[Industrialblog,
November 8, 2006]
In honor of my Democratic friends, I post the following lyrics
Now that we have a House Speaker from San Francisco, I expect nothing less than for the karmic forces that put her in place to usher in the Age of Aquarius.
Spark it up, bro.
When the moon is in the Seventh House
And Jupiter aligns with Mars
Then peace will guide the planets
And love will steer the stars
This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius
The age of Aquarius.
Harmony and understanding
Sympathy and trust abounding
No more falsehoods or derisions
Golden living dreams of visions
Mystic crystal revelation
And the mind's true liberation
Aquarius!
Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in
Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in
Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in
Oh, let it shine, c'mon
Now everybody just sing along
Let the sun shine in
Open up your heart and let it shine on in
When you are lonely, let it shine on
Got to open up your heart and let it shine on in
And when you feel like you've been mistreated
And your friends turn away
Just open your heart, and shine it on in
Spark it up, bro.
the Dems are claiming they've won the Senate
and the GOP says Rumsfeld is going to resign
Rumsfeld is a surprise but maybe Robert Gates will be better.
**Wild Ass Speculation Alert**
A persistent rumor has it that Bush Sr has been privately very displeased with the direction of the War on Terror, has tried to advise his son several times, has been pushing for Rumsfeld's ouster and has been repeatedly rebuffed by Bush2. (This might technically be upgraded from a rumor - I _think_ Woodward mentioned it in his last book.)
Anyway, the appointment of one of his father's circle, especially a career CIA man....well, it suggests a willingness to re-evaluate and revise current strategy.
To say I'm optimistic would be premature. But I'm hopeful this is the first step towards stability and success.
I hate to say this -- but we simply need to find a way to win. The reason I hate to say that is I don't see how to do it without taking out Iran and Syria ... which no one will do.
The other option is to simply stay there, stubbornly, and take the 1,200 deaths a year for as long as it takes, 10, 20 ... 50 years. That would work, but it would take tremendous discipline and bipartisan commitment.
There aren't easy answers - and right now - we're overcommitted to such a degree that there just aren't military options for engaging Iran/Syria.
There's a longer discussion to be had at some other time about Al Quaeda's motives in regards to the statements they release to the media.
Some in the intelligence community have suggested that they like the frontline being in Iraq because it's a highly visible, highly effective recruiting tool - which is exactly what they need since they've switched to more of a franchise model. Also, it takes the pressure off of Afghanistan - and they've got plans there....
An ugly truth is that no matter how long we stay there - no one likes the odds for Iraq staying united after we leave. Or, even if it does stay united, the odds are that a fully democratic Iraq would vote in a hardline Shiite government along the lines of Iran's currenty leadership.
That's a hard sell, especially when upwards of 60 percent of your troops already want a full withdrawal now.
If we leave Iraq tomorrow, terrorists wouldn't put up a Taliban flag over the White House.
This is not an argument about whether we should leave Iraq, just a reminder that it is makes little sense to equate the outcome in Iraq as being the end of the War on Terror. Even if we "won" in Iraq tomorrow, the Taliban are advancing in Afghanistan. If we "lose" in Iraq then the War on Terror will be rejoined.
enjoy!
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Welp, I don't see any Ewoks, there's no jungle juice to be had and all I can think is this, "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."