What war are they watching?
April 29th, 2007 by Wil Robinson
I recently came across these quotes from our publicly elected leaders regarding the invasion of Iraq; leaders who have led the charge to war from behind the safety glass of bullet-proof limousines and under the guard of the Secret Service; leaders who are never more than a few minutes from a bunker even on the relatively calm soil of the USA; leaders whose lies, doublespeak and misinformation have lulled the American public into passive observation of the world around them.
Reading the quotes as they are listed below, I was heartened to find that things are getting better in Iraq, that casualty counts were dwindling with each speech by our president, and that perhaps the administration was right to unilaterally invade another country with no plan, no preparation, and no humanity. The words of our public officials point to a bright and hopeful future, where peace reigns and death and destruction are a thing of the past.
“Day by day, block by block, Iraqi and American forces are making incremental gains in Baghdad…the direction of the fight is beginning to shift…American and Iraqi forces captured…the leaders of a major car bomb ring…a warehouse where terrorists were storing chemicals to make weapons…a death squad that had terrorized hundreds of residents in a Baghdad neighborhood.”
That same week…U.S. Soldiers killed: 19
Iraqis killed (est.): 700
“American and Iraqi forces have launched some of the most aggressive operations on enemy forces in Baghdad since the war began. They have cleared neighborhoods of terrorists and death squads and uncovered large caches of weapons…some very important progress was made in the midst of an incredibly violent period.”
That same week…U.S. Soldiers killed: 17
Iraqis killed (est.): 400
“I think the level of activity that we see today, from a military standpoint, I think will clearly decline. I think they’re in the last throes, if you will, of the insurgency.”
That same week…U.S. Soldiers killed: 13
Iraqis killed (est.): 115
“[M]y fellow Americans: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed…we have seen the turning of the tide.”
That same week…U.S. Soldiers killed: 3
Iraqis killed (est.): 17
Unfortunately, reading through these words of confidence and hope and watching casualties fall, it means little considering the dates are reversed. Their speeches aimed to console and comfort the public dramatically conflict with facts on the ground when read in chronological order.
Of particular note was the first quote by President Bush in April 2007, given that he uttered those encouraging words in the same week that the Iraqi parliament was infiltrated by a suicide bomber and “democratically” elected officials were murdered.
And as of the time of this writing, the total cost for the war in Iraq is at $421.6 billion and counting. Money that has found its way into the coffers of the numerous corporations that profit from inflicting death upon mankind; corporations of the military industrial complex that have hijacked American foreign policy in the name of greed.
Nothing like flourishing capitalism. Er…, I meant democracy.
U.S. casualty figures taken from http://icasualties.org/oif_a/CasualtyTrends.htm
Iraqi casualty figures taken from http://www.iraqbodycount.net/database/
Tags: war profiteering, propaganda, Iraq War, War of Misinformation, Rumsfeld
Will:
You are correct, Bush and his administration are war profiteers. Many of us are shouting at the top of our lungs about Bush’s delusions of grandeur and Cheney’s every lusting for world domination. They need to be stopped.
We are also shouting to have them impeached. The horror that they have brought to Iraq is beyond excusable and has shamed every American that I know including myself.
Please feel free to come to my blog and voice your opinions from across the sea. You are always welcome.
I’ve been running some things on war profiteering, Wil, but they’re not popular. People don’t wish to know.