Karen

December 31st, 2004, 09:08 PM

Karen, you're going to believe what you want to believe. I believe the troops volunteered to be in Iraq, but I also bet that if they had their druthers, they'd rather be back here in the States, with their families. I bet they would rather not be staring death in the face every single day. What the popular press reports is not what's really going on. As time goes on, even the Bush Administration is having to admit that "gee, maybe we underestimated what it would take to win this war." We will have to be in Iraq for another 5-8 years, even after the bogus elections next month, according to Pentagon estimates. The more we keep meddling, the less the Iraqis will like us and the more the insurgents will have their way. Do you know what's happening in Saudi Arabia? After bin Laden sent out his last videotape and told his followers to start blowing things up in Saudi Arabia, within a few days, the bombings started there, too. If it had not been for the coalition and the war, bin Laden and al Zarqawi would have been mortal enemies. Now they have coalesced into a much larger, more powerful invisible enemy. Happy New year, Miulang,

of course if the troops had their druthers, they'd be safely home! they would prefer that the job they trained for is never needed, but they are not cursing the war itself, and they report that the majority of Iraqis bless their presence there. THIS matters hugely, as it proves we did a good thing in unseating saddam, and in killing his two freak, maniacal sons.

yes, I am aware that bin laden told his followers to bomb oil interests in Saudi Arabia. He did this because he wants to harm the flow to us here in the west. He'd love to cripple our way of life.

No Miulang, by growing up in Texas, that doesn't mean I know that you don't use oil to heat your homes, as a great number of Americans do. You use it alright, you depend upon transportation, and many of the things you are blessed by need oil to exist, etc. You know what I mean, and my point remains valid.

As I said, you can't prove otherwise cuz what I posted is so, and that is that if the flow of oil to us is crippled, YOU will suffer with the rest of us, and what is good for our country is good for the world, as we do for the whole darn world. Hurt us and many more than us are hurt.

GOOD has been accomplished in Iraq, and if it was also, simultaneously to keep madman saddam from choking our oil supply, GOOD! killed more than one bird with our proverbial stones.

Fine bit of rationalization there. So might makes right? We want/need oil, so we should go take it?

Hmm. Saddam made a similar argument when he invaded Kuwait in August of 1990, and we fought a war to throw him out.

Sorry, Karen. Doesn't wash. Hi Linkmeister!

We do not "take" oil! We purchase it, at premium prices, and we have every right to make sure that flow keeps flowing to us, and in so blesses the world. Did we fight for oil? Did we fight "JUST" for oil? hell no...and as I keep saying, if we "killed two birds with one stone," HURRAH for us. A win win situation, what was good for Iraq was also good for us. No sin in this. some try to make it so, but it, as you say, doesn't wash.

No, saddam did not make a "similar" argument. He has all the oil he needs, and that is why his country can afford to sell so much to others. He marched for other reasons, so as you say Linkmeister, your argument doesn't wash. Also, saddam didn't march towards Kuwait to free anyone, nor for his country to be supplied with oil. What a pitiful comparison. You tried and you failed.

Kalihiboy

December 31st, 2004, 10:58 PM

Karen,

It is you who has tried and failed to prove your point.

The fact you preach oil as if its holy water and its the reason and worth killing our American troops over makes you so damn insensitive that it isnt funny.

Its too bad you didnt receive compassion and a heart for Christmas. You just toe the GOP company line supporting a lame war and President and feel proud in doing so.

We just dropped our two cousins off at the Airport who are headed to final training in Texas, New Mexico and Lousiana for a 18month tour of duty in Iraq. I spared them the details of your post as I'm embarrassed to admit that there are actually people out there who stake more pride in oil than they do human life.

Just as President Bush says "stay the course in Iraq", keep supporting this disgrace of a war because it somehow makes you feel all proud and patriotic.

I mean even Hitler had supporters.

KalihiBoy

Karen

January 1st, 2005, 07:23 PM

Kalihi Boy, I have dear friends right outside of Baghdad right now, and in Kirkuk. They weren't DRAFTED to this war, and they support it. Your cousins enlisted too, they aren't being forced to go there. I bet when they finally get there, they will be proud of what they are doing there, because once there, they will not be going by what the danged media claims, but will live amongst the grateful Iraqis, and see for themselves.

As I said, this Iraq war may be a win-win situation, but it is not and it never was "just about oil." Therefore, your diatribe to me falls on deaf ears.

Perhaps people that think like you should be forced to live without all of the things oil provides for you, directly and peripherally. You'd then see why bin laden is encouraging people to bomb the oil facilities of his own people, hoping to eventually limit the supply to the west.

You know the 350 Million, so far, we are giving to help the horrible tsunami victims? How much of that do you think was produced without ANY aid from oil, or natural gas? If the oil supply is ever successfully choked off to us. the whole bloody world WILL suffer because we do so much for so many. What is good for the U.S. is good for the world, and this not an exaggeration.

Your post here to me lost ALL credibility with THIS absurd line from you, which of course is not based in any reality of where I am coming from. You desperately try to discredit me with garbage like this, and guess you can't see you make yourself look bad, not me. You said "there are actually people out there who stake more pride in oil than they do human life."

To the back of the class for you.

kimo55

January 1st, 2005, 07:28 PM

I mean even Hitler had supporters.

KalihiBoy

Uh oh. Invoking hitler. you know da rules.
invalidated arguement when this happens.
diminished to zero.

Kalihiboy

January 1st, 2005, 08:47 PM

Uh oh. Invoking hitler. you know da rules.
invalidated arguement when this happens.
diminished to zero.

Following someone blindly like Karen does for this war and this President yes is akin to following Hitler as far as I'm concerned. You know Hitler is a part of history just like this war is and Bush is, though I wish none of them ever existed.

No Karen I know several soldiers, one of my childhood friends has been in Iraq on and off since the invasion and he has no idea why we are there.

Our cousins, one signed up for the National Guard, they didnt sign up to fight in a war. The National Guard I thought sole purpose was to guard, maintain and protect our borders within the United States. So great since Bush has depleted these sources what will we do here if a natural disaster or terrorist attack would occur since our military is off doing other things.

I'm sorry if you dont like my comments as they say the truth hurts. You continue on and on about oil and how important it is, you defend it moreso than anyone I have ever known of.

I respect you for defending what you believe in, though I really cant understand what it is that you believe. The Hitler comment I used earlier I explained I hope better, I didnt mean to imply you were like him at all, if you thought I did, I apologize. Its just that I think many people have a tendency to follow things to the point in which they are oblivious or blind to the realities of the situation. This could be religious, political, social things, you name it.

If you folks believe in this war so strongly why dont you all volunteer to work over there, they need all the help they can get or go out and tell all your friends and family members to have their children go and volunteer for the military.

You know its one thing to be proud of your country and be patriotic but when it comes to aarogance the United States is truly the world leader.

KalihiBoy

kimo55

January 2nd, 2005, 09:56 AM

I'm sorry if you dont like my comments as they say the truth hurts. KalihiBoy

Uh oh!
employing the holier than thou non-phrase; " the truth hurts. "
Invoking a generic cliche.
Another major infraction.
points lost!
Off island voted!

Miulang

January 2nd, 2005, 11:48 AM

Happy New year, Miulang,

of course if the troops had their druthers, they'd be safely home! they would prefer that the job they trained for is never needed, but they are not cursing the war itself, and they report that the majority of Iraqis bless their presence there. THIS matters hugely, as it proves we did a good thing in unseating saddam, and in killing his two freak, maniacal sons.

Happy New Year to you, too, from San Francisco, Karen. You're right, the "majority" of Iraqis are glad that we're there because the majority of Iraqis happen to be Shiites, who will finally get represented in a puppet government that before prevented them from participating in the past. But at the same time, the Sunnis will be disenfranchised (as in the civilians in Fallujah, Ramadi, etc...the "Sunni Triangle" and the Kurds). So take your "majority" claim advisedly. If you ask the Sunnis and Kurds if they're glad we're bombing out of their homes and killing their families, then my guess is the answer would be "no thanks, we don't need you."

Miulang

kimo55

January 2nd, 2005, 11:50 AM

Happy New Year to you, too, from San Francisco, Karen.

Miulang

happy hippie merry mary, Miulang, up there in San Fran! How is it?
Been to the tonga room yet?
a row haha!

Miulang

January 2nd, 2005, 09:04 PM

As I said, you can't prove otherwise cuz what I posted is so, and that is that if the flow of oil to us is crippled, YOU will suffer with the rest of us, and what is good for our country is good for the world, as we do for the whole darn world. Hurt us and many more than us are hurt.

GOOD has been accomplished in Iraq, and if it was also, simultaneously to keep madman saddam from choking our oil supply, GOOD! killed more than one bird with our proverbial stones.
Karen, I may suffer, but I hope you suffer more if you insist on consuming scarce resources as if it can just be had by buying it (or stealing it) from somewhere else. You admit we are gluttonous and you see no reason for Americans to conserve scarce resources??? Isn't that a little selfish? Global citizens worry not only about the land around them but also what kind of impact they are having on everyone else everywhere else, as in, taking care of the environment (the Native Americans and Hawai'ians got that part right...if we don't take care of our earth, it will pay us back in spades, as in the SE Asia tsunamis).

As I said before, you can believe what you want to believe and don't try to convince any of us "bleeding heart" moderates that you are right. We'll see what happens in 2 years at the polls.

Eh Kimo, had moa rain down SF den up hea in Seattle! Ho da soaked we got! Neva have time foa go to da Tonga Room; in fact, I no tink da place still dere because dey wen remodel da Fairmont a couple of years ago. I wen go wave at da Fairmont (jess foa you :cool: ) as we went past on da cable car, though! :D And I tink I pau eating dim sum little while, too. Da stuff stay coming out of my ears! We wen grind dim sum yesterday foa lunch and today foa lunch again. Onolicious!

Miulang

BTW: On the flight back to Seattle this evening, there were 2 soldiers on a 2-week R&R from Iraq. We on the plane gave them a hearty round of applause to thank them. THIS is one way us moderates can support our troops. The DoD can't even thank them by paying for their plane fare. These guys paid for their own way home.

kimo55

January 2nd, 2005, 09:35 PM

The DoD can't even thank them by paying for their plane fare. These guys paid for their own way home.

Damn dat DoD!

Kalihiboy

January 2nd, 2005, 09:56 PM

BTW: On the flight back to Seattle this evening, there were 2 soldiers on a 2-week R&R from Iraq. We on the plane gave them a hearty round of applause to thank them. THIS is one way us moderates can support our troops. The DoD can't even thank them by paying for their plane fare. These guys paid for their own way home.
He is right our cousins had to pay their way home as National Guard Reservists who have been called up. At least their apartments are paid for while they are off island for the next 18 months or so.

Thanks for nothing Bush and Rumsfeld.

KalihiBoy

Miulang

January 3rd, 2005, 07:37 AM

Those of us who publicly question the rationale for our involvement in Iraq must also realize that those who blindly trust our country's leadership will immediately try to silence us. They for some reason cannot understand that to support our troops and not agree with the reason why they are there or the leaders who issue the policies is not treasonous; it is in fact just as patriotic as those (like Karen) who think we are not making a mistake in the Middle East.

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7586.htm

Miulang

January 3rd, 2005, 09:22 AM

Here's an interesting little tidbit about the suicide bomber who killed 22 people in the US base last month. Note that he wasn't even Iraqi, he was a SAUDI med student who had dressed up in an Iraqi military uniform. If foreign insurgents are behind most of the attacks against us, why the hell are we killing innocent Iraqi civilians?

Miulang

This is from the Scotsman (Scotland):

12:19pm (UK)
Saudi Student Was Mess Tent Suicide Bomber

"PA"

The suicide bomber who killed 22 people when he blew himself up in a US army mess tent the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, was a Saudi medical student, an Arab newspaper reported today.

Saudi-owned Asharq Al-Awsat identified him as 20-year-old Ahmed Said Ahmed al-Ghamdi, citing friends of the man’s father.

The friends said members of an Iraqi resistance group contacted al-Ghamdi’s father to tell him his son was the suicide bomber who carried out the December 21 attack, the deadliest on an American installation in Iraq.

US officials have said their investigation indicates the bomber was dressed in an Iraqi military uniform – but was not an Iraqi soldier – when he slipped into a mess tent packed with soldiers eating lunch in northern Iraq.

The father refused to discuss the suicide bombing, but told the newspaper his son had gone to Iraq to fight the Americans and had died there.

The paper did not name the Iraqi resistance group. But Ansar al-Sunnah, a radical Islamic Iraqi group that has been active in northern Iraq, claimed responsibility for the mess tent attack.

Miulang

January 3rd, 2005, 10:51 AM

According to the national intelligence chief of Iraq, General Mohamed Abdullah Shahwani, there are more than 200,000 subversives and sympathizers in Iraq, which is more than the number of troops we have on the ground there. Our own military intelligence estimates put that number more around 5,000 to 20,000.

I would tend to believe the numbers being given by the Iraqis, which is another reason why we appear to be foundering so badly.

This excerpt from the AFP news outlet:

"I believe General Shahwani's estimation, given that he is referring predominantly to active sympathizers and supporters and to part-time as well as full-time active insurgents, may not be completely out of the ballpark," said defense analyst Bruce Hoffman who served as an advisor to the US occupation in Iraq and now works for US-based think-tank RAND Corporation.

Compared to the coalition's figure, he said: "General Shahwani's -- however possibly high it may be, might well give a more accurate picture of the situation."

Anthony Cordesman, an Iraq analyst with the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, put Shahwani's estimates on an equal footing with the American's.

"The Iraqi figures do... recognize the reality that the insurgency in Iraq has broad support in Sunni areas while the US figures down play this to the point of denial."

Shahwani said the resistance enjoys wide backing in the provinces of Baghdad, Babel, Salahuddin, Diyala, Nineveh and Tamim, homes to Sunni Arabs who fear they will lose influence after the elections.

Insurgents have gained strength through Iraq's tight-knit tribal bonds and links to the old 400,000-strong Iraqi army, dissolved by the US occupation in May 2003 two months after the US-led invasion, he said.

"People are fed up after two years, without improvement. People are fed up with no security, no electricity, people feel they have to do something. The army was hundreds of thousands. You'd expect some veterans would join with their relatives, each one has sons and brothers."

The rebels have turned city neighborhoods and small towns around central Iraq into virtual no-go zones despite successful US military efforts to reclaim former enclaves like Samarra and Fallujah, he said.

"What are you going to call the situation here (in Baghdad) when 20 to 30 men can move around with weapons and no one can get them in Adhamiyah, Dura and Ghazaliya," he said, naming neighborhoods in the capital.

The spy chief also questioned the success of the November campaign to retake Fallujah, which US forces have hailed as a major victory against the resistance.

"What we have now is an empty city almost destroyed... and most of the insurgents are free. They have gone either to Mosul or to Baghdad or other areas."

Shahwani pointed to a resurgent Baath party as the key to the insurgency's might. The Baath has split into three factions, with the deadliest being the branch still paying allegiance to jailed dictator Saddam Hussein, he said.

Shahwani said the core Baath fighting strength was more than 20,000.

Operating out of Syria, Saddam's half-brother Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan and former aide Mohamed Yunis al-Ahmed are providing funding and tapping their connections to old army divisions, particularily in Mosul, Samarra, Baquba, Kirkuk and Tikrit.

Saddam's henchman, Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, still on the lam in Iraq, is also involved, he said.

Another two factions, which have broken from Saddam, are also around, but have yet to mount any attacks. The Baath are complemented by Islamist factions ranging from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's al-Qaeda affiliate to Ansar al-Sunna and Ansar al-Islam.

Asked if the insurgents were winning, Shahwani answered: "I would say they aren't losing."

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7603.htm

Miulang

Miulang

January 3rd, 2005, 11:18 AM

...and they report that the majority of Iraqis bless their presence there. THIS matters hugely, as it proves we did a good thing in unseating saddam, and in killing his two freak, maniacal sons.

Karen, can you come up with numbers from a poll to refute a Gallup poll of Iraqis that shows that 80% of those polled want us out of Iraq asap after the January elections? I'll eat my words if you can document what you wrote with hard numbers and not just anecdotal hearsay from a few soldiers. Thanks.

"A Gallup poll taken last April found that 80 percent of Iraqis wanted the U.S. forces to withdraw immediately after the January election. Even Allawi has promised that, if elected, he'll begin negotiating a timetable for U.S. withdrawal...."

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7596.htm

Miulang

January 4th, 2005, 04:41 PM

The people who are running for public office in the new transitional goverment in Iraq are either super patriotic and really want to make a difference in their country's future...or they need to have their heads examined for that uber death wish they appear to have. Today, the governor of the Baghdad region was assassinated, along with 6 of his bodyguards.

This particular governor was known to be working closely with the coalition forces. And George Bush insists that the election will still be held on Jan. 30, come hell or high water. :mad:

Miulang

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=HIHAD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Miulang

January 5th, 2005, 07:24 AM

Unconfirmed reports coming out of the Middle East say that the terrorist head Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi, leader of the terrorist group Al-Tawhid Wa'al-Jihad, who was recently appointed the director of the Al-Qaeda organisation in Iraq has been captured in Baakuba.

If that's true, then someone is going to get $10 million in reward money and someone within the terrorist group will move up to become al-Zarqawi's replacement. What we don't seem to understand is that just because one of the leaders of this group has been removed from power, that will not lessen its fervor to kill anyone who is associated with the US. It just means that we will have to put another bounty up for someone else soon, if in fact the Kurds have arrested al-Zarqawi.

Miulang

http://www.tass.ru/eng/level2.html?NewsID=1619544&PageNum=0

Miulang

January 5th, 2005, 07:45 AM

The Chinese News Agency (Xinhua) reports that one of the senior commanders of the US armed forces in Afghanistan is hinting that our troops (currently at around 18,000) will stay in Afghanistan as long as the Hamid Kharzai and his administration want us to be there...which as the general cited with his examples of South Korea and Germany, could be a long, long time. It probably also means that our troops will have to be in Iraq for a long, long time unless the people voted into office in the January elections kick us out. And if they did, what would the Bush Administration do? Our mission there would be incomplete because the terrorists will not have been eliminated and our control over the oil resources will become even more tenuous.

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7619.htm

Miulang

January 5th, 2005, 01:21 PM

The Chief of the US Army Reserve has come out publicly blasting the Bush Administration and the Pentagon for stretching the Reserve forces so thinly by deploying so many Reservists to Iraq and Afghanistan that it would be unable to support other Army contingency plans or to help with domestic emergencies, which is its primary job.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=2027&ncid=2027&e=3&u=/chitribts/20050105/ts_chicagotrib/armyreserveoverextendedgeneralsays

Miulang

January 5th, 2005, 01:32 PM

We consume 21 million barrels of oil every day. Since we stopped producing enough of our own around 1970, this leaves us hostage to the vageries of the international oil cartels. This is the reason we are in Iraq. This is the reason why China, who is becoming an even bigger consumer of oil, is making buddy-buddy with the likes of Sudan, Canada, and Russia.

Yes, the war in Iraq IS unfortunately about oil, or rather, the control of the oil resources. :mad:

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=926&ncid=959&e=1&u=/usnews/20050105/ts_usnews/hostagetooil

Miulang

January 5th, 2005, 03:46 PM

More excerpts from the blog of Riverbend, the young Iraqi woman who lives in Baghdad as she reports on what's happening around her. In November, she reports on Fallujah (http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2004_11_01_riverbendblog_archive.html). In December, she has a Christmas wishlist: (http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_riverbendblog_archive.html), and in her first entry in the new year, she speculates on the national elections which will be held later this month: (http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2005_01_01_riverbendblog_archive.html)

Miulang

Miulang

January 6th, 2005, 11:05 AM

Just prior to the November elections, Americans were told to expect that the Pentagon would go to Congress and request another $75 billion to support operations in Iraq. Today, the amount is now expected to be $100 billion. That's a third of what we've already spent over the last 2 years! :eek:

I don't see how the Bush Administration can expect to start cutting our trillions of dollars of deficit if we continue to sneak extra money here and there to pay for things that weren't budgeted for. If our government were an individual citizen, it would be filing for Chapter 11! Or maybe they're using smoke and mirrors and "fuzzy math" to rationalize the whole sorry mess. As taxpayers, can we also use that fuzzy math on our income tax returns, too?

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/010605F.shtml

Miulang

January 8th, 2005, 11:51 AM

To everyone who supports the Bush Administration's illegal war in Iraq, may you never have to come face to face with the people of an utterly destroyed nation. To those of us who support our troops but not the bungled war effort, pray that they have safe passage and return home soon. Below is a first person account of what's really going on in Iraq.

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/010805F.shtml

Miulang

January 9th, 2005, 08:56 AM

Rummy and the Pentagon are so worried about our failure to quell the insurgency in Iraq that they are thinking of invoking the "Salvador Option", which would put the Christians in Action or units of the Special Forces under cover to root out and kill or kidnap Sunni leaders in order to break the back of the insurgency. Unfortunately, what they neglect to remember about this particular insurgency is that for every one of the leaders they kill or capture, another jihadist is ready and willing to step up to lead the cause.

The Pentagon's thinking is, "hey, this worked in El Salvador in the 1980's, so it's gonna work in 2005". That was another time, working in another culture.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6802629/site/newsweek/

In other news, we are now holding over 3,000 foreign fighters in prison. The Attorney General designate, Alberto Sanchez, has said in past memos that the Geneva Conventions don't apply to foreign fighters because they are not citizens of Iraq and are not dressed in uniforms. And then he had the gall to tell Congress during his confirmation hearings last week that he didn't believe in torture and would abide by the Geneva Conventions??? If we thought Gitmo and Abu Ghraib were the end to this humanitarian atrocity, I don't think we've seen anything yet.

Miulang

Miulang

January 9th, 2005, 10:22 AM

The Association of Muslim Scholars, which is one of the chief voices of Iraq's Sunni Muslims, has sent word to the US that it will call off its boycott of the January 30 national elections if the US can provide the group with a timetable for the pullout of all coalition forces in Iraq.

The US government will do one of 2 things: tell them "hell no! We won't pull out of Iraq until we are assured that the security of Iraq is guaranteed" or we will give them a bogus plan and do what we want anyway, which is to remain there for at least 4-5 more years. Either way, we will be regarded as infidels and evildoers, and the insurgency will continue. The Muslims have every good reason to be wary of our words.

Thank you, Bush Administration. Thank you Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz and Condi Rice.

Miulang

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050109/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_elections

Miulang

January 10th, 2005, 12:45 PM

The entire 13-member election commission of Anbar province (where Ramadi and Fallujah are located) has resigned, citing personal safety in light of threats against their lives. This just adds more fuel to the argument that an officially sanctioned national election cannot be held, because now there is no authority in charge of ensuring that the Sunnis show up to vote on Jan. 30. So now how will the US and its coalition members entice the Sunnis to come out and vote? The Bush Administration was adamant about having Sunni representation in this election on Jan. 30, come hell or high water. Looks like hell is about to descend.

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/011105Z.shtml

Miulang

January 10th, 2005, 06:00 PM

Also earlier today, the deputy police chief of Baghdad and his son were assassinated by insurgents. This is another reason why the election board turned tail and headed for the hills. For all they know, their number could be up next.

Miulang

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0700world/tm_objectid=15059491&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=iraq-deputy-police-chief-and-son-shot-dead-name_page.html

Miulang

January 10th, 2005, 06:51 PM

All of a sudden, some people in Congress are coming to their senses. They realize that we are in a no-win situation in Iraq and our body count is accelerating with each passing day as the insurgents build bigger and more powerful bombs.

One Republican Congressman from NC, Howard Coble a staunch supporter of the President (heaven forfend! A Republican going against the President??? This is heresy!) is even considering having discussions in Congress about a pullout that would have the US start to leave Iraq immediately after the elections in 3 weeks instead of sticking around and becoming statistics in Iraq for a decade or more. The 10-term congressman, head of the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security, said he is "fed up with picking up the newspaper and reading that we've lost another five or 10 of our young men and women in Iraq."

I applaud this guy's courage. I just hope one of the neocon henchpeople of Rummy and Wolfowitz don't do something bad to him in some dark alley one night. That's what the "terrorists" are doing to Iraqi security forces to prevent them from doing their jobs.

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/011105A.shtml

Miulang

January 11th, 2005, 07:28 AM

The Ukrainian government has adopted a resolution to withdraw its peacekeeping forces from Iraq by the end of April, 2005.

This is the thanks that the US gets for helping elect a "democratic" president? Actually, the Rada is just being prudent: they see that the war is a no-win situation for their troops and with the escalating violence, they would be better off pulling out of Iraq than "staying the course."

Miulang

http://en.rian.ru/rian/index.cfm?prd_id=160&msg_id=5296771&startrow=1&date=2005-01-11&do_alert=0

Miulang

January 12th, 2005, 06:26 PM

If this wasn't so outrageous, it would be funny. Now George Bush, instead of admitting that not having the volatile Sunni region participate in the Jan. 30 elections would make for a bogus election, is now telling us "the numbers of voters and the results don't mean anything."

Um, excuse me? I thought the reason we were having this "national" election and the reason why we were fighting against the insurgents was to ensure that the minorities in Iraq (the Sunnis and the Kurds) would have some say in their new transitional government.

Reason #2 for us being in Iraq, now hopelessly dashed against the rocks.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1802&ncid=1802&e=3&u=/washpost/20050113/ts_washpost/a5065_2005jan12

Miulang

January 13th, 2005, 11:16 AM

All it takes is a few pebbles to start a landslide... :)

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7678.htm

Miulang

Miulang

January 13th, 2005, 11:23 AM

The Pentagon is also taking the White House to task for its ill-conceived plans for the Iraqi invasion and occupation.

http://ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=26973

Miulang

Miulang

January 15th, 2005, 02:19 PM

Americans, as usual, have no sensitivity whatsoever to the past and the treasures they might unwittingly be destroying. Since 2003, the US Marines have been occupying the ancient site of Babylon. In the process, we have destroyed many ancient buildings and artifacts which can never be replaced.

I bet that's another reason why they don't like Americans in Iraq...we have an utter disrespect for the past.

Miulang

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ_BABYLON?SITE=HIHAD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Miulang

January 15th, 2005, 02:50 PM

What have we done?! Rather than eliminating terrorism in Iraq, all we have managed to do, according to the National Intelligence Council (a CIA thinktank), is draw the terrorists away from Afghanistan and move them into Iraq. Iraq has now become the primary place for jihadists to be recruited and trained. Iraq now has more terrorists than before we captured Saddam. :eek:

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1802&ncid=1802&e=4&u=/washpost/20050114/ts_washpost/a7460_2005jan13

Miulang

January 16th, 2005, 10:41 AM

The Prez in an interview with the Washington Post said our troops will start being pulled out of Iraq "soon". Does he really think that answer is going to satisfy us? Does he really think the thinking part of this country is going to be content with that ambiguous word? Hell, we said the same thing about North Korea and Vietnam. Soon may be when the majority of troops will be returning, but we will have a cadre of troops deployed in Iraq for an indefinite period of time to support the Iraqi security forces for "as long as necessary", probably beyond 2009.

Does the Bush Administration really think we are all buffoons who will blindly shake our heads in agreement with his totally ambiguous semantic smoke and mirrors promise to bring the troops home? At least Colin Powell said troops could start returning to us by the end of this year. But then again, Powell is leaving the Cabinet soon anyway so we can just discount his lame duck pronouncements.

Miulang

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSH?SITE=HIHAD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Miulang

January 16th, 2005, 10:58 AM

As the country wrestles with the notion of a firm timeframe for troop pullout from Iraq, the DoD is quietly building a permanent $10 million wireless communication network that hints strongly at our intention to continue to have a presence in that country for an indefinite period of time. Of course, once the microwave towers are erected, they will become targets for the insurgency, which I guess justifies our need to continue to be in Iraq to protect our interests, which in turn will beget more anger on the part of the locals, which in turn will create more reason for the jihadists to continue their violence...it's never gonna end.

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7706.htm

Miulang

January 16th, 2005, 11:08 AM

I guess maybe what the Prez meant when he said our troops would be pulled out of Iraq "soon" was that yes, they would be out of Iraq, but would be shuttled next door to Iran, where since summer we have apparently been conducting covert operations to try to determine where Iran was hiding all its munitions. Wouldn't surprise me in the least if we weren't doing the same thing in Syria.

Miulang

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050116/ts_
Hmmm...Yahoo seems to have pulled this story already. Wonder why????
Being sneaky, here is the story directly from the source, Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7337636

Miulang

January 18th, 2005, 07:46 PM

There are reports that 3 more candidates running for office in Iraq were killed in suicide bombing incidents today. I guess the Iraqis don't need a runoff election: what they are ending up with is a "rundown" election, where the people who are declared winners in 2 weeks are the only ones left standing and breathing!

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=3&u=/ap/20050119/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

Miulang

January 19th, 2005, 01:50 PM

Here's a really neat map put together by the coalition forces of Iraq. So the next time you hear about the battle at Najaf, you'll know exactly where it is. While you're at the website, you might want to wander around and see what other information you can get from it. There are press releases and the like, some of which never make it to the American press. The map will show you where the "Sunni Triangle" that everyone is talking about is located (it's between Fallujah, Ramadi and Samarra; Tikrit is Saddam's home town.

Miulang

http://www.mnf-iraq.com/irag-faqs/iraq-maps.htm

Miulang

January 20th, 2005, 07:28 AM

Omigod! Secretary of State Condoleeeeza Rice actually admitted that there might have been some mistakes made in planning for the Iraq war and the reconstruction of the country afterwards. There may be some hope for her after all, if she can fix our diplomatic problems with our international allies.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=578&e=13&u=/nm/20050120/pl_nm/bush_rice_dc

Miulang

January 22nd, 2005, 02:49 PM

"Support our troops by bringing them home." I met the author of this article when I was working on the staff of a progressive economics magazine in Boston. He writes about history and economics in a way that everyone can understand.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7795.htm

Miulang

Miulang

January 22nd, 2005, 03:03 PM

Now there appears to be an indirect link between the Iraq war and the abduction and killing earlier this week of a WM clerk in Texas. The assailant, Johnny Lee Williams was a Marine on leave who had served one tour of duty in Iraq and who was facing discipline charges for cocaine posession while in the Marines.

His mom said that she didn't know what had happened to her son, except that he had changed since he returned from the war. I'm not sure if he can use an insanity plea since he also tried to rob a convenience store (the clerk shot him in the arm), but it sure sounds like he was suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome after coming back from Iraq. Another of our "walking wounded". How many other returning soldiers are in this same predicament and are walking time bombs?

I know that my ex-boyfriend, who was in Vietnam for a year, used to write about getting stoned and drunk all the time to numb the pain of seeing people getting killed and of almost being killed himself. (Last time I heard, he had suffered 2 failed marriages and was an alcoholic). I'll bet that's why Williams was using drugs in Iraq, too.

Miulang

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/01/21/woman.abducted/
http://www.click2houston.com/news/4120495/detail.html

Miulang

January 22nd, 2005, 03:39 PM

The US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee will be releasing next Tuesday a tentative timetable for our withdrawal of troops from Iraq. this bipartisan report will recommend that we draw down our commitment to around 30,000 troops by mid next year.

The big "if" is if that means the 120,000 troops who should be coming home will, in fact, be back or whether they will be sent to Iran. Analysts all agree that if we continue to maintain the same level of troops in Iraq, there is no way we can expect to also be at war with Iran at the same time.

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/012305D.shtml

Miulang

January 24th, 2005, 07:59 AM

Donald Rumsfeld really has to go. Now it has been discovered that he has put together another spy agency of his own to compete with the CIA. How much duplication is there, and at what cost (in terms of tax dollars, credibility of data gathered and coordination between both departments?) And why wasn't Congress informed of the new department when it was formed right after 9/11? And how does this new information jibe with the report from Seymour Hersh saying that we were spying in Iran? All the dirty laundry will come out in hearings scheduled to happen soon.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1802&ncid=1802&e=3&u=/washpost/20050123/ts_washpost/a29414_2005jan22

Miulang

January 24th, 2005, 09:29 AM

Chances are that if you are a reservist (or know a reservist) and you haven't been called up yet to go to Iraq, your next "vacation" could be someplace where people will be shooting at you.

There are 3 other alternatives: bring more troops home, extend the reservists contracts for another year or two, or reinstate the draft. None of those alternatives sound very palatable. I guess we could spend beaucoup bux and create whole battalions of those "robosnipers" mentioned in another thread, but the company who makes them couldn't keep up with the demand.

http://www.thehawaiichannel.com/news/4124097/detail.html

Miulang

Miulang

January 24th, 2005, 10:42 AM

The Iraqis captured the #1 car bomb builder, Abu Omar al-Kurdi ("Boom Boom Omar") on Jan. 15. He has admitted to building approximately 3/4 of all the lethal car bombs used by the insurgents in the recent escalation of attacks against Shiite clerics and civilians.

Unfortunately, this capture will only set back the enemy for a little while. There are enough willing volunteers who will step up to become the next Omar so that the bombs will continue to explode way after January 30.

The only good thing is that the Shiites have vowed not to retaliate against the Sunnis...maybe it's because it appears that for the first time the Shiites will be in control of their government.

Miulang

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050124/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_050124192623

Miulang

January 25th, 2005, 04:58 PM

It's now out of the mouths of people in the Pentagon: we will be in Iraq for at least 2 more years. Let's see $80 billion this year, another $80-100 billiion next year...and what exactly will have been accomplished except to kill more of our soldiers and innocent Iraqis and create even more resentment towards us by the Iraqi civilians and all of the Muslim world?

Miulang

http://www.truthout.org/docs_05/012605E.shtml

1stwahine

January 26th, 2005, 07:00 AM

My heart aches and tears are falling. 31 Marines plus four - five on the ground killed in Iraq! Damn! RIP Soldiers! May the LORD, our GOD give your families strength and hope. Someday, we all will be together. Today, mothers,fathers as well as spouses,children,family and friends are in mourning. As well as our NATION, as we do everytime, any of our men or woman dies in WAR! Please take a few moments to pray for them!

momofthreesoldiers,1stwahine!

Miulang

January 26th, 2005, 01:41 PM

I hope some of the $80 billion that the Prez wants us to cough up will be used to replace the helicopters (the CH-53E Super Stallion) that are being used now. One of these copters crashed during what appears to be a sandstorm last night and killed 29 Marines and 1 Navy person. The article below says most of the choppers are old technology (a variant of the choppers used in Vietnam); the average age of the 151 copters is 16.

The fleet had been grounded twice before for investigations for crashes, but this crash resulted in the greatest number of casualties during this war.

They are also apparently very delicate pieces of machinery, and being as old as they are and flying in the conditions that exist in Iraq, it's a miracle that more copters haven't crashed. The fleet the Marines use are supposed to be replaced by tilt-wing Osprey aircraft, but the article doesn't say when.

If we're going to keep our troops over in Iraq for another 2 years, we need to do everything we can to make sure they have equipment that isn't going to kill them.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&e=3&u=/ap/20050126/ap_on_re_us/us_iraq_super_stallion_1

1stwahine

January 26th, 2005, 05:45 PM

Twenty-Seven Marines from Kaneohe from this morning's disaster. I'm going to Faith Encouragement (Bible Study) in Ewa Beach...I sure need it! DAMN the Middle East! :mad:

Miulang

January 26th, 2005, 07:18 PM

Here's a breaking news story from the Hawaii Channel about the 27 Maines from Kaneohe Maine base who were killed in that copter crash today in Iraq. I'll bet many of you will know who some of them are. You know, it's that 6 degrees of separation thing, particularly because Oahu is so small.

My heart grieves for those people. We lost 16 here from Ft. Lewis (Task Force Olympia) last month in that bomb blast that blew up the mess tent. :( :(

Miulang

1stwahine

January 27th, 2005, 09:26 AM

Aloha Everyone, I recieved the following email from my daughter this morning. My son and daughter were in Iraq at the same time. They know all to well how it is and then some. My son almost lost his life there twice. After coming home to Hawai'i to his new duty station at Schofield Barracks, he told me he was deployed again to Afganistan. Please, pray for all our men and women of our Armed Forces, especially for those on this dangerous mission. Of course, every mission in the Middle East is DANGEROUS!

In Christ,

1st wahine,momthreesoldiers

From : Ligaya *******
Sent : Thursday, January 27, 2005 2:10 AM

Subject : FW: Chaplains Request from Iraq

Hello all- I don't usually send out forwards but this one was especially close to home for me, since some of us have been there and know what it is like too. Please pray for this mission as well as all soldiers currently serving overseas.

Subject: FW: Prayer request from a Chaplain in Iraq

As a battalion, my unit will be delivering the voting machines and the ballots to villages and cities throughout Iraq during the upcoming elections. (January 30/31) Our convoys are prime targets for the insurgents because they do not want the equipment to arrive at the polling stations nor do they want the local Iraqi citizens to have the chance to vote; timely delivery must occur so that the elections occur. Encourage your friends and family members and those within our churches to pray specifically for the electoral process. Historically, the previous totalitarian regime would not allow individual citizens to vote. Democracy will not be realized in Iraq if intelligent and competent officials are not elected to those strategic leadership positions within the emerging government; freedom will not have an opportunity to ring throughout this country if the voting process fails.

Announce this prayer request to your contacts throughout your churches, neighborhoods, and places of business. Those with leadership roles within the local church post this message in as many newsletters and bulletins as possible. There is unlimited potential for God's presence in this process but if we do not pray then our enemy will prevail (See Ephesians 6:10-17) A prayer vigil prior to the end of the month may be an innovative opportunity for those within your sphere of influence to pray. This is a political battle that needs spiritual intervention. A powerful story about God's intervention in the lives of David's mighty men is recorded in 2 Samuel 23:8-33. David and his warriors were victorious because of God's intervention. We want to overcome those who would stand in the way of freedom. David's mighty men triumphed over incredible odds and stood their ground and were victorious over the enemies of Israel. (Iraqi insurgents' vs God's praying people). They don't stand a chance.

I will pray with my soldiers before they leave on their convoys and move outside our installation gates here at Tallil. My soldiers are at the nerve center of the logistic operation to deliver the voting machines and election ballots. They will be driving to and entering the arena of the enemy. This is not a game for them it is a historical mission that is extremely dangerous. No voting machines or ballots. No elections.

Your prayer support and God's intervention are needed to give democracy a chance in this war torn country.

Thank you for reading this e-mail. Please give this e-mail a wide distribution.

Thank you for your prayer support for me and my family. Stand firm in your battles.

Blessings,
v/r

Lyle

CH (CPT) Lyle Shackelford
Battalion Chaplain
HHD, 57th Transportation Battalion
Providing With Mobility
"Keep Em Moving"
vernon.shackelford@adder.arfor.army.mil
vernon.lyle.shackelford@us.army.mil
833-1264

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be
discouraged,for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
-Joshua 1:9

Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

pzarquon

January 27th, 2005, 10:28 AM

I wish them success and safety, although I do not pray. Interesting to see such a passionate invocation of a Christian god to help a decidedly non-Christian nation in a military (war-making as well as peace-making) operation. I suppose Buddhist, atheist and Muslim soldiers are still a minority in our armed forces.

I believe in democracy and freedom, but know those virtues and values are not exclusive to any religion or culture. Many Muslims in the Middle East value them as well. Ironically, many of the insurgents behind the attacks on Iraqis and Western occupation forces also think they're fighting for freedom.

Miulang

January 27th, 2005, 02:04 PM

With the Iraqi election only 3 days away, the final roster of candidates running for office in the provisional government has finally been published in Iraqi newspapers.

Can you imagine this scenario and then honestly believe that it will be a fair election?

It's 3 days before the election. You don't know who you can vote for, except for the main guys (al-Sistani, Allawi). Then that day, you read in the newspapers who the other candidates are...except there are 7,000 names! How do you, as someone who has never voted before, know which candidate to pick? Lessee...7,000 names, on a regular sized broadside newspaper, that would be about 70 pages! Does one vote straight party line? Probably. Demographically, who has the largest population? The Shia. Who will win the election? The Shia Party. Where does that leave the Sunnis and Kurds? Up the creek! :eek: Can you say "civil war"?

http://www.thehawaiichannel.com/news/4136853/detail.html

Miulang

Miulang

January 27th, 2005, 05:08 PM

Every single one of us, whether we voted for George Bush or not, whether we believe that the war in Iraq is just or not, is responsible for the sanctioned genocide of a civilian population, who, after the deposing of Saddam Hussein, just wanted to be left alone.

Each and every one of us is responsible for the occupation of a country whose idea of freedom and democracy may never coincide with ours. Why are we all responsible? Because we continue to allow the Bush Administration to meddle in the business of another sovereign nation, even as we warn other sovereign nations not to meddle in Iraqi politics.

I am ashamed to say that the Bush Administration is telling other nations to do one thing and then through our policies do something absolutely contrary to those words. We are virtuous hypocrites being led by an Administration that doesn't know how to admit it has made mistakes and is certainly not doing anything to correct those mistakes.

Right now, the only power I have is through words. When the time is right, and if we "stay the course" in Iraq as I fear we will (because the Prez and his neocon advisers say we must), I will also dust off my walking shoes and join the thousands of other people marching against the tyranny of democracy that we are trying to shove down the throats of sovereign nations. I participated in the marches against the war in Vietnam, including the largest one in Washington, DC and swore back then that I would never allow what happened to that country and to our troops to happen again. History is repeating itself, and sadly, I must take up the cause again.

Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7892.htm

Miulang

January 27th, 2005, 05:21 PM

There was a dark moment in history 60 years ago, in a country now called Poland, that the Russian allies liberated Jewish prisoners being held in the death camp.

Millions of people died in that camp and others. Although their numbers have diminished by the passage of time, the survivors of the death camps gathered today, and remembered.

VP Dick Cheney represented the United States at the ceremonies. I do not understand how he could stand there, in front of the place where many innocent people were gassed to death, talk about "the message of intolerance and hatred must be opposed before it turns into acts of horror", and not see the comparison with what the coalition forces and the insurgents are doing today in Iraq to the innocent civilians in towns like Fallujah, Ramadi or Baghdad. We may not be gassing them, but they are dying because we cannot distinguish them from the enemy.

Miulang

http://www.thehawaiichannel.com/news/4134420/detail.html

1stwahine

January 27th, 2005, 05:27 PM

[I]
Right now, the only power I have is through words.
Miulang

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7892.htm

WORDS ARE POWERFUL! You go girl! :D

Miulang

January 27th, 2005, 06:09 PM

For all of you rabid believers that the only reason we went to war in Iraq was to establish freedom and liberty for the country, please take some time to read this article.

In it you will find direct quotes from people you admire, like George Herbert Walker Bush, the President of Chevron, and the current Finance Minister of Iraq, Abdel Mahdi, who is on the same ticket as the Grand Ayatollah al-Sistani and so will more than likely be part of the new interim government. All of them say that oil IS an important reason for us to be in Iraq. And since we have pledged $24 billion to aid in the country's "reconstruction", it means we (meaning the US oil companies) would have an edge in owning shares of Iraqi oil.

Pretty pathetic and totally transparent.

Miulang

http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/21100/

On a more amusing somewhat related front (oil being the topic), tonight on TV I saw a news clip about a new kind of tire that was invented by Michelin that will never go flat and will reduce the use of rubber (it uses none). Imagine how much oil we could save if companies didn't manufacture 60 million rubber tires every day????? :) Not only that, but they said one downside to the rubberless tires was they started to make noise if you went faster than 50 mph. Again, more benefits: at slower speeds, you would consume less gas, and at lower speeds, fewer people would be killed on the road. Sounds like a win-win-win situation to me. Unfortunately, because something like this makes sense, it would never fly in mass production. :rolleyes:

Miulang

January 27th, 2005, 09:27 PM

Now we've got it officially from the horse's mouth...George Bush is now on record as saying that if the new Iraqi government, which will be elected on Sunday, asks the coalition forces to leave, that we will start pulling our troops out of danger.

But in typical Bush-I'm-really-convinced-that-the-new-government-will-ask-us-to-stay-to-help-train-more-Iraqi-soldiers-
which-means-keeping-the-majority-of-our-troops-there-for-another-two-years thinking, he's not even considering the possibility that if Allawi doesn't win and al-Sistani's roster of candidates does, that the new Shia government might ask us to leave.

Will the Administration then claim success and that our mission is accomplished, even if it means we can no longer influence their government, and even if it means the Iraqis become more friendly to Iran? Methinks we should be prepared for a "Ukrainian" style election on Sunday where, miracle of miracles, the minority Sunnis led by Allawi win the majority of Parliament seats. That's the only way the US can legitimately remain in Iraq.

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&ncid=578&e=9&u=/nm/20050128/ts_nm/iraq_bush_troops_dc

Miulang

January 28th, 2005, 11:28 AM

You have to admire the tenacity of the Iraqi people. This morning on the radio, I heard an interview with an Iraqi exile who lives in Seattle who has organized a caravan of 15 cars to make a second roundtrip to LA (last weekend they were there to register) to vote in their first national election in 50 years. That's a drive of more than 1600 miles one way!

How many of us would go that far to cast a ballot for people we know nothing about because everyone was too afraid of campaigning and risking death? And the guy said he had talked to his relatives in Iraq yesterday and told them when they shouldn't all vote at the same time, in case something bad happened at the polling place. He just didn't want to lose his whole family.

Kinda puts us in the US to shame when it comes to our own elections, doesn't it? We crow about having a 60% voter turnout with only things like bad weather to dampen turnout. How many of us would make those kinds of sacrifices that the Iraqi people have made over the past 2 years, even knowing that the election will probably not give them the results they want?You have to respect the Iraqis for all that they have suffered, all the grief they have endured, under risk of death, going to the polls.

When the dust settles, I hope the world will recognize the new provisional government and work with them to rebuild a strong, sovereign nation, even if it means the US and the coalition are asked to end their occupation.

jayvinton

January 28th, 2005, 03:44 PM

Miulang,

If you truly beleive that as an average American we can some how change the course of our government policy, you are possibly mistaken. Write all you want to your congressmen and women, protest all you want in public. The real decisions were made by us at the election of a president, not once, but twice. We do not live in a Jeffersonian democracy any more than the Iraqi's do.

I am no Bush fan, and I am a proud Transplanted Texan, however this war is wrong. Wrong reasons, wrong place. I honor the Troops that do as they are told and saddle up to fight where they are told, I've been one of them long ago, but they are chasing the wrong illusion.

This war on terror is like two school yard bully's pushing each other around, only the other kids on the play ground are the ones getting killed. Had our purpose been pure, had we remained on the proper track and hunted the one that actually hurt us, found him and done what ever was necessary to bring him to justice or to the maker, then the US would be in a position much as it was at the end of WWII, almost invincible.

But our president diluted the hunt with a personal vendetta against a man who was cornered, and defanged, and coincidentally, kept order and law in his country. We may not agree with the method, however the outcome is undeniable. It is chaos and death and the loss of our sons and daughters for a dubious cause at best. And he is telling me that I must spend another 80billion on his hobby???

Miulang

January 28th, 2005, 04:39 PM

Aloha e, Jay:

We are not in disagreement. However, to just "give up" because the outcome appears inevitable is not something I personally will stand for. I have been against this war (and all wars) since before it started. But way back then, I said, "this is not MY war, I have already protested against the Vietnam War, the US incursion in El Salvador, the overthrow of a popular government in Chile with assistance from the CIA." I wanted THIS war to be for the generations after me. Unfortunately, my generation never did teach the generations after us what it was like to be in such heated disagreement with the policies of our administration that hundreds of thousands of us took to the streets in protest. And so, unfortunately, us old anti-war horses have to saddle up again, so that the generations after us will hopefully never have to deal with the consequences of a war fought on foreign soil for a dubious cause.

All wars are unconscionable. All wars cause grief and tragedy for both sides of any conflict. Some people will never understand the human condition enough to realize that there but for the grace of god, there go we. What would we feel like if we put ourselves in the shoes of the Iraqi civilians who, for the last 2 years, have been subjected to constant peril even while living in their houses?

I also think it utterly foolish for us to spend another $80 billion in Iraq, especially since it is NOT all earmarked to protect our troops. If you read an earlier post of mine, you will note that some of that money will go to pay off the government of Pakistan and the new Iraqi government, to "keep them on our side." $1.5 billion will be used to build a Ft. Knox-like American Embassy in Baghdad.

When the Augosto Pinochet debacle in Chile was occurring in the late 1960s, I had a friend who worked with Charles Horman, the American who was captured, tortured and murdered by Pinochet's gang of killers with help from our Christians in Action. Charles Horman's family appealed to the American Embassy in Santiago to help them find Charlie, and our Embassy did nothing, in fact they did less than nothing. They stonewalled and pretended they never knew Charlie was even in the country.

That was when I realized that the only reason American Embassies exist anywhere in the world is to stimulate trade with that foreign government and to make sure they don't stray too far from our span of influence, and NOT to help American citizens who might be in trouble. So that $1.5 billion American Embassy in Baghdad is being put there so we can make sure our supply of oil flows unrestricted and for no other reason. And I bet the contract for the construction will be awarded to Halliburton or one of its subsidiaries without having the contract go out for bid.

And you know what? I don't feel powerless. So long as I can make people reconsider their beliefs (but not necessarily change them), I will have done my part. Sure, it is cathartic (better than punching holes in walls) but hopefully some people out there will learn something that they did not know before. I don't mind heated debates or differences of opinion, but I do get angry when people defend their position without having evidence to support their claims. I guess it must be the post-Watergate journalist in me.

Miulang

P.S. in all elections, not everyone agrees with the people in power, and therefore we cannot all be broad brushed as being part of the nation of sheep. And I did not vote for Bush or his neocon conspirators. Did you? I support our troops, but I don't support the policies that put them in Iraq to be used as cannon fodder. I support the Iraqi civilians because they are human beings, too.

Miulang

January 28th, 2005, 07:06 PM

I was just checking out Riverbend's blog to see what her reaction is to the Iraqi elections which will start on Sunday (http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/). In her lastest post, she is complaining that they have had no running water in Baghdad for 6 days.

She also pointed me to another blog by Imad Khadduri, who is an Iraqi nuclear scientist who wrote the book, "Iraq's Nuclear Image" (http://www.iraqsnuclearmirage.com/index_en.php). He has some very interesting things to say, too. (Khadduri's blog: http://abutamam.blogspot.com/)

For instance, no one in the good old US of A realizes that when the Iraqi farmers start farming again, it will be illegal for them to use seeds from their last crops; instead they must buy genetically engineered seeds from Monsanto, an American conglomerate. "A new report [1] by GRAIN and Focus on the Global South has found that new legislation in Iraq has been carefully put in place by the US that prevents farmers from saving their seeds and effectively hands over the seed market to transnational corporations. This is a disastrous turn of events for Iraqi farmers, biodiversity and the country's food security. While political sovereignty remains an illusion, food sovereignty for the Iraqi people has been made near impossible by these new regulations." (http://www.vegsource.com/articles2/iraq_seeds.htm).

Furthermore, "The American Administrator of the Iraqi CPA (Coalition Provisional Authority) government, Paul Bremer, updated Iraq's intellectual property law to 'meet current internationally-recognized standards of protection'.
The updated law makes saving seeds for next year's harvest, practiced by 97% of Iraqi farmers in 2002, and is the standard farming practice for thousands of years across human civilizations, to be now illegal.. Instead, farmers will have to obtain a yearly license for genetically modified (GM) seeds from American corporations. These GM seeds have typically been modified from seeds developed over thousands of generations by indigenous farmers like the Iraqis, and shared freely like agricultural 'open source.'"
Iraq law Requires Seed Licenses November 13, 2004

"According to Order 81, paragraph 66 - [B], issued by L. Paul Bremer [CFR], the people in Iraq are now prohibited from saving seeds and may only plant seeds for their food from licensed, authorized U.S. distributors.
The paragraph states, "Farmers shall be prohibited from re-using seeds of protected varieties or any variety mentioned in items 1 and 2 of paragraph [C] of Article 14 of this chapter."
Written in massively intricate legalese, Order 81 directs the reader at Article 14, paragraph 2 [C] to paragraph [B] of Article 4, which states any variety that is different from any other known variety may be registered in any country and become a protected variety of seed - thus defaulting it into the "protected class" of seeds and prohibiting the Iraqis from reusing them the following season. Every year, the Iraqis must destroy any seed they have, and repurchase seeds from an authorized supplier, or face fines, penalties and/or jail time. "
(http://magic-city-news.com/article_2812.shtml)

Now why would we think our genetically engineered seeds would produce better crops than the seeds the farmers have used over the centuries which have adapted to the growing conditions in Iraq?????

What the American press wants us to believe is a parallel reality to what is really going on in Iraq, or at least in the Iraq that is being reported on by civilians living here.

Miulang

Miulang

January 29th, 2005, 08:53 AM

Another Iraqi blogger, Raed Jarrar, reports on what's going on (he's living outside Iraq, but has family still living there). This is not the stuff you would read in the NYTimes. Even as an expatriate, he believes the Iraqi elections tomorrow are a sham.

Miulang

http://raedinthemiddle.blogspot.com/

Miulang

January 29th, 2005, 12:27 PM

This is from the blog of Khalid Jarrar, Raed's brother. Khalid is in Baghdad and writes in this excerpt about what he sees in that city as it prepares for its elections tomorrow. These Iraqis are educated, patriotic, and have clear ideas about what the elections are for, very different from the unwashed Muslim heathens who are the devil's spawn in the eyes of some Americans.

Miulang

"Are you into theatre?
Cause you are all about to witness one of the biggest and most expensive ones in the history: The Elections in Iraq.
If you're asking me (and I am sure you are, since you took the effort of remembering my URL and actually came here, again!), I think that the elections are nothing but an American game to give some kind of legitimacy to their presence in Iraq, by creating a government that supposedly is a legal Iraqi government, that is authorized "legally" to ask them to stay in Iraq, and will justify then, the much harsher attacks against anyone that resists their presence, the excuse will then be that: The elected Iraqi government asked us to do so and so.
Well, the same thing is happening now, but since the Americans are getting more and more embarrassed everyday for the shameful results of their occupation, what's better than giving Iraqis the "democracy" and "freedom "to the point that they themselves can ask the Americans to stay?
Very funny ha? Haha? Well I don’t think so.
This is the biggest theatre and the lowest one I ever saw, the first elections in the history were people don’t know who is running, and the ones that are running never announced any political or economical agenda, we don’t even know their names for crying out loud, they are too afraid to announce their names!!!!!
CBC is making a documentary about me, the Canadian channel, and I have been interviewing people, less than two weeks before the elections, and asking them: what are these elections for? And so many people think that it's to choose an Iraqi president, not a parliament! People don’t even know what these elections are for!!
Wanna hear something people don’t know too? These elections are not only to chose a parliament!! they are also to chose a municipality!! people will go to vote twice, two deferent ballots and two deferent boxes, in the same location and the same day, and no one knows about this!
Here is one new information for you!
Did you know that the "ration" card of year 2005, that allows you to take sugar, flower and few other things too, which have been the main resource for Iraqi families' food since early nineties, will not be given except for those who will vote?
When you go to the voting center they give you a paper that allows you to take the card from the ratio shop in your neighbor!
Freedom… democracy…yahhhhoooooo! cheer up Iraqis and live happy!The way the elections will happen is that people will write the number of the "list" that they want to vote for, that lists contains so many parties and people that no one knows their names, EXCEPT!:
The Shea list, which is now a religious duty to vote for, that is more important than praying and fasting, as Sistani said when he "ordered" Shea to go vote, and I am sure he didn’t mean that he wants people to vote for the communist party, do you?
And the other one that we all know is, guess who? Yes! Allawi! He, unlike all others, had the chance to declare his name since people already know him and he has all the American protection, so there is nothing to be worried about, or is there?
Well Allawi is spending like crazy on TV promotions on satellite channels, he also got 6 hours on air with Arabiya channel that seems to be rewarding him for his struggle against Aljazeera, anyways, Allawi has posters in the streets, but none of them survives for more than few hours, a day sometimes, before people tear them apart, I wonder where does he get the money for his campaign for? I will give you three options to test your brilliance: 1.Santa 2. His own many 3.our friends in the states?
And to tell you the truth people in the street are very sure that his list and the Shea list are already winning lists, voting and stuff is only the boring routine work.
I am sure that these elections came very much this way:

Condi: good morning Mr. preeesident
Bush: good morning Condi have a seat...
Condi: Mr. preeesident.. I think that we should make elections…….
Bush: come on Condi for God's sake again? I am still so tiered of the last one! And weren’t we supposed to have them only once every four years?
Condi: no Mr. preeeesident... I meant elections in Iraq!
Bush: ohhh! They are officially a part of the states now? That’s great! But ia m afraid we will have to some tricks again, Kerry will do his best to win Iraqi's votes, I hate this guy!
Condi: no no Mr. preeesident….I meant Iraqi elections for an Iraqi president!
Bush: other than me?
Condi: yes sir! We need one that can speak Iraqi!
Bush: hoofff! I should have learned that earlier!
Condi: don’t worry Mr. preeesident you still have a good chance, start learning Persian, sir!

Hehehe very funny right? Well I don’t think so.

I am afraid that the danger behind these election isn’t only in all what I said before, but I am afraid that it will be the bullet to kill the national unity, Shea want it and willing to defend it, Sonna don’t want it and willing to stop it, add to that recipe a lot of weapons and you will get a civil war.I am for the elections as a principle, of course, but not these elections, not before so many thigns are cleared and discussed, I don’t even mind a shea government if shea are the majority, that would be their right, right? (there aren’t any kind of statistics, official or not, about the percentage of Sonna and Shea) but once shea take most of the votes, what would prevent them from ruling iraq with a Sharea law based on the Shea principles? What prevents that knowing that shea voted basing on a fatwa from Sistani that makes voting a religious duty? Will the Sonna agree on this? Will the Kurds agree on this? What about Kirkuk? What about the national revenue, how is it going to be distributed? Now you cant have a job in some nay governmental ministries and agencies if you don’t have a recommendation from a Shea party, how do you think will it be if there was a really Shea government? How do you assure al the parties, other than Shea in Iraq, that their rights will be saved and guaranteed?
Sonna, Kurds and of course also Christians and Turkman?
What guarantees the integrity of this elections while its held under the occupation?
Once all that is discussed and cleared, we will hold elections very smoothly, and we will all protect it against any foreign parties.
The Americans are stupid, but they aren’t THAT stupid, they must know that a civil war is really close if they continue along their present path of divide and rule, so they must, therefore, WANT this result, I Ask God that Iraqis continue to resist this idea by all means possible like they have been doing for the last two years, say Ameen!
Did I tell you about ballots? Besides the rumors that they are for sell if you have the money, I discovered that a ballot was sent to the ratio center to be given to all people, even Arabs! I can go take one! And I will only need an Iraqi ID to go vote! And you have no idea how easy it is to make a fake one hear, most of Sonna, about %80 basing on the survey made by the Islamic party, and about 90% basing on a survey made by a commission that works for the ministry of internal affairs, are not going to vote so they didn’t take their ballots, where do the ballots go then?
Today I interviewed some people that are running for the elections (as a part of my work for islamonline.net), and they said that they have no guarantees that this process will be honest and fair, they just said "we hope so!! At least we will try to keep close to try to expose the tricks if we could!!"
So if that’s what the candidates think, what do you expect from an average Iraqi to think?..." (note: I highlighted some of the most eye-opening parts of this entry)

Miulang

http://secretsinbaghdad.blogspot.com/

Miulang

January 29th, 2005, 01:32 PM

First the Sunnis advocated boycotting tomorrow's elections in Iraq, and now one of the leading Shiite clerics is also saying that the Shias should boycott tomorrow's elections because the US and coalition forces who occupy Iraq are using the election as another way to divide the country.

Gee, do you think maybe the Iraqis don't want us meddling in their affairs anymore? Mr. President, I think it's time to think about folding up the tents and leaving Dodge. :p

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=574&e=12&u=/nm/20050129/wl_nm/iraq_elections_boycott_dc_1

P.S. In other election-related news, the American Embassy in Baghdad was bombed today, killing a civilian and a sailor, while in other parts of the country, violence continued, even though the country is under a curfew.

Miulang

January 29th, 2005, 03:48 PM

More voices from within Iraq, commenting on the elections tomorrow (including one blog from an American civilian contractor):

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/middle_east/2004/iraq_log/default.stm

Miulang

Miulang

January 29th, 2005, 05:44 PM

If we are to believe this poll by the American polling outfit Zogby's, the majority of Sunnis and Shiites polled last week in Iraq want the US outta there asap! And if the results of the election follow the same trends, I wanna know when our troops will be coming home en masse.

Miulang

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1218915,001301600000.htm

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 09:26 AM

No one is quite sure yet what the actual percentage of registered voters who cast ballots in Iraq's first "democratic" election was, but the feeling is that it was above the 50% local administrators had hoped for.

And the President and Condoleeeeeeeeza were ecstatic in declaring the elections a success. OK, so now that the people have spoken, when can we start bringing our troops home en masse?

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&ncid=578&e=1&u=/nm/20050130/ts_nm/iraq_dc

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 02:34 PM

According to a special audit report released by the US Inspector General's office, more than $8.8 billion which was disbursed to various Iraqi ministries since 2003 is unaccounted for.

Paul Bremer, who led the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) between June 2003 and June 2004, flatly denounced the claims by the Inspector General by saying, "...the report had "many misconceptions and inaccuracies," and lacked professional judgment.

Bremer complained the report "assumes that Western-style budgeting and accounting procedures could be immediately and fully implemented in the midst of a war."

The inspector general said the occupying agency disbursed $8.8 billion to Iraqi ministries "without assurance the moneys were properly accounted for." ...

Hey, wait a minute. If something like that happened in this country, wouldn't the Feds be all over the case like bees on a hive? Why isn't it important to expect accountability from US representatives in charge of handling (and handing) money to a foreign country? Why did we assume the Iraqis would be able to account for any money given to them? Was this part of the $18 billion or so that we had allocated for the rebuilding of Iraq, the majority of which hasn't been spent yet?

Miulang

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050130/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_funds

1stwahine

January 30th, 2005, 03:27 PM

After Church, MAMA and I went to The Kaneohe Marine Base, to pay respect to the Marines,Sailor and LT. 1st Class Hoe whom all died in Iraq. As I walked to the Memorial, tears started to flow. I carried a small flag and a woven lei with two kukui nuts. I made my way past the crowd and other mourners. I didn't speak nor was aware of who else was there. I focused only on kneeling, saying a prayer to the fallen Heros and also mentioned Lt.1st Class Hoe, our island son. I stood up and headed straight towards my car and upon reaching there MAMA was crying too. GOD BLESS ALL OUR MEN AND WOMEN OF OUR ARMED FORCES...OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 04:17 PM

Election turnout reports directly from the field in Iraq from al Jazeera:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B49A6A7B-9FE7-4C65-BA06-11461071FEAA.htm

Miulang

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 04:41 PM

Could the following tactic, as described by Iraqi blogger Raed Jarrar, be the reason for the high voter turnout? I suspect that if I had to make a decision between risking life and limb and going to vote (even though I don't know who's running or what they stand for) is better than not having food rations to feed my kids.

Is this what "democracy" is all about????? :mad: The "Oil for Food" program should change its name to "Food for Votes".

Miulang

From Raed in the Middle today (1/30/2005)

"...The cowardly and corrupt bush administration, working along with the dirty allow(ie) government is coercing Iraqis to vote. The allow(ie) puppets are threatening Iraqis who don't vote that they will not get their monthly food rations.

The bush gang can do anything to reach to their goals.
I mean ANYTHING.

It is well known all over Iraq now that if you didn't go to vote, the government will cut your monthly food rations. EVERYONE is talking about this, and EVERYONE believes it too!!! and this is one of the main reasons of why millions of poor and destroyed Iraqis were dragged out of their homes today and sent to election centers in the middle of explosions and bullets. They don't give a damn about elections, they want food. Millions of Iraqis don't have the possibility of testing whether this rumor is true or false, this is about surviving. They are ready to put their lives in danger to go get their monthly food rations. ..."

"The fake government in Iraq announced that 72% of Iraqis voted today. Later they announced that 8 million Iraqis voted, which means that around 56% voted because the number of Eligible voters inside Iraq is more than 14.27 million.

There is NO WAY that the primitive weak Iraqi government could know how many people went to vote today this fast, and these numbers are mere exaggerated guesses.

Yet, they are stupid enough to miscalculate numbers.

The number of Iraqis outside is more than 4,000,000. 56% of Iraqis are older than 18 years, which means that around 2.5 million Iraqis are Eligible voters outside Iraq. Less than 250,000 of them voted.

The surprise is that by a simple calculation, the total number of Iraqi Eligible voters inside and outside the country is more than 16.75 millions, and the number of people that actually voted is less than 8.25 million !!!!!!!!!!!!!!..."

http://raedinthemiddle.blogspot.com/

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 04:49 PM

Raed's Sunni brother Khalid had similar comments about the process for voting in Iraq today:

"the journalists asked the excecutive director: how did you know that the percentage of the voters in iraq is 72% like you announced?
he asnwered: "well, the head of every voting center estimated that basing on the length of the line of the voters as he saw it!"
hehehe! see how sceintific? how accurate? he actually said that!
the way the voting happened, is that you go to the voting center, and you go to the man that is your ration dealer, the oen that you take the ration from him every month, so you tell him that you are gonna vote, he marks your name on his list, and then you vote!!!
that way the goverment will know exactly who voted and who didnt, two dealers said that the next years' card won't be given to those who didnt vote..
hmm..."

Of course, the American neocons and Bush Administration supporters will just say that there is a bunch of anti-American Iraqis trying to cause trouble by blogging things like this, but if I come across any other mentions of this "Food for Vote" campaign among non-related Iraqi bloggers, I would say this is the Coalition's "dirty little secret" that should be exposed for what it is...just the same way voter fraud was exposed in this country...

Miulang

http://secretsinbaghdad.blogspot.com/

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 05:39 PM

Another Iraqi blogger posting last night on the eve of the elections about this apprehensions:

"Saturday, January 29, 2005

Election Night Jitters

Recklessness and Irresponsibility

I have some difficulty unraveling my own complex feelings regarding the big election day tomorrow.

On the one hand, I am passionately for democracy in principle. It is the only hope for Iraq. On the other hand, I am passionately against these particular elections. They are only an ugly, distorted imitation of democracy. I am convinced that they will not lead to stability … or even democracy.

I agree with fellow Iraqis who want these elections postponed or even boycotted. We have already seen these elections boycotted by the vast majority of expatriate Iraqis.

But I cannot blame the people who want to take part in them! In fact, I have nothing but admiration for those people who are going to risk their lives to cast their vote tomorrow.

These people are not corrupt politicians greedy for power and wealth. They are not “collaborators”. They are people going out to vote for issues or people they believe in whether their motives are ethnic, religious, sectarian, political, economic or nationalistic. Most of them want to exercise their right to have their say for the first time in more than 50 years.

I may disagree with many of these people; some may be misguided… but they certainly don’t deserve to die!

Their safety is the responsibility of those who are running the country.

Imagine that it is known that there were bombs on a number of the planes leaving JFK airport on a certain day. What should the authorities do? What would you do? Ask the people to go about their business, make a stand against terrorism, show courage and board those planes – telling them not to be intimidated by terrorists? The show must go on? Would that be a responsible thing to do? Later, when the worst comes to the worst… blame the terrorists for the unfortunate loss of life… and call it a day? Wouldn’t that be reckless and irresponsible? Yet, this is what we have.

Let us have a look at those different people urging the Iraqi people to go out and vote.

1. The US administration’s representatives in Iraq, the US army and the Interim government running the country from heavily defended fortresses… and cannot even protect those fortresses. Yet, they hope to protect more than 6000 polling stations across the country… where people are to go, to vote.

2. These people in charge do not venture out of their fortresses unless heavily armored and covered by a blanket of security. Yet they ask unarmed men and women to go out and expose themselves to danger.

3. Candidates who are not prepared to go out and take a risk and campaign for themselves. Some do not even have the courage to have their names published and be known. Secret candidates! Yet, they want Iraqis to take the risk and vote for them.

4. Many American super-patriots who are still shivering with anger or fear of attacks carried out on three buildings in their country more than three years ago. Yet, they ask Iraqi housewives (eg Rose) not to be frightened or intimidated by terrorists… in a country that is going through multitudes of 9/11’s regularly.

5. A country that is wisely taking measure after measure to protect its frightened citizens and ensure their safety through stringent finger print and eye retina scans for visitors… is so eager to expose Iraqis to grave danger.

6. President Bush who did not return to his seat of government immediately after those attacks, fearing for his safety. Yet, he asks Iraqis to show courage.

7. The UN Secretary General, who withdrew his entire staff from Iraq following one attack. Now he is asking Iraqis to vote in a dangerous situation and telling them that the UN will do everything to help them.

Reckless and irresponsible!

Isn’t it enough for Iraqis to live under the constant threat of random violence, just going about their shattered lives? Governments should be less reckless and more responsible than that! People should be more caring for fellow human beings.

Make no mistake! The decision to go on with these elections was made in Washington DC. I still remember that day. Several parties in Iraq started requesting a postponement. President Bush promptly announced that there will be no postponement. Hours later, Ambassador Negroponte, who was on a visit to Fallujah, re-iterated. Several hours later, a spokesman for Mr. Allawi re-iterated the same position. The decision was already made. The show must go on!

People are going to die tomorrow. Who will be responsible? Zarqawi? Terrorists? Insurgent? Extremist fundamentalists? Possibly. But it is the responsibility of those in charge of the country to create a secure environment so that people can participate in elections… in safety...."

My note: As a postscript, "only" 44 people were reportedly killed in skirmishes around Iraq related to voting. But then again, we still don't know how many Iraqis showed up to vote, rumors of losing their ration cards notwithstanding (reporters for the Washington Post in a Sunni city did report that there were rumors being spread about people who didn't vote not being able to get their 2005 ration cards...but so far I have only seen it verified as "rumors" by the "legitimate" US press as a ploy to get more people in the Sunni regions to vote....it's still extortion and coercion.

Miulang

http://iraquna.blogspot.com/

Miulang

January 30th, 2005, 05:47 PM

The same blogger above got his hands on a "forecast" of seats that will be allocated by the number of votes cast today. It's interesting to note that this list was sent around before today. It will be even more interesting to see how close these predictions come to the actual composition of the interim governing body. There will be a total of 275 seats assigned. We won't know the results for at least 2 weeks!

Miulang
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Predicted Election Results:

(Please refer to Zeyad’s recent post in (Healing Iraq) for more details of the slates and the parties they contain. Slates are listed in iraqelect.com. The Middle East Reference gives more details of the various groups.)

1. PM Ayad Allawi’s slate, Al-Iraqiya coalition, 40 seats.

2. The United Iraqi Coalition. This has become known as Sistani’s slate. The slate includes the larger Shiite Islamic parties and movements. It includes several GC members. It also includes Mr. Chalabi -30 seats.

3. Pachachi’s slate. Former IGC member and candidate for the Interim Presidency. The slate includes several Interim Ministers of planning and electricity - 24 seats.

4. Interim President, Ghazi Al-Yawar’s list includes several figures already in the government such as the outspoken Defense Minister and the Minister of Industry - 16 seats.

5. The major Kurdish factions: the KDP (Barazani): 20 seats, the PUK (Talibani): 20 seats Kurdish Independents + Kurdish Islamic Union: 15 seats. Total - 55 seats.

6. The Iraqi Communist party. Headed by Hamid Majid Musa, Governing Council member - 12 seats.

7. The National Democratic Coalition slate. Headed by Tawfiq Al-Yassiri, National Council member. List includes Justice Minister - 3 seats.

8. Christians, Sabeans and Yazidis. The Al-Rafidain coalition slate is headed by Yunadim Ganna, former GC member and National Council member. This is a closed slate of about 30 Iraqis from the Christian Assyrian, Chaldean and Armenian minorities - 10 seats.

9. Turkmen. Several parties in two coalitions: Iraq’s Turkmen Front and Justice and Future Coalition – 15 seats.

10. The Independent Democratic Trend slate headed by Aziz Al-Yassiri - 3 seats.

11. Hameed Al-Kifa'i, former spokesman for the GC. One seat each, Mr. Al-Kifa’i, Mrs. Chabuk and Mr. Barrak, all former IGC members – 3 seats.

12. The Constitutional Monarchy Movement list - 3 seats.

13. Mr. Iyad Jamaliddin – 1 seat.

14. Mr. Saad Salih Jabur – 1 seat.

The rest will be left to the election process!