The Common Ills: I Hate The War

Sunday, December 14, 2014

I Hate The War

Jason Hanna, Sweelin Ong and Yousuf Basil (CNN) report:

The United Kingdom will deploy hundreds of troops to Iraq in the coming year to train Iraqi and Kurdish forces -- the country's latest contribution to the fight against ISIS -- British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon told The Telegraph newspaper.

That's across the Atlantic.

Here in the US will we ever get serious about Iraq again?

We've seen the 'antiwar' groups accept the lie of a withdrawal in 2011 even though special ops and others remained behind.

Then, in the build up to the 2012 presidential election, came the news that, in September 2012, Barack had sent another brigade of Special-Ops into Iraq.

This didn't make the debates and the so-called 'antiwar' movement leaders looked the other way.

In June, Barack was 'just' sending in 300 more US troops.

And that didn't result in any real action or commentary.

Then the numbers got upped and, in August, US combat missions resumed.

Where were the calls to action?

No where to be found.

Now let's be really honest. An old whore like Leslie Cagan who uses the peace movement (misuses it) is never going to be someone you can count on for leadership.

But Leslie's hardly the only whore around.

I've listened to the ridiculous Law and Disorder that airs tomorrow.

Why, oh, why, have you ignored this program?

More than a few e-mails have asked that.

Because I don't like whores.

The Michaels and Heidi have been an embarrassment.

Of tomorrow's show, can someone slap some sense into Heidi?

Torture is wrong because it is inhumane and it is illegal.

Heidi's useless garbage of it not producing anything of value?

That's a bulls**t argument made by a legal infant.

Guess what?

Law of averages?

There will be times when torture does 'work.'

That won't make it right, that shouldn't make it legal.

But this is an argument, Heidi's argument, that would be shot down if it came from a first year law student.

This not only confuses the issue, it also justifies torture when someone comes up with the example of one time when it 'worked.'

If your basis for being against torture is that it does not 'work,' then you really have no argument at all.

If you basis is that it's cruel and criminal, you do have a basis.

And let's bring in the general public on this.

When you make Heidi's idiotic remark, that argument falls apart with the general public.

Most recently, private citizen Emily Thorne tortured one of her father's attackers to get information out of him on Revenge. Don't most of Liam Neeson's films involve torture?

In the films, TV shows and novels (including those Jason Bourne works), it's shown to be effective in producing results.

So Heidi's idiotic argument goes against every cultural narrative America's been raised on.

I like Heidi.

I don't like calling her out.

I don't like calling the Michaels out (Ratner and Smith, co-hosts of the radio program with Heidi).

But they're supposedly attorneys concerned about the world.

Last week, I sat through how many hearings where the administration's flunkies insisted the bombing in Iraq was both legal and effective.

It's neither.

Until the Congress passes an authorization, it's not legal.

And despite the claims made to Congress last week, the Islamic State is neither on the run nor on the ropes.

They could be.

If the White House had focused on aiding the government, Iraq could be more inclusive.

But that's not of interest to the White House.

And I don't really give a damn about radio programs -- especially those supposedly focused on legal issues -- that go months without exploring Iraq.

Iraq was mainly of interest to Law & Disorder in 2002 and 2003. Then it became far less interesting.

And they can cover everything today but Iraq.

When Iraq does get mentioned, it's with a worthless guest.

Which, by the way, is a problem with Ralph Nader's new show -- worthless guests. Ava and I've been kind and avoided reviewing it but we're going to need to take it on before the end of the year.

When I've been on campuses this fall talking about Iraq, students ask me were columnists and radio shows on the left as silent back in 2002 and 2003?

I explain to them that back then, Iraq got covered.

But that Bully Boy Bush was warning the war then.

And that the crumbs of the movement that exist today are 'leaders' who can't call out Barack.

And if you can't call out the person running the war, you really can't call out the war itself.

I'm traveling in some vehicle
I'm sitting in some cafe
A defector from the petty wars
That shell shock love away
-- "Hejira," written by Joni Mitchell, first appears on her album of the same name

The number of US service members the Dept of Defense states died in the Iraq War is [PDF format warning] 4494.

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