Borat in the Confederate Memorabilia Shop
In the midst of a post about “George Bush’s War,” Atrios nevertheless sees the pointlessness of waiting out the next twenty months so that then we can make everything all better (”fix Iraq” in the parlance):
And 20 months from now when President Wise and Benevolent Democrat takes office there will be no political interest in helping Iraq. We’ll pay $100 billion to fund the war, but there will be no interest in paying $100 billion to support the peace, if such a thing were even possible.
We can dream of bringing in the international community, but they will largely have no interest in contributing funds as long as the money pit of US contractors is still there. Who would be stupid enough to throw more cash into that giant black hole?
On a dime, the instant that today’s “don’t abandon the poor Iraqis” crowd have no champion in the White House, their tribunes in Congress will turn against any squishy proposal to spend substantial reconstruction aid in Iraq if the money isn’t a sidecar attached to the engine of war. I wouldn’t even presume that they’ll be wrong on the merits. The point is, “fixing Iraq” isn’t going to happen.
Comment by Tom Scudder —
May 28, 2007 @ 4:34 pm
Hell, nobody wants to think the job they spend all day on is a complete waste of time (much less actively destructive). How much more so for those who are risking their lives and who can’t just quit and walk away?
Comment by Tom Scudder —
May 28, 2007 @ 4:35 pm
Crap. That was supposed to be on the previous thread.
Comment by micah holmquist —
May 28, 2007 @ 6:00 pm
On a related matter, or maybe this is exactly what you are saying, I suspect that if Gore was doing and had done everything Bush is doing and has done, Republicans would criticize him as weak. I mean, it has almost been 6 years and you’ve only invaded two countries!”
Comment by Jim Henley —
May 28, 2007 @ 6:31 pm
Heck, they’re doing that to Bush now. If Gore had invaded Afghanistan AND Iraq, and he might have, Dale Franks would call those years “a holiday from history.”