Category: Iraq

Joe Wilson waxes Palinesque against Net Neutrality, invokes 9/11, Iraq and Iran

Crossposted at Daily Kos

    Yesterday, South Carolina Congressman Joe “YOU LIE” Wilson gave a speech condemning Health Care Reform as a “Greater Control” on American lives. The video can be seen here, but the main event is below the fold.

      Fear mongering over health care reform is nothing new for Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC02), but the speech he gave on the House floor a few days ago that was mocked by Jon Stewart should stand in the Wingnut Hall of Fame of insane, disconnected rants that have nothing at all to do with the reality of the issues being discussed.

    It is, in a word, Palinesque.

    More below the fold.

Costs Of War Not Seen In Dover Repatriation Photos; and Bill Moyers Closing Comments

Cross-posted at DKos, Open Left, and Firedoglake

Hat tip to Henry Porter and the other diarists who posted on the videos and photos yesterday of the repatriation of service members slain in Afghanistan.

Henry wrote of how enraged he is that war criminals of the previous administration are walking free, of the pain he felt when he encountered a young disabled veteran, and that he finds “a measure of comfort in the hope that unlike his predecessor, this president has the courage, the character , the compassion and the judgment to make his decisions based on the best possible information and advice available to him.”

It is not often that we are able to see photos depicting the cost of war to our troops and their families.  Few people encounter our disabled veterans.  The face of war is rarely seen.

During the war in Vietnam, Walter Cronkite made sure that Mr. and Mrs. America saw plenty of the reality, during the dinner hour.

Sensitivity to the wishes of our soldiers and their families must prevail over other considerations.

And, there are some soldiers and families who have been willing to share images of their sacrifice with us.

‘My Daddy’s Not Dead Yet’:

Congressman Pens Book About Iraq War Regrets

North Carolina Republican Walter Jones’ conscience is really bothering him!  Back in 2002, he enthusiastically voted for and supported Bush’s call to invade Iraq.  Not only that,  he also ridiculed France for not supporting the U.S. effort.  Remember “Freedom Fries?”  Jones and fellow Republican Bob Ney waged a successful campaign to have “French Fries” renamed “Freedom Fries” on all the House cafeteria menus.  But that all changed when he attended a funeral for a young sergeant killed in Iraq and listened to the fallen soldier’s last letter to his family which was read at the service.  Jones began to write his own letters to the families of those killed in Iraq and came to strongly regret his 2002 vote.

Now Jones is writing a book called “My Daddy’s Not Dead Yet” as he ponders yet another vote on another war, he will soon have to cast.  Jones talked to George C. Wilson who wrote a very moving article for Congressdaily.com called “Atonement.”  In his article Wilson explains how Jones chose the title for his book…>>>

Kerry on Afghanistan

I’ll start this out with a short clip of a speech Senator, and brother ‘Nam Veteran, Kerry gave on his return from a fact finding and diplomacy trip to Afghanistan. In this clip, in just a couple of sentences, he lays out the reality as to what one leading ‘chickenhawk’, and to many war criminal, has been blathering lately. Though Kerry doesn’t mention it also speaks as to what that chief ‘chickenhawk’s’ spokesperson, his daughter, fast becoming the leading ‘chickenhawkette’, has also been spreading around, allowed to and rarely, if ever, challenged.

Yet another scandal; yet another way Obama is just like Bush

You may have heard about the enormous, bigger-than-the-Vatican American Embassy that’s been under construction in Iraq for, like, forever, a temple being erected to the Balls of Bush, the man who invaded Iraq and liberated its oil.

You may have even heard about how it was built with what amounted to slave labor.   You may have heard about lots of problems with the construction, and how the contractor who built it, who wasn’t even American, skimped and cheated and lied.

Well, you probably didn’t realize what a huge scandal this actually is.   Because the media doesn’t report this stuff.   But Jeremy Scahill does.  He’s one of the only real journalists out there.    And it turns out that the cheating and corruption was so bad, from this Kuwaiti contractor, that he’s gonna have to probably pay back $130 million dollars to the U.S. government for this boondoggle.

Iraq Embassy Scandal Expands: Contractor May Have to Repay $130 Million


The Baghdad embassy-the largest of any nation on planet earth and ten times bigger than any other US embassy-is striking evidence indicating a continued US presence in the country for many years to come. The structure cost more than $700 million and is the size of 80 football fields. It is bigger than the Vatican, six times larger than the United Nations compound in New York and is about two thirds the size of the National Mall in Washington. It has space for 1,000 employees who are guarded by scores of paramilitary mercenary forces. In other words it is the perfect structure for a nation that claims to be leaving Iraq very soon.

The embassy is more like a fortress and hardly sends a message of warm diplomacy. “What kind of embassy is it when everybody lives inside and it’s blast-proof, and people are running around with helmets and crouching behind sandbags?” said Edward Peck, the former US ambassador to Iraq when the embassy was first being constructed.

Yup, it’s a grand monument to the stupidity that is George W. Bush.   It’s about as big as he is stupid.  

And you may have a WTF moment when you think “wait a minute, why was the company hired to build this monstrosity not American, but Kuwait?”   Well, Scahill answers that for you:


In 2006, David Phinney reported: “Several other contractors that competed for the embassy contracts… believe that a high-level decision at the State Department was made to favor a Kuwait-based firm in appreciation for Kuwait’s support of the invasion and occupation of Iraq. ‘It was political,’ said one contractor.”

And if you thought American slavery ended with the Civil War, you were wrong:


FKIT has been plagued by allegations from whistleblowers who worked on the embassy that say the company “brought workers, mostly South Asians and Filipinos, to Baghdad under false pretenses, then abused and threatened them while there.” The company, predictably, denies those charges.

Rory Mayberry, who first worked with First Kuwaiti in March 200 as a medic on the embassy construction site, “alleges that when he showed up at the Kuwait airport for his flight into Baghdad, there were 51 Filipino employees of First Kuwaiti also waiting for the same flight – except the Filipinos believed they were going to Dubai,” reported NBC News. “He says the Filipinos were told to proceed to “GATE 26″ at the Kuwait airport – but no Gate 26 existed. There was only a door to a staircase that led to a white plane on the tarmac:”

Mayberry says even he was given a boarding pass that was marked for Dubai, though he knew he was going to Baghdad.

“The steward was having problems keeping guys in their seats because they were so upset, wanted to get off the airplane,” says Mayberry. “They were upset they weren’t headed to Dubai where they were promised they were working.”

He says when he arrived in Baghdad he notified the State Department official in charge of the embassy project about what had happened on his flight and she replied “that’s the way they do it.”

Ah, yes, just like the good old days, when a fellow could pass out drunk on the streets of a European city and wake up in a ship bound for the New World!  

Why, you might ask, were they shipping in laborers when the Iraqi workforce was completely out of work?   Why didn’t they hire Iraqis for this job?   I mean, the unemployment rate was only in the 70 – 80% range.    Oh, come on, that’s a rhetorical question, right?   Ha!   I mean, how were the Kuwatis suposed to make any REAL money if they had to pay Baghdad workers Baghdad wages!   Everybody knows what a bunch of spoiled Union goons those guys are!

You can get more details of the contractor’s failings in the article, but what I really wanted to pass along to you was the most disheartening part of this entire sickening story.

Because you might think this was just an aberration, right?  One more of countless Bush administration scandals, and thank god we got rid of him, right?   And those days are over, right?   And this kind of stuff isn’t going to happen again, right?

Wrong.

Obama has decided that we’re gonna do this all over again, this time in Pakistan!   Yessir, it worked out so well in Baghdad that we need more of these Monster Embassies to carry out our friendly activities.

Iraq redux? Obama seeks funds for Pakistan super-embassy


ISLAMABAD – The U.S. is embarking on a $1 billion crash program to expand its diplomatic presence in Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan, another sign that the Obama administration is making a costly, long-term commitment to war-torn South Asia, U.S. officials said Wednesday.

The White House has asked Congress for – and seems likely to receive – $736 million to build a new U.S. embassy in Islamabad, along with permanent housing for U.S. government civilians and new office space in the Pakistani capital.

The scale of the projects rivals the giant U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, which was completed last year after construction delays at a cost of $740 million.

Hm, must be part of the economic stimulus program.  Oh wait, this is in a foreign country?   How the fuck are Americans supposed to benefit from this massive government spending?   Oh wait, we’re NOT.   It’s another FUCK YOU from Team Obama.  

And here’s the really telling part:


A senior Pakistani official said the expansion has been under discussion for three years.

Three years!   Waiddaminute, three years ago ….. Bush was in power!   This is Bush’s idea, Bush’s plan, Bush’s boondoggle.  Brought to you by …. Obama!    

There really is no difference.    Bush/Obama.   Bushbama.   ObamBush.   Bush’s third term is what it should really be called.

Scahill says it better than anyone, calling it a “colonial fortress”:


Ah, good thing the US quest for violent global domination was brought to a screeching halt with the November presidential election. Without Obama’s election, we’d still have an occupation of Iraq, mercenaries on the US payroll, torture of prisoners, an unending and worsening war that kills civilians in Afghanistan, regular airstrikes in Pakistan, killing civilians and an embassy the size of Vatican city in Baghdad, which was built in part on slave labor. Not to mention those crazy “Bush/Cheney” neocons running around trying to become the “CEOs” of foreign nations. Wow, glad that’s all over. Whew! And, it’s a really good thing Bush is no longer in power or else the US would come up with some crazy idea like building a colonial fortress in Pakistan to defend “US interests” in the region.

I love this guy.

Army Sgt. Richard Yarosh: Portrait in Smithsonian

Justified Honor and Remembrance for not only Sgt. Yarosh but all who served and are serving in these two theaters, burned soldier portrait to show at Smithsonian!

This is and will be for a long time a great tribute to this soldier, and all the Fallen and Maimed of these two continuing occupations. And like “The Wall”, until we can build a Memorial for the Fallen of both these conflicts, it should be a Reminder to this Nation of what We Allowed “In Our Names!”!!

Verbal Spitting on Those Who Serve, Continues!!

Some Four Plus Decades of, Enough is Enough

We’ve been going through this for some four decades now, and it’s gotta Stop Now, but I doubt it will, because it comes mainly from those that don’t serve as they wrap themselves in the banner of a political party that’s “Strong On National Defense” while condemning all others as not! It’s in their political ideology to be used and accepted by those that claim that ideology, like they found great enjoyment wearing and laughing about “purple heart bandages” not long ago. Even some who serve, and do so in our wars and occupations of choice will use it, strickly as their political meme, disgracing their own service as they attack their brothers and sisters, never having real facts to back up their claims, and never apologizing especially to their brothers and sisters!

Senior Army Officer Says Cut Troops in Afghanistan

Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis wrote that American troops are viewed by Afghanis as occupiers. Increasing troop levels, as proposed by General McChrystal would only increase resistance. He recommended cutting combat forces.

“Many experts in and from Afghanistan warn that our presence over the past eight years has already hardened a meaningful percentage of the population into viewing the United States as an army of occupation which should be opposed and resisted,” writes Davis.

Providing the additional 40,000 troops that Gen. McChrystal has reportedly requested “is almost certain to further exacerbate” that problem, he warns.

Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis wrote a 63 page report on his own time advising against the strategy proposed by General Stanley McChrystal.  Lt. Col. Davis is highly experienced in Afghanistan after serving as liaison officer between the Central Command and the Combined Forces Command – Afghanistan (CFC-A) in 2005. Moreover, in 2008 & 2009 he commanded a transition team on the border of Iraq and Iran.

Successful counter insurgencies require the support of the population. After 8 years we don’t have that support. Therefore, Lt. Col. Davis proposes a change in strategy to a “Go Deep” strategy.


The “Go Deep” strategy proposed by Davis would establish an 18-month time frame during which the bulk of U.S. and NATO combat forces would be withdrawn from the country. It would leave U.S. Special Forces and their supporting units, and enough conventional forces in Kabul to train Afghan troops and police and provide protection for U.S. personnel.

Colin Powell: “Terrorist Industrial Complex”

KO visits an interview with Colin Powell in GQ from 2007 that most overlooked and shouldn’t have, while many were saying or thinking the same, as to what was happening in the previous administration, Powell says it using Eisenhower’s words and warning of the growing “Military Industrial Complex” with the slight change describing the now not “Cold War” fears once used to enrich the Defense Contractors now tuned to “Terrorism”, Criminal Terrorism, but as a force to destroy us all and our beliefs, just like nukes but adding in the beliefs to make it even scarier.

What Are We Gonna Do?

What are we gonna do when  we don’t get true health care reform/out of Iraq and Afghanistan/torture investigations/financial reform/job creation/restored civil liberties/audit of the Fed/repeal of the Patriot Act?   I voted for Obama, admittedly getting a bit caught up in the whole spectacle.  But the reasons I disliked Bush and his cohorts, are the same reasons I am exasperated with Obama and his cohorts.   We aren’t getting any change.  Spare change maybe, but not change “you can believe in”.  As it’s going, Obama will go down in history as the most dishonest President we’ve ever had.  Much like Bush trying to make colonizing through occupation and torture legal, Obama has transformed the “chicken in every pot” political promising propaganda to a whole new level.  

I’ve thought since shortly after the election we wouldn’t get torture investigations.  We won’t “leave” Iraq by 2011.  We won’t get out of Afghanistan and in fact will escalate there and in Pakistan.  We won’t get single payer, which turned out to be a major understatement.  We won’t get financial reform as evidenced by the casinos open for business bonuses and financial gains made by the banks and Wall Street.   We won’t “recover” from this financial catastrophe because there is no plan for creating the millions of jobs that have been lost.  

Why have I been thinking that?  I’m like a jack of all trades, master of none.  I’m not an expert in geopolitics, realpolitik, or the machinations of the political system in the halls of Congress and the Senate.   But I’ve read stuff man.  Lots of stuff.  Stuff written by the experts.  Isn’t that how one learns?  Certainly contrarian views from the MSM and the Obamabots, but stuff that I believe speaks the truth.  Stuff from Antiwar.com, Counterpunch, Common Dreams, Real News Network, Truthdig, Salon, Asia Times, and on and on.  

Progressives complain about the MSM and the lack of true reporting.  Well, there is true reporting going on and it is coming from people who have spent the better parts of lives studying, analyzing and living the issues.  These are people that take honest looks at the serious issues regardless of what political party or administration is in charge.  They are consistent and look at the facts, not the promises from the speechmaker.    

Richard Engel in Afghanistan at a “Tip of the Spear”

The Video below, not a trailer, is the first video of this series that aired the night of 10.11.09 in an hour special, MSNBC broke it up online into six parts, the rest are linked below the video.

One of many of the articles recently written as the focus, after seven years, once again turns to the Afghan occupation as does the debate on being there, occupied now going into the ninth year. It was not secured after ridding the Taliban government and al Qaeda was put on the run when we invaded, destroyed and occupied the innocent people of Iraq where we still have tens of thousands of soldiers and private contractors, some being of our now mercenary army.

‘Witch’s Brew of Toxic Chemicals’

For those that seem to have a problem with the facts of how we humans live and readily do damage to our environment, and really seem not to care, that around us as well as adding to what everyone else has done making it a global problem, this post, and the links etc. that it contains, may educate you some, and this is only about what our military does, knowingly or not, and corrects or not.  

Load more