Alan Richards of the University of California, Santa Cruz writes a letter to Juan Cole:

I am troubled by what I perceive as a tacit assumption--a very American assumption,--underlying most of the discussion. It seems to me that even "pessimists" are actually "optimists": they assume that there exists in Iraq and the Gulf some "solution", some course of action which can actually lead to an outcome other than widespread, prolonged violence, with devastating economic, political, and social consequences.

I regret to say that I think this is wrong. There is no "solution" to this mess; it is sometimes not possible to "fix" things which have been broken. I can see no course of action which will prevent widespread violence, regional social upheaval, and economic hammering administered by oil price shocks. This is why so many of us opposed the invasion of Iraq so strenuously in the first place! We thought that it would unleash irreversible adverse consequences for (conventionally defined) US interests in the region. I am very sorry to say that I still think we were right.

Read the rest if you don't mind being thoroughly depressed.

posted at 7:09 AM by Sid the Fish
link to this item | | |

---

Over the past five years, George W. Bush's handlers have done a remarkable job of posing him in front of scenes that make him look presidential, stately, even saintly.

But for last night's speech at Fort Bragg, someone arranged a very different backdrop.

Now, these things are not left to chance. A speech like this one is planned long in advance, and the backdrops are carefully chosen. The halos and orbs around Bush's head are designed to be seen by the subconscious mind. Someone has to have noticed that the Commander in Chief has a giant pair of mouse ears. So the question becomes, who in the White House wants the President to look like a fool?

PS: Joe Gandelman has the real text of the speech. I thought his draft was more interesting.

posted at 7:23 AM by Sid the Fish
link to this item | | |

---

How George Bush and Karl Rove prepare for war.

The Poor Man breaks it down. Read every word. Pass it along.

posted at 6:16 AM by Sid the Fish
link to this item | | |

---