Let us just be honest now.

It is unfair to call the Iraq fiasco one big criminal enterprise.

It is so many many moments of criminality, corruption, and cronyism that gives us the sum we now see. Some conspiracy theorists see international politics and terrorism as simply the 21st century's organized crime. Tin foil is becoming an ever more useful item these days.

U.S. sent pallets of cash to Baghdad

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve sent record payouts of more than $4 billion in cash to Baghdad on giant pallets aboard military planes shortly before the United States gave control back to Iraqis, lawmakers said on Tuesday.
...
Bills weighing a total of 363 tons were loaded onto military aircraft in the largest cash shipments ever made by the Federal Reserve, said Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
...
Paul Bremer, who as the administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority ran Iraq after initial combat operations ended, said the enormous shipments were done at the request of the Iraqi minister of finance. [emphasis mine - not that it was needed]

I asked Mr. Bremer for a little cash to get me to the end of the month and that tight wad didn't give me a single ton. Not a ton.


9/11 hijackers tied to Saudi government, Graham says in book

WASHINGTON -- Two of the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers had a support network in the United States that included agents of the Saudi government, and the Bush administration and FBI blocked a congressional investigation into that relationship, Senator Bob Graham wrote in a book to be released Tuesday.

The discovery of the financial backing of the two hijackers "would draw a direct line between the terrorists and the government of Saudi Arabia, and trigger an attempted coverup by the Bush administration," the Florida Democrat wrote.

U.S. military: Iraqi lawmaker is U.S. Embassy bomber

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A man sentenced to death in Kuwait for the 1983 bombings of the U.S. and French embassies now sits in Iraq's parliament as a member of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's ruling coalition, according to U.S. military intelligence.

Jamal Jafaar Mohammed's seat in parliament gives him immunity from prosecution. Washington says he supports Shiite insurgents and acts as an Iranian agent in Iraq.

Iraqi police selling weapons on black market  Reuters RecommendsÂ

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Like many of his colleagues, Abu Zaid was issued an Austrian-made Glock pistol when he joined the new U.S.-trained and equipped Iraqi police force.
...
"I sold my Glock pistol and my bullet-proof vest for $1,500 (763 pounds) so that I can feed my family until I find a safer job. They were mine to sell, after all I had risked my life and faced death," he told Reuters.


Anecdotal evidence, including interviews with arms dealers, suggests that Abu Zaid is just one of many policemen selling the highly prized pistol on the black market, already a shopper's delight for buyers with enough cash.

Everything from the ubiquitous AK-47 assault rifle, the biggest-selling item, to rocket-propelled grenade launchers, sniper rifles and belt-fed medium machine guns are available, many looted from huge arms dumps immediately after the 2003 war.

- rob 8:03 PM - [PermaLink] -

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In honor of "B" who used to track "Pothole" jokes for us back in 2004

2/06/07: President Bush Discusses Fiscal Responsibility

I appreciate Mike Simpson. He's the Congressman from Idaho. This innovative company is headquartered in his district. And so he wanted to come by and see this part of Micron's operations. I appreciate the Mayor. Mayor, are you here somewhere? Oh, Mayor, good to see you. Thank you for serving. Appreciate it -- just fill the potholes, that's all I can tell you. (Laughter.) And I'm sure you are. (Laughter.)

Well I guess that was more intelligent than I would give Bush credit for when talking about fiscal responsiblity.

I just had it in my head that he'd saying something like, "now as a parent, it is important not to hit the child, the parent has to practice what we call fiscal responsiblity, which means not to get fiscal with your child."

- rob 7:52 PM - [PermaLink] -

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