"We Cannot Afford to Fail" -- Dean On Yesterday's Events In Iraq

[Khephra]

"We Cannot Afford to Fail"
BURLINGTON--Governor Howard Dean issued this statement on Iraq:

"Since last April, I have been calling on President Bush to internationalize the reconstruction effort in Iraq. I repeat that call today.

"Expert after expert has returned from Iraq stating that the window of opportunity is closing faster than anyone expected and that our chance to successfully stabilize and rebuild the country is quickly passing. Despite this, the Bush Administration refuses to seek a UN mandate so that our historic allies and friends can join us in this effort and speed up the reconstruction process.

"I call on the Bush Administration to take the following steps to encourage our proven allies and friends, including France, Germany, India, and Turkey to join us in Iraq and to accelerate the reconstruction process. We must:

* Work with the UN to build the largest coalition possible to help us succeed in Iraq;
* Make clear our intention to share decision-making on security and reconstruction issues in Iraq with those countries and international institutions that join the international coalition;

* Prioritize restoring law and order and the resumption of electricity, water, and sanitation services -- they are fundamental to success in all other areas;

* Focus on developing Iraqi capacity to undertake key functions as soon as possible;

* Decentralize the operations of the Coalition Authority and make money more forthcoming and flexible;

* Employ the sizable number of available Iraqis with short term public works projects and get state-run enterprises up and running, even if they must be downsized and privatized later;

* Push for UN oversight of the successor to the Oil for Food program;

* Award reconstruction contracts to the best US or foreign bidder in a transparent and open process.


"Yesterday's bombing of the UN headquarters in Iraq appears to have been an effort to dissuade other members of the international community from assisting us. It is vital to our chances of success that the Bush Administration redouble its efforts to internationalize the military and civilian presence and to speed up the stabilization and rebuilding process. We cannot afford to fail."

http://blogforamerica.com/

[Sagan]

1. "redouble its efforts" to internationalize Iraq?

I love ya, Howard, but twice zero is still zero.

The Bushistas have made almost NO effort to get the UN involved. They want all the power, all the money, all the killing. They're congenitally insane.

[treepig]

2. isn't re-doubling actually 4 times as much?

but your point remains that four times zero is still zero

[The Sushi Bandit]

3. Re-doubling is actually "Fourpuling"

Double, Triple, Fourpule!


Howard the Canned Spam Man!

[brokensymmetry]

4. Unfortunately, he's right.

The war was a tragic error - tragic for all concerned. It shouldn't have happened.

All that being said, we have this problem. We stepped into the La Brea tar pits (Perhaps due to a small brain? Let's not go there), we've got our foot stuck in the ooze, and now we're faced with a question of what to do next.

If we ask the UN for help, even if they agree to provide it, what group of countries has the military available to secure Iraq? China might - but why would China want to get involved in such a scheme?

If we just leave, the situation is sure to become an even worse mess, with lots of terrorists spawned - all of them thirsting for revenge on America.

If we stay, the body bags keep coming. For how long? Much too long. Years at the very least, and more likely decades.

Can we nation-build, and recruit Iraqis to do their own policing? Perhaps - but how do we know they won't work for the US during the day, and for rebellion at night? I suspect we can't prevent that.

Whoever wins in 2004, I suspect that Iraq will be a bleeding sore for a long, long time. :-(

[treepig]

5. on a serious note (compared to my post above)

what we need to do is get out of there pronto - a cold turkey approach is the best thing we can do for the iraqi people.

consider what our historical involvement:

1. installation of mr. hussein in power

2. meddling in the iran - iraq war in which ~1,000,000 iraqis died

3. gulf war 1 - 200,000 dead iraqi's at a minimum

4. bush I/clinton sanctions - 500,000 dead children

5. gulf war 2 - 45,000 dead iraqi's and counting.

come on - you're serious they couldn't do better if left to figure things out on their own rather than depending on our continued 'goodwill' efforts?

[NNN0LHI]

9. Indeed, Sir

When finding ones self down a deep hole a clever reaction would be to stop digging.

Don

[ninkasi]

30. Instead, they get bulldozers...

and dig deeper. Getting this bunch out of office in 2004 is just the beginning. It's going to take a lot to repair the damage done to this country and the rest of the world.

[brokensymmetry]

14. Truly, I'm not sure.

You said "come on - you're serious they couldn't do better if left to figure things out on their own rather than depending on our continued 'goodwill' efforts?"

The various hornets' nets have been stirred up a great deal. The Kurds, Shiites, and Sunnis are not on particularly friendly terms, and I suspect that the winner of such a conflict will not be known for his gentle nature. I wonder if the turmoil that would result from such a power vacuum wouldn't be more brutal than the present situation.

On the other hand, as NNN0LHI said, the first thing to do is to stop digging. So I suppose you're right - maybe we should cut and run with as few casualties as possible. (I won't say with dignity intact, since that's long gone anyway.)

[teryang]

24. We're here to help, trust us...

Some very astute observers have said that war is a collective regression from rational thought. In its irrational fugue state Americans have actually been led to believe that you can kill hundreds of thousands of people, invade a country, destroy its infrastructure and then not expect horrible reprisals, because "we're here to help you." Your actions are "counter-intuitive." Whose actions are counter-intuitive?

[are_we_united_yet]

19. And unfortunately I think you are correct as well.

I think your analysis is right on the mark. I believe we have the tiger by the tail so to speak.

[jmcgowanjm]

26. Substitute VietNamforIraq and the above could have been written in'65

n/t

[Jacobin]

6. Good politcal response and I support Dean...however

as Dean said for one of the reasons for not invading...this ain't gonna be pretty...westerners conquering and occupying a muslim country has never succeeded for very long.

I fear that no infidel regardless of what country he is from is welcome there.

They've had quite enough "help" from westerners and it appears that they would simply like to have their country back, thank you very much.

[Khephra]

7. It is a good political response

The problem that every candidate is going to face with Iraq is that by the time they get into office things will probably be much different in Iraq than they are now--probably more bloody. And all plans will have to be updated to reflect this as the campaign goes on.

But it's a great statement for pointing out what Bush should be doing right now and isn't.

[flpoljunkie]

8. Interesting Dean's comments regarding privatization...

Quote: Employ the sizable number of available Iraqis with short term public works projects and get state-run enterprises up and running, even if they must be downsized and privatized later;

Why is Dean signing on to the necessity of privatizing public works, etc. in Iraq?

Privatizing every industry--not only the oil but utilities, phone service, you name it-- in Iraq is exactly why the Busco crowd will not let the reconstruction process be internationalized.

Haven't we all seen what happens when municipal owned utilities are privatized--profits and CEO greed rule--maintenance of the system suffers--big time!

[stickdog]

16. He's simply avoiding the long term question while chastising Bush

for putting free market "reforms" before necessary infrastructure -- in Iraq as well the US.

[IndianaGreen]

10. On the Iraq matter, I prefer Kucinich's call for withdrawing the troops

I want an immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Iraq, and let the UN and the Iraqis work it out.

This is more that Dean is a moderate, and not the radical leftists that his DLC opponents want to paint him as.

[mike_c]

11. agreed, and the U.S. should be made to foot the bill for reconstruction...

...but be barred from participating directly. We made a BIG mess, and I don't believe that it will be possible for us to clean it up, so we need to get out as soon as possible and hand the process to a UN coalition. But since we made the mess, we should pay for the cleanup, and not be allowed to profit from the misery we've caused.

[The Magistrate]

12. Governor Dean Has Said What He Should

But there will be no international, United Nations effort in Iraq. There would not have been one before this bombing, but that has sealed the matter past peradventure.

No one is going to rescue the criminals of the '00 Coup from this quagmire, nor ought anyone to do so: it is purely of their making, and it cannot be rectified.

[jmcgowanjm]

29. Well said,sir n/t

[realFedUp]

13. Good advice

You haven't heard the Bushies lay any of this out....

[indictrichardperle]

15. Is Grossman advising Dean ?

If Howard starts saying anything similar to "we had better stay in there , we cant afford to lose" He is going to lose my vote so fuc*ing fast.

Howard , just say it was a mistake to go in, we need to get out and let the UN take over, we need to give 100 % freedom to the Iraqi people and 100% ownership of the OIL to the Iraqi people. If Howard even starts to sound like McCain, he can forget it.

[stickdog]

17. Just compare Dean's message to Bush's quagmire.

A 100000% improvement is fine by me for the moment.

Dean wouldn't have made the mess, but someone has to at least help the Iraqis clean it up.

[dajabr]

23. Grossman's on fundraising, not policy...n/t

[9215]

18. THIS IS WHY I HAAAAATE POLITICS!!!!!1

This is preeeecisely how Bush will get more power.

Dean should never discuss rebuilding Iraq, only who the fuck is responsible for this crime.

If we re-build then we enable the fascists AND inherit the responsibility for cleaning up the mess. This path is suicidal!

LET THE SOBS STEW IN THE SHITHOUSE MESS THEY CREATED for as long as it takes to snap this shitbrained society into reality, THEN haul the BFEE before a Nuremburg style tribunal and GET THEM OUT OF THE PICTURE ALL TOGETHER.

FUCK THE BFEE!!

[NNN0LHI]

20. Enough to make you pull your hair out, eh?

This is not what I want to be hearing either. There has got to be a better plan then this I would think. I realize Dean will have to move somewhat to the center to be competitive, but he just seems to not get it when it comes to the art of quagmire extraction. I wonder though? Could anyone get elected without saying what he is saying even if he knows in his heart it is not possible to do? My only worry would be that he really does not know it is not possible.

Don

[patcox2]

25. Dean can't move to the center, he lives there.

He is just showing his real face with this little slip about privatization, and his overall aupport for the Bush agenda in Iraq. This whole "we cannot afford to fail" shows that he doesn't even disagree with Bush about the goal, just the means. Did he oppose the war, even, or did he just oppose doing it without a UN mandate and coalition?

[9215]

27. The key is framing the argument

and focusing on the most important part of the problem: THE BFEE. Then pound home a simple point over and over again like the repigs did with Clinton's penis. They stuck with that simple theme and turned an affair between consenting adults into an impeachable offense.


The simple point: "BUSH IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE QUAGMIRE!"

Whenever somebody asks: "Governor Dean, now that we are in Iraq how would you fix it?"
He doesn't start talking about how to rebuild the country, he should turn the topic back to the fools that got us there in the first place and never let up, then lay out the details, restate all the lies that the Bush cabal told us to get a war on, etc. From here it doesn't take much for people to go duh: I guess we need to get rid of Bush to solve this problem.

As this situation deteriorates those who focus on the fundamental cause: BFEE arrogance and imperial adventurism, will have an easy sell.


The dems need advisers that can give them insight into the machinations of these bastards or they are doomed IMO.

[revcarol]

21. Dean just can't bring himself to say it:

put the UN in command with a new UN resolution...

Sorry, Dean, no cigar.

[Paschall]

22. "We cannot afford to fail..."

Other observers--the Iraqis not least among them--are saying we've already failed.

<snip> The only hope of attempting to avoid the worst remains a massive intervention by the international community in Iraq, under the UN flag. For that to happen, Bush must admit he's failed, before it's too late. </snip>

"Bourbier" (ie Quagmire)

[jmcgowanjm]

28. Now we're in it we've got to stay-I wanna play poker w/ Dean

n/t