In other words: A discussion of The Bush Administration
A Couple of Days After 9/11
I wrote the following:
Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2001
Subject: war
I was looking at Bush with his megaphone standing atop debris and death and destruction downtown today with a smile on his face. It reminded me of that look he got during the second debate during the discussion of a man on death row in Texas. His eyes lit up and he came to life, sparkling and grinning, in an upbeat voice. "And guess what? He's gonna be put to death!" Today he talks about praying and revenge, feeding off of a crowd chanting "USA! USA! USA!" like we're two minutes before kickoff at the Superbowl.
Next I'm looking at the Armory, live. Photos of missing people everywhere. People crying, grieving, numb, disbelieving, clinging to empty hope. The number is nearly 4,800 missing.
Random thoughts: when and if we ever get out of this, how large is that number going to get, Arabs included? And to what end? What are we going to get out of it? Are we going to be safer? Right now everyone I know is afraid to drive under tunnels and over bridges, they don't want to take the subway, they're afraid to fly. How is a big war going to change this dread? And what does the other side (whoever that is) stand to gain? After we kill a whole bunch of them, and they manage to get some of us, and this continues year after year after year, what will we be killing for? Some of you have children. What if ten or eleven years from now, when this is still going on, they have to go and fight? Are you prepared to deliver them into a holy war of attrition, against an enemy who only wants to die, and take as many of us with him as he can? How do you fight that?
America fought a war of attrition against the Japanese in WWII, and it was clear from the get go that we would have to kill every single one of them, because they wouldn't stop fighting, even when outnumbered and outgunned. We dropped two nuclear bombs. It was clear that we were perfectly prepared to keep dropping them until they were all dead. So they surrendered, even though up to that point there had been no word in Japanese for this concept. In fact, when terms were translated to the Japanese people from the emperor, he said something like, "We have not been successful pursuing our goal in this manner. We must lay down our arms and pursue our goal another way." (Which they did.) Ever since, America has not been successful in defeating an enemy who is willing to sacrifice more than 60% of its fighting force in any theater of war. What this says to me is, unless we vaporize every last one of them, it isn't over until we give up, not having achieved our goals, after years and years of fighting. From my earliest memories we were a country at war, and this went on until I was fifteen. It was truly a strange feeling to suddenly not be at war one day. War was all I knew. All I understood at that time was that I had no idea why we were sending our guys over there to die, year in, year out.
Here we go again.
From today's New York Times (9/3/04), Bob Herbert:
When asked this week on CNN how long the U.S. military is likely to remain in Iraq, Senator John McCain replied "probably" 10 or 20 years. "That's not so bad," he said, adding, "We've been in Korea for 50 years. We've been in West Germany for 50 years."
If Senator McCain is correct (and the belief in official Washington is that he is), then boys and girls who are 5 or 10 years old now will get their chance in 2015 or 2020 to strap on the Kevlar and engage the Iraqi "insurgents" who, like the indigenous forces we fought in Vietnam, will never accept the occupation of their country by America.
Marcina Hale, a protester who came to New York this week from suburban Westport, Conn., said she has two teenage boys and that Iraq "is not a war that I'm willing to send my sons to." As the years pass and the casualties mount, that sentiment will only grow.
Despite all the macho posturing and self-congratulating at the Republican convention, the wave of terror that's been unleashed on the world is only growing. The American-led war in Iraq is feeding that wave, causing it to swell rather than ebb.
Discussions about the nation's real enemies were taboo. We don't know where they are or what they're up to. The over-the-top venom of some of the speakers and delegates was reserved not for Osama, but for a couple of mild-mannered guys named John. ... If we're going to be in Iraq for 10 or 20 more years, the policy makers should say so, and tell us what that will cost in money and human treasure. The violence associated with such a long-term occupation is guaranteed ....
Do I need to finish this goddamn quote?
Think about your brand-new baby and do the math.
- Michael 2:44 AM - [PermaLink] -
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