With Tony Blair on his way out, the British military is developing plans to almost all of its combat troops out of Iraq over the next 12 months:
Military chiefs have drawn up plans to speed up the withdrawal ofthe vast majority of British troops from Iraq within 12 months.
The new proposed timetable, which would see almost all the 5,500British troops return home by next May, will be presented to GordonBrown when he takes over as Prime Minister later this month.
Mr Brown is due to visit Iraq where it is believed commanders willbrief him about the options. The new proposals were reported to havesuggested withdrawing almost all troops, leaving only a small number ofteams in the south to advise Iraqi military forces.
General Sir Richard Dannatt, Britain's top army commander, last year that occupational forces in Iraq "exacerbates the security problems":
"Whatever consent we may have had in the first place" from the Iraqi people "has largely turned to intolerance," he said.
I wonder if Bush got that memo? Hopefully the Pope can talk some sense into Bush when they this week -- but I wouldn't bet on it.
In a press conference on 5/24/07 Bush was questioned "if asked, would weleave Iraq", Bush replied "If they were to say 'leave', we wouldleave."
, who has warned that a hasty USpullout from Iraq would be catastrophic, said on Thursday that US forces wouldleave if the fledgling Baghdad government asked them to.
"We are there at the invitation of the Iraqi government. This is asovereign nation," he said at a White House press conference.
"If they were to say 'leave', we would leave."
I say"Bull Hockey"! First of all, who are "they"? As far back as2004 only a third of the Iraqi theys thought were were doing more goodthan harm.
BAGHDAD — Only a third of the Iraqi people now believe that theAmerican-led occupation of their country is doing more good than harm, and asolid majority support an immediate military pullout even though they fear thatcould put them in greater danger, according to a new USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll.(Graphic: )
The nationwide survey, the most comprehensive look at Iraqi attitudes towardthe occupation, was conducted in late March and early April. It reached nearly3,500 Iraqis of every religious and ethnic group
The poll shows that most continue to say the hardships suffered to deposeSaddam Hussein were worth it. Half say they and their families are better offthan they were under Saddam. And a strong majority say they are more free toworship and to speak. (Related item: )
But while they acknowledge benefits from dumping Saddam a yearago, Iraqis no longer see the presence of the American-led military as a plus.Asked whether they view the U.S.-led coalition as "liberators" or"occupiers," 71% of all respondents say "occupiers." ...
Key findings 2005: . Key to symbols: - = 0 or no answer * = less than 1% Poll was conducted in late March and early April; for details on methodology.
With all the lies that have come out of this man'smouth (Bush), I felt it was important to give a little history regarding"them" wanting us out. The information I provided is older materialwhen the ball of "we want them out" started rolling and has onlygained momentum. It will be intersting when the hammer finally falls and how hewill spin his own words. He may simply say "well didn't say" (then we'll send some more troops to find Simon?)
Just for the record; The American people are NOT "They"
'My side, your side and the Hidden side' should be the motto ofthe Bush administration. Its gotten to the point that if the administrationtells us its sunny out, you have to look for a backdrop stretched out above (ormaybe you can actually watch it being stretched). Political scientist PeterMoore, while studying the wartime economy of Iraq, downloaded somedocuments from the ,and stumbled upon some "hidden" information. Actually it was Peter's 8year old son that did the stumbling. While waiting to play a computer game on"dad's" laptop, his son was clicking around....
, check "Mark up," under MicrosoftWord's "View" menu. Then, in the "Tools" menu, choose"Track changes," then "Highlight changes," and check the boxmarked "Highlight changes on screen." (This is the procedureapplicable for Word 2004 for Mac; others may vary.)
In doing so, it brought up all . (thought to have been deleted)
If you are in a Word document where "Track changes" has been turnedon, hitting "Mark up" will reveal all the deletions and insertionsever made in the document, complete with times, dates and (sometimes) theinitials of the editors. When my son did it, all the deleted passages in adocument with the innocuous name "Administrator's Weekly EconomicReport" suddenly appeared in blue and purple. It was the electronicequivalent of seeing every draft of an author's paper manuscript and all thepenciled changes made by the editors. I soon figured out that with a fewkeystrokes I could see the deleted passages in 20 of the 42 Word documents I'ddownloaded. For an academic like myself it was a small treasure trove, and afterI'd stopped hooting and hollering it took some time before I could convince mystartled son that he hadn't done anything wrong.
Posting sloppily edited documents on an official Web site pales in comparisonto some of the CPA's other mistakes. Its worst miscalculation was probablydissolving the Iraqi military on May 16, 2003, which jump-started the insurgencyby sending 400,000 trained soldiers into the streets without jobs.
the author gives six theories for the decline in violence.
One explanation given for the downturn is called "Rounding Up the Bums."It suggests that the U.S. military might have successfully quelled theinsurgency. Maj. Gen. Charles H. Swannack, who commanded the 82nd Airborne inIraq until May 2004, was well known for using aggressive tactics.
A second explanation hinges explicitly on an old ethnic stereotype about howArabs only understand force. The "Crossed the Line" argumentinsists that violence is intrinsic to Arab culture: "[It] is a form ofpolitical discourse as well as being culturally acceptable for settling disputesand scores.
A third explanation, "Occupation Ending," says that theinsurgents are backing off because they think the U.S. is about to depart. Moore'snote: (Four years later, the Bush administration often says any deadline fortroop withdrawal would increase attacks.)
A fourth argument, "ProjectMoney Flowing," embraces an enduring pillar of American foreign policy inthe Middle East. Economic development and free trade, according to the moneytheory, would solve political disputes.
A fifth theory,"Engagement," says that Iraqis have begun to have hope thanks tosustained contact with Americans. "We'll take some credit here. We havebeen engaging widely with ... ex-Baathists, ex-Army. While many are tiring ofthe refrain that if you stay with us things will get better, for some theyactually have improved and that many have given hope to entire groups." Theauthor calls these people "the various groups of losers in the NewIraq."
A final argument for the downturn in attacks offers what brieflylooks like a flash of reality. The "Operational Pause" theory surmisesthat reduced attacks may be a statistical blip. They may increase again as"terrorists" regroup for future fights against the Americans and"other Iraqis." But then the author calls this "a boringtheory," and notes, "There are very few persons we have met whosubscribe to this."
Nowhere in any of these theories, including the "boring" one, doesthe author address the dissolution of the Iraqi Army as a major contributor tothe violence. Nowhere, in fact, does the author seem to know which"bums" or "losers" are attacking the Americans or why.Indeed, the most remarkable passage in the entire deletion is a simple statementby an Iraqi businessman, whom the writer quotes in passing while explaining whyAmerican-induced economic prosperity will end the fighting. "It is nothingpersonal," the Iraqi says. "I like you and believe you could bebringing us a better future, but I still sympathize with those who attack thecoalition because it is not right for Iraq to be occupied by foreign militaryforces." In the world of the CPA circa 2004, first one American glossesover this Iraqi's prophetic words, and then another tries -- unsuccessfully, asit turns out -- to delete them.
As the new way forward continues, so does the never ending billows of smokebeing blown up our asses.
If you would rather go directly to the stories....
The topic of the debate Friday night between Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson and talk show host Sean Hannity was:
"Isthe policy of the U.S. in Iraq producing successful results, or is itfailing? And, is President George W. Bush discharging the duties of hisoffice in a capable fashion, or should he be impeached?"
Anderson and Hannity each gave 30-minute speeches. KUED host Ken Verdoia moderated the debate:
You can or download the audio file by "clicking" the down arrow. Click on image on left to enlarge which will show the download instructions.
makes his case and explains why be believes Bush should be . Rocky acts respectfully throughout the initial 30 minute speech as well throughout the debate. While on the other hand, his opponent, starts in with name calling from the get go, and continues to do so through his 30 minute speech and it only gets worse during the debate. Whenever someone opposes Bush or the war, Hannity always uses the term "our brave men and women fighting for our country" as if to show how patriotic he is and unpatriotic his opponent/guest/media etc. is, and accuses them of not supporting the troops.
What is wrong with this guy and his administration of jackasses? In referenceto Rice bumping into the foreign minister of Iran, Bush actually had totell us , and will be firm about policy. Why would he feelthe need to tell us that? Oh, maybe because he thinks she's incompetenttoo.
"Should the foreign minister of Iran bump into Condi Rice, Condi won'tbe rude; she's not a rude person. I'm sure she'll be polite," Bush said ata news conference after meeting with European Union leaders.
"She'll also be firm in reminding the representative of the Iraniangovernment that there's a better way forward for the Iranian people thanisolation," Bush said.
Iraqi Government Withholding Number of Dead: The Iraqi government is not , the UN believes their reason is to cover up the worsening crisisin Baghdad, and the Iraqis are calling the UN report "". The UN is said the situation is worseningand that . What a finger pointing mess.
Bush Invites Iranian Wrestlers to Train in U.S.: I 'm not too sure what to make of this, but we're (the US) is inviting to train here in the US. The Bush administration wants to show the people of Iran that we don't have a problem with them, only their government. And what better way to worsen a situation then to give candy to the neighbors kid and tell them they have a bad mommy?
Despite these tensions, the Bush administration has triedto encourage contacts with the Iranian people via sports andcultural exchanges, making clear it has problems with Iran'sgovernment and not the population
Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, to hold talks on the Iranian nuclear program with the foreign policy chief.The two are looking into re-opening negotiations to end thefive-year standoff that has been the issue between the Islamicrepublic and the West.
74 Dead in Ethiopia: The , a Somali guerrilla group, in their sleep, officials reported this morning. the 50 minute battle against the workers and guards employed by Zhongyuan Petroleum Exploration Bureau, a divisionof China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., a large state-run oil companybetter known as . The Chinese Embassy in Ethiopia confirmed the attack happened, and added that seven other . This is just the latest episode in a week-long conflict where Ethiopia is trying to crack down on in the Somali capital.
Syrian Human Rights Advocate Sentenced: After being , activist Anwar al-Bunni was sentenced by a Syrian court to five years in prison. "This verdict is a political verdict," proclaimed . Al-Bunni was accused of that could damage national morale. Along with being sentenced, he was ordered to pay a . , Al-Bunni's attorney, says he will appeal the ruling within the next 30 days. Al-Bunni was among many during the Syrian government's crack-down on internal opposition.
Mexico City Law to Become Pro-Choice: Despite strong protests from Catholic groups, Mexico City is set to legalize abortion, maybe putting an end to the underground abortion market. As the wrote today, abortions have been done for years in Mexico City, but under sickly conditions that endanger the lives of women. "The vendors at the Sonora Market are part of a large and illegal industry catering to women seeking abortions here," wrote the Times.
Part of the reason why this is so controversial is because Mexico is the . Pope Benedict has to oppose the measure. The local legislature in Mexico City, which represents more than , is expected to pass the law relatively soon. Even if passed, the law would only give women the right of choice in the first 12 weeks of the pregnancy.
Israeli-Palestinian Ceasefire at an End: Following Israeli raids into the Gaza Strip to capture suspected terrorists, Hamas retaliated today by into Israeli towns for the . The barrage of rockets coincided with .
This is the first installment of our World News Catch-Up. Because the traditional news media would rather focus on pressing issues like Anna Nicole and American Idol, we are getting even more closed off from the real world outside of this country. So each evening, as everyone east of the Atlantic sleeps, we will bring you some of the major world news stories.
Somalis escape capital: Somalis were seen fleeing the capital of Mogadishu after a sixth day of fighting. The mass occurred because fighting between government forces and militants had in six days of fighting -- with of the dead coming today. Also, international civil acts of violence against various members of the Somali media.
The U.S State Department, meanwhile, is accusing the nearby country of in the Somali capital.
Boris Yeltsin passes on: Russia's democratic revolutionary -- remembered for his government's survival of a -- passed away today at . He was the in Russia. The cause of death was heart failure. "No Americans, at least, will forget seeing him standing on the tankoutside the White House (the Russian parliament building) resisting thecoup attempt," said U.S. Defense Secretary .
Sadly, even though most of the world was saddened by his death today, many Russians in the streets of Moscow gathered to tell the media what a bad leader he was. Said one , "My father spent 50 years in the (Communist) party and thought thatwhat he did was for the good of the people. In the end, everything hedid was for a handful of embezzlers." By a long-shot, the younger generation is much more appreciative of what Yeltsin did for the Russian country than those who were alive during the 1960s.
Nigerian election may have been rigged: Opposition party leaders and international rulers are dubbing 's election victory as illegitimate and nothing more than a "." More than on election day, April 14th, and there were widespread reports of . The opposition candidate called it the "" Nigeria had "ever seen." Both the and the backed the opposition leader's claim that the election was illegal. "These were flawed elections," a U.S. State Department official proclaimed. As a result of the questionable elections, and the possibility of more political turmoil in Nigeria, on Monday.
United Nations Resolution to Protect Darfur: The U.S. State Department is with the slow world response to the continuously troubled situation in Darfur. The United States introduced a U.N. Security Council Resolution that calls for an to protect the innocent civilians that have been . The problem is that even if the resolution is passed, the U.N needs permission from the Sudanese government before any forces can be sent in. The U.S. State Department is the international force.
With the being ratcheted up, a top Sudanese official vowed to halt military operations in the Darfur region for .
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