[Rhodes22-list] Politics: A View From The Ground

Wally Buck tnrhodey at hotmail.com
Mon Oct 11 09:56:51 EDT 2004 

Steve- I watch almost no TV.

>From: Steve <rhodes2282 at yahoo.com>
>Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Politics: A View From The Ground
>Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2004 14:47:44 -0700 (PDT)
>
>Don't watch so much liberal TV.  Think about it, Kerry
>is an ass.  All he can say is how everything is wrong.
>  That all I hear from liberals.  Everything is wrong
>and the Dems could do it better.  Clinton was in
>office for 8 years, what did he do - Nothing.
>Terrorests operations hit us continuely.  We did
>nothing.  3,000 people died because of the Democrats.
>Now there is something to be proud of.  When a group
>declared war you this country; you fight back.  Why
>all the deomcrats would rather have a Dictator in Iraq
>where he used WMD on his poeple; would have gave them
>to terrorists to use on us.  You can relay on Kerry to
>do anything about anything.  The French would taking
>brides.  What Kerry going to do but talk and let us
>get made to look like fools.  Clinton made this
>country look weak.  That why we got hit.  If Kerry get
>elected, we are in for big trouble.  The stock market
>is dump, Companies will outsource like you haven't
>seen before.  Jobless rate will skyrocket.
>
>And you can think the Liberals - Democrats for it.  As
>for the Miltery; they don't like a puss leader.  Our
>militery makes us the last superpower and they don't
>want a leader that makes us the joke of the world.
>You can look at what Clinton did; miltery get attack
>and our solders die - And Clinton does NOTHING.  That
>is exactly what Kerry will do.  NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!
>Steve
>
>--- Wally Buck <tnrhodey at hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Steve,
> >
> > I am not sure how much you know about our military.
> > Speaking out against
> > your orders is strongly discouraged.
> >
> > I have heard of a poll that indicated 60% of the
> > people in Iraq would elect
> > Saddam if he were on the ballot. Heck that is higher
> > level of support than
> > both of the clowns running here in the US. I don't
> > know anything about the
> > poll you mention so I can't comment. I also read
> > that 65% of all people
> > surveyed believe polls are correct at least 50% of
> > the time with a degree of
> > certainty plus or minus 5%. :-)
> >
> > It seems to me if things were improving the death
> > toll numbers would be
> > decreasing not increasing. It was interesting to
> > hear Bush admit there were
> > no WMD!!
> >
> > Wally
> >
> >
> > >From: Steve <rhodes2282 at yahoo.com>
> > >Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > >Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Politics: A View From
> > The Ground
> > >Date: Fri, 8 Oct 2004 10:45:30 -0700 (PDT)
> > >
> > >The lastest polls I saw confirmed that the vast
> > >miltary (all branches) supports Bush and that the
> > war
> > >is going quite well despite how the media is
> > reporting
> > >it.
> > >Steve
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >--- Wally Buck <tnrhodey at hotmail.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Bill,
> > > >
> > > > I mentioned in an earlier post my nephew is in
> > Iraq
> > > > training their police
> > > > force. His describes pretty much the same thing.
> > The
> > > > situation is much worse
> > > > than Bush wants us to believe.
> > > >
> > > > Wally
> > > >
> > > > >From: "Bill Effros" <bill at effros.com>
> > > > >Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > > > <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > > > >To: "R-22" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> > > > >Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Politics: A View From
> > The
> > > > Ground
> > > > >Date: Fri, 8 Oct 2004 13:09:55 -0400
> > > > >
> > > > > >From Baghdad
> > > > >A Wall Street Journal Reporter's E-Mail to
> > Friends
> > > > >
> > > > >by Farnaz Fassihi
> > > > >
> > > > >Being a foreign correspondent in Baghdad these
> > days
> > > > is like being under
> > > > >virtual house arrest. Forget about the reasons
> > that
> > > > lured me to this job: a
> > > > >chance to see the world, explore the exotic,
> > meet
> > > > new people in far away
> > > > >lands, discover their ways and tell stories
> > that
> > > > could make a difference.
> > > > >
> > > > >Little by little, day-by-day, being based in
> > Iraq
> > > > has defied all those
> > > > >reasons. I am house bound. I leave when I have
> > a
> > > > very good reason to and a
> > > > >scheduled interview. I avoid going to people's
> > > > homes and never walk in the
> > > > >streets. I can't go grocery shopping any more,
> > > > can't eat in restaurants,
> > > > >can't strike a conversation with strangers,
> > can't
> > > > look for stories, can't
> > > > >drive in any thing but a full armored car,
> > can't go
> > > > to scenes of breaking
> > > > >news stories, can't be stuck in traffic, can't
> > > > speak English outside, can't
> > > > >take a road trip, can't say I'm an American,
> > can't
> > > > linger at checkpoints,
> > > > >can't be curious about what people are saying,
> > > > doing, feeling. And can't
> > > > >and can't. There has been one too many close
> > calls,
> > > > including a car bomb so
> > > > >near our house that it blew out all the
> > windows. So
> > > > now my most pressing
> > > > >concern every day is not to write a kick-ass
> > story
> > > > but to stay alive and
> > > > >make sure our Iraqi employees stay alive. In
> > > > Baghdad I am a security
> > > > >personnel first, a reporter second.
> > > > >
> > > > >It's hard to pinpoint when the 'turning point'
> > > > exactly began. Was it April
> > > > >when the Fallujah fell out of the grasp of the
> > > > Americans? Was it when
> > > > >Moqtada and Jish Mahdi declared war on the U.S.
> > > > military? Was it when Sadr
> > > > >City, home to ten percent of Iraq's population,
> > > > became a nightly
> > > > >battlefield for the Americans? Or was it when
> > the
> > > > insurgency began
> > > > >spreading from isolated pockets in the Sunni
> > > > triangle to include most of
> > > > >Iraq? Despite President Bush's rosy
> > assessments,
> > > > Iraq remains a disaster.
> > > > >If under Saddam it was a 'potential' threat,
> > under
> > > > the Americans it has
> > > > >been transformed to 'imminent and active
> > threat,' a
> > > > foreign policy failure
> > > > >bound to haunt the United States for decades to
> > > > come.
> > > > >
> > > > >Iraqis like to call this mess 'the situation.'
> > When
> > > > asked 'how are thing?'
> > > > >they reply: 'the situation is very bad."
> > > > >
> > > > >What they mean by situation is this: the Iraqi
> > > > government doesn't control
> > > > >most Iraqi cities, there are several car bombs
> > > > going off each day around
> > > > >the country killing and injuring scores of
> > innocent
> > > > people, the country's
> > > > >roads are becoming impassable and littered by
> > > > hundreds of landmines and
> > > > >explosive devices aimed to kill American
> > soldiers,
> > > > there are
> > > > >assassinations, kidnappings and beheadings. The
> > > > situation, basically, means
> > > > >a raging barbaric guerilla war. In four days,
> > 110
> > > > people died and over 300
> > > > >got injured in Baghdad alone. The numbers are
> > so
> > > > shocking that the ministry
> > > > >of health -- which was attempting an exercise
> > of
> > > > public transparency by
> > > > >releasing the numbers -- has now stopped
> > disclosing
> > > > them.
> > > > >
> > > > >Insurgents now attack Americans 87 times a day.
> > > > >
> > > > >A friend drove thru the Shiite slum of Sadr
> > City
> > > > yesterday. He said young
> > > > >men were openly placing improvised explosive
> > > > devices into the ground. They
> > > > >melt a shallow hole into the asphalt, dig the
> > > > explosive, cover it with dirt
> > > > >and put an old tire or plastic can over it to
> > > > signal to the locals this is
> > > > >booby-trapped. He said on the main roads of
> > Sadr
> > > > City, there were a dozen
> > > > >landmines per every ten yards. His car snaked
> > and
> > > > swirled to avoid driving
> > > > >over them. Behind the walls sits an angry Iraqi
> > > > ready to detonate them as
> > > > >soon as an American convoy gets near. This is
> > in
> > > > Shiite land, the
> > > > >population that was supposed to love America
> > for
> > > > liberating Iraq.
> > > > >
> > > > >For journalists the significant turning point
> > came
> > > > with the wave of
> > > > >abduction and kidnappings. Only two weeks ago
> > we
> > > > felt safe around Baghdad
> > > > >because foreigners were being abducted on the
> > roads
> > > > and highways between
> > > > >towns. Then came a frantic phone call from a
> > > > journalist female friend at 11
> > > > >p.m. telling me two Italian women had been
> > abducted
> > > > from their homes in
> > > > >broad daylight. Then the two Americans, who got
> > > > beheaded this week and the
> > > > >Brit, were abducted from their homes in a
> > > > residential neighborhood. They
> > > > >were supplying the entire block with round the
> > > > clock electricity from their
> > > > >generator to win friends. The abductors grabbed
> > one
> > > > of them at 6 a.m. when
> > > > >he came out to switch on the generator; his
> > > > beheaded body was thrown back
> > > > >near the neighborhoods.
> > > > >
> > > > >The insurgency, we are told, is rampant with no
> > > > signs of calming down. If
> > > > >any thing, it is growing stronger, organized
> > and
> > > > more sophisticated every
> > > > >day. The various elements within it-baathists,
> > > > criminals, nationalists and
> > > > >Al Qaeda-are cooperating and coordinating.
> > > > >
> > > > >I went to an emergency meeting for foreign
> > > > correspondents with the military
> > > > >and embassy to discuss the kidnappings. We were
> > > > somberly told our fate
> > > > >would largely depend on where we were in the
> > > > kidnapping chain once it was
> > > > >determined we were missing. Here is how it
> > goes:
> > > > criminal gangs grab you
> > > > >and sell you up to Baathists in Fallujah, who
> > will
> > > > in turn sell you to Al
> > > > >Qaeda. In turn, cash and weapons flow the other
> > way
> > > > from Al Qaeda to the
> > > > >Baathisst to the criminals. My friend Georges,
> > the
> > > > French journalist
> > > > >snatched on the road to Najaf, has been missing
> > for
> > > > a month with no word on
> > > > >release or whether he is still alive.
> > > > >
> > > > >America's last hope for a quick exit? The Iraqi
> > > > police and National Guard
> > > > >units we are spending billions of dollars to
> > train.
> > > > The cops are being
> > > > >murdered by the dozens every day-over 700 to
> > date
> > > > -- and the insurgents are
> > > > >infiltrating their ranks. The problem is so
> > serious
> > > > that the U.S. military
> > > > >has allocated $6 million dollars to buy out
> > 30,000
> > > > cops they just trained
> > > > >to get rid of them quietly.
> > > > >
> > > > >As for reconstruction: firstly it's so unsafe
> > for
> > > > foreigners to operate
> > > > >that almost all projects have come to a halt.
> > After
> > > > two years, of the $18
> > > > >billion Congress appropriated for Iraq
> > > > reconstruction only about $1 billion
> > > > >or so has been spent and a chuck has now been
> > > > reallocated for improving
> > > > >security, a sign of just how bad things are
> > going
> > > > here.
> > > > >
> > > > >Oil dreams? Insurgents disrupt oil flow
> > routinely
> > > > as a result of sabotage
> > > > >and oil prices have hit record high of $49 a
> > > > barrel. Who did this war
> > > > >exactly benefit? Was it worth it? Are we safer
> > > > because Saddam is holed up
> > > > >and Al Qaeda is running around in Iraq?
> > > > >
> > > > >Iraqis say that thanks to America they got
> > freedom
> > > > in exchange for
> > > > >insecurity. Guess what? They say they'd take
> > > > security over freedom any day,
> > > > >even if it means having a dictator ruler.
> > > > >
> > > > >I heard an educated Iraqi say today that if
> > Saddam
> > > > Hussein were allowed to
> > > > >run for elections he would get the majority of
> > the
> > > > vote. This is truly sad.
> > > > >
> > > > >Then I went to see an Iraqi scholar this week
> > to
> > > > talk to him about
> > > > >elections here. He has been trying to educate
> > the
> > > > public on the importance
> > > > >of voting. He said, "President Bush wanted to
> > turn
> > > > Iraq into a democracy
> > > > >that would be an example for the Middle East.
> > > > Forget about democracy,
> > > > >forget about being a model for the region, we
> > have
> > > > to salvage Iraq before
> > > > >all is lost."
> > > > >
> > > > >One could argue that Iraq is already lost
> > beyond
> > > > salvation. For those of us
> > > > >on the ground it's hard to imagine what if any
> > > > thing could salvage it from
> > > > >its violent downward spiral. The genie of
> > > > terrorism, chaos and mayhem has
> > > > >been unleashed onto this country as a result of
> > > > American mistakes and it
> > > > >can't be put back into a bottle.
> > > > >
> > > > >The Iraqi government is talking about having
> > > > elections in three months
> > > > >while half of the country remains a 'no go
> > > > zone'-out of the hands of the
> > > > >government and the Americans and out of reach
> > of
> > > > journalists. In the other
> > > > >half, the disenchanted population is too
> > terrified
> > > > to show up at polling
> > > > >stations. The Sunnis have already said they'd
> > > > boycott elections, leaving
> > > > >the stage open for polarized government of
> > Kurds
> > > > and Shiites that will not
> > > > >be deemed as legitimate and will most certainly
> > > > lead to civil war.
> > > > >
> > > > >I asked a 28-year-old engineer if he and his
> > family
> > > > would participate in
> > > > >the Iraqi elections since it was the first time
> > > > Iraqis could to some degree
> > > > >elect a leadership. His response summed it all:
> > "Go
> > > > and vote and risk being
> > > > >blown into pieces or followed by the insurgents
> > and
> > > > murdered for
> > > > >cooperating with the Americans? For what? To
> > > > practice democracy? Are you
> > > > >joking?"
> > > > >
> > > > >Farnaz Fassihi, a Wall Street Journal reporter
> > sent
> > > > this report as an
> > > > >e-mail to friends.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
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> > > > "Quote Without Comment"
> > > > >
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> > > > web browser:
> > > >
> > >
> >
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