News from the Colonies - America's War in Iraq

[Tiassa]

Source: SeattlePI.com
Link: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/207765_fisk14.html
Title: "Fear and voting in Baghdad"
Date: January 14, 2005

Journalism yields a world of clichés but here, for once, the first cliché that comes to mind is true. Baghdad is a city of fear. Fearful Iraqis, fearful militiamen, fearful American soldiers, fearful journalists.

Jan. 30, that day upon which the blessings of democracy will shower upon us, is approaching with all the certainty and speed of doomsday ....

.... At the al-Hurriya intersection Tuesday morning, four truckloads of Iraqi national guardsmen -- the future saviors of Iraq, according to President Bush -- are passing my car. Their rifles are porcupine quills, pointing at every motorist, every Iraqi on the pavement, the Iraqi army pointing their weapons at their own people. And they are all wearing masks -- black hoods or ski masks or kuffiyas that leave only slits for frightened eyes.

Just before it collapsed finally into the hands of the insurgents last summer, I saw exactly the same scene in the streets of Mahmoudiya, south of Baghdad. Now I am watching them in the capital.

SeattlePI.com

British journalist Robert Fisk paints with words such an image of Baghdad that we might wonder if neo-impressionism is about to rise in the 21^st century. His January 14 correspondence from Baghdad brings tales of an Iraq so mired in conflict that universities are hamstrung, motorists are clashing with police over fuel queues, and twenty-floor security walls are being built around commercial centers. And as even an old associate of Fisk's, a publisher, gives his reasons for not voting in the upcoming, at least you can get a pizza in under ten minutes.

Baghdad may be a city of clichés, but one of those clichés is also that Baghdad seems a city of contradictions.

I glance at the Iraqi press. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell is again warning of "civil war" in Iraq. Why do we westerners keep threatening civil war in a country whose society is tribal rather than sectarian? Of all papers, it is the Kurdish Al Takhri, loyal to Mustafa Barzani, which asks the same question. "There has never been a civil war in Iraq," the editorial thunders. And it is right. So "full ahead both" for the dreaded Jan. 30 elections and democracy.

The American generals -- with a unique mixture of mendacity and hope amid the insurgency -- are now saying that only four of Iraq's 18 provinces may not be able to "fully" participate in the elections. Good news. Until you sit down with the population statistics and realize -- as the generals, of course, all know -- that those four provinces contain more than half the population of Iraq.

SeattlePI.com

It seems a rough time in Baghdad, and we can only wish voters the best of fortune. The upshot, however, is that Americans watching this drama play out, either first-hand or through the news media, need not worry about American prestige; such concerns right now seem both selfish and pointless.

A glance at the numbers marking the last forty years of federal elections in the United States shows that 1996, at 49.1% nationwide turnout, was the lowest of the sample in a presidential cycle. Off-cycles, however, have dipped as low as 36.4%, in 1998 and 1986. The numbers compare to voting-age population estimates, not voter-registration figures.

With more than half the Iraqi population represented by four provinces in danger of not being able to fully participate in the election, one wonders if Iraq can get a voter turnout number rivaling even our most apathetic years here in the states.

No wonder the Bush administration wants to play down the turnout numbers.

In the meantime, Election Day approaches, and what comes after is yet to be written. Hopefully, we will see new clichés installed in Baghdad: a city of brotherhood, a city of freedom, a city of enlightenment.

Have the bookies formulated a betting system for what happens next?
____________________

Notes:

Fisk, Robert. "Fear and voting in Baghdad". SeattlePI.com, January 14, 2005. See http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/207765_fisk14.html​

See Also -

InfoPlease.com. "National Voter Turnout in Federal Elections: 1960 - 2000". See http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0781453.html​

 

[Tiassa]

Carpetbaggers?
Attorney for whistleblowers paints grim picture

The lawyer, Alan Grayson, represents two former employees who charged in a federal lawsuit that the security firm Custer Battles LLC of Fairfax was paid approximately $15 million to provide security for civilian flights at Baghdad International Airport, even though no planes flew during the contract term. Grayson said the firm received $100 million in contracts in 2003 and 2004, despite a thin track record and evidence the government was not getting its money's worth.

A former Coalition Provisional Authority official who briefly oversaw the airport security contract also spoke, depicting a temporary governing body awash with cash but lacking in the necessary controls to ensure that money generated from the sale of Iraqi oil actually went to rebuilding the country.

"I wish I could tell you that the Bush administration has done everything it could to detect and punish fraud in Iraq," Grayson said. "If I said that to you, though, I would be lying."

Washington Post

The story has all sorts of ugly implications. Enough, on the one hand, that the Pentagon has suspended Custer Battles from receiving new contracts, but the Justice Department under John Ashcroft was not interested in attempting to recoup squandered funds.

Lawyers for Custer Battle have denied the charges and also argued that the case should be dismissed, since the funds allegedly stolen belong to the Iraqi people, and not Americans. Mr. Grayson responded that such an argument could bring greater trouble, creating the effect that contractors would not be subject to either Iraqi or American law.

The story is enough to get Congress' attention--big surprise there, eh?

Yesterday's appearances were organized by the Democratic Policy Committee. Its chairman, Sen. Byron L. Dorgan (D-N.D.), said the witnesses were called in response to a recent report by the inspector general for Iraqi reconstruction that concluded that the governing authority had inadequate controls over $8.8 billion in Iraqi funds it was supposed to oversee. Former administrator L. Paul Bremer has denied those allegations. Dorgan said Democrats had attempted to get Republican colleagues to hold hearings on the issue but were unsuccessful.

"There is a massive amount of waste, fraud and abuse going on here, and nobody seems to care very much," Dorgan said.

Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, said in an interview that he found some of yesterday's allegations "disturbing." He said his committee has already held hearings on the use of reconstruction funds in Iraq and plans to hold more. "If there's something wrong, we will go after it vigorously," he said.

Washington Post

One former CPA official, Franklin Willis, said it was clear Custer Battles was not living up to its obligations. Nonetheless, on at least two occasions, the firm was paid cash out of the Authority's basement. "We called in Mike Battles and said, 'Bring a bag'," said Willis.

And what would this story be without its secondary political intrigues? Company founders Michael Battles and Scott Custer are former soldiers, but more interestingly, Battles ran unsuccessfully for Congress in Rhode Island as a Republican, and agents from the Pentagon inspector general's office wrote of him, "Battles is very active in the Republican Party and speaks to individuals he knows at the White House almost daily, according to Custer."

The White House, of course, has no comment at this time.

• • •​

More than any early cries of cronyism and carpetbagging (I couldn't help myself with the headline), it's enough to deal with a larger number like $8.8b and ask if the problem here is a systemic difficulty or merely a hazard of war. Will "Bring a bag" become symbolic of the administrative side of this reconstruction?
____________________

Notes:

Witte, Griff. "Lawmakers Told About Contract Abuse in Iraq". Washington Post. February 15, 2005; page A03. See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24468-2005Feb14.html​

 

[Tiassa]

When Country Calls
Army recruiting drive hits up 84 year-old dentist

The last time Dr. Floyd Baker served in the U.S. Army, Harry S. Truman was president, Dinah Shore's "Buttons and Bows" topped the music charts, "The Treasure of Sierra Madre" won an Oscar and the bikini made its debut on American beaches.

So the 84-year-old semi-retired dentist from Philadelphia was a little surprised last August when he got a letter from a local Army recruiting station inviting him to re-enlist ....

.... He started believing that maybe it wasn't when he got a similar letter two months later offering him a $30,000 signing bonus, a $58,646 loan-repayment option and a "generous retirement plan" to re-up ....

.... Baker really began thinking the Army's offer was serious after he talked last week to a senior-citizen friend at a Philadelphia-area Veterans Administration facility who'd received a similar letter.

Knight-Ridder

Army officials have had a chuckle and admitted the letters were an honest mistake. Major Tanya Beecher, at Fort Knox, said, "We need dentists, but we don't need them quite that old ... We're pushing it when we request (a waiver) for someone 67."

While Baker's letter can be explained away neatly, what cannot be treated nearly so lightly are the challenges facing recruiters for the U.S. armed services. Recently, the Army expanded a seldom-used voluntary-recall program. According to Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, there are more than 300 Army retirees ranging from their 40s through their late 60s on active duty through the program.

Whether the letters were a mistake or not, Baker said re-enlisting didn't fit into his plans for his golden years, even though "my wife and children say I should go back in with that much signing money" being offered.

"I told him, `We can do this,'" Baker's 70-year-old wife, Gerty, said jokingly. "I thought the letter was a hoot. I'm going to frame it."

Knight-Ridder

____________________

Notes:

Williams, Douglas. "Octogenarian receives Army recruiting letters inviting him to re-enlist". Knight-Ridder. February 16, 2005. See http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/10906027.htm​

 

[Tiassa]

Out Of The Frying Pan ... Guess Who's Coming To Dinner
Former hostage wounded, Italian agent killed by U.S. fire

A freed Italian hostage was injured and an Italian intelligence officer killed Friday after a U.S. armored vehicle fired on a car in which they were riding in Iraq, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said.

Berlusconi, an ally of the United States who has kept troops in Iraq despite public opposition at home, said he has asked the U.S. ambassador for an explanation ....

.... The shooting occurred Friday at a roadblock near the airport. Berlusconi confirmed that the former Italian hostage, journalist Giuliana Sgrena, was injured by shrapnel. She was taken to a U.S. military hospital by U.S. troops, where she had a minor operation on her left shoulder to remove a piece of shrapnel, he said.

Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said a shooting incident occurred as the Italian woman was being brought into U.S. military control at Camp Victory, the U.S. military base near Baghdad International Airport ....

.... The editor of Il Manifesto, Gabriele Polo, said the secret service agent was killed when he threw himself over the freed hostage to protect her from fire ....

Washington Post

There's just no two ways about it: this is embarrassing.

Seriously, this is so warped that I can't even think about it without laughing: You've got to be kidding me!

Oh, well. They say war is hell.
____________________

Notes:

Washington Post. 'U.S. Fires on Freed Italian Reporter". WashingtonPost.com. March 4, 2005. See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7315-2005Mar4.html​

 

[Brian Foley]

American Iraq Idiocy

Another American LIE exposed , we all knew and saw through it this ridiculous American claim of "Liberating" Iraq . What made me sick the most was the naming of the operation "enduring freedom ."

Iraqis protest American invasion

Chanting “Death to America” and burning effigies of President Bush and Saddam Hussein, tens of thousands of Iraqis flooded central Baghdad on Saturday in what police called the largest anti-American protest since the fall of Baghdad, the capital, exactly two years ago.
http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050410/NEWS03/104100087/-1/news

Right so when will it dawn on the Americans that they are hated and decide to leave ?

U.S. troops may be in Iraq for 10 years

Two top U.S. defense officials signaled Congress on Wednesday that U.S. forces might remain in Iraq for as long as a decade and that permanent facilities need to be built to house them there.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-06-18-iraqtroop-usat_x.htm

Quagmire anyone !

 

[Prisme]

Why have the mainstream newschannels completely stopped to report on the war in Iraq? A couple of months ago, you couldn't avoid but hearing the day-to-day events going on in Iraq and now its like the war is over and we only see diplomats shake hands and some isolated car bombs once a week.

Out of sight out of mind?

 

[Raven]

Probably things got out of control even worst and the goverment doesn't want you to know about it.

 

[foucaulteco]

Why have the mainstream newschannels completely stopped to report on the war in Iraq? A couple of months ago, you couldn't avoid but hearing the day-to-day events going on in Iraq and now its like the war is over and we only see diplomats shake hands and some isolated car bombs once a week.

Out of sight out of mind?

I noticed the exact same thing here down under, is this an international thing? have the media been spoken to by the powers that be? or is it that it just doesn't rate anymore? I think the latter more likely or possibly a combination of the two, but "out of sight out of mind" is spot on and Bush and Co will be breathing one big collective sigh of relief.

What will it take to get Iraq back on the front pages I wonder? Nothing good for Iraq that's for sure.

Personally I would like to see the whole thing go away but because things are better for the Iraqi's and not just because the mass populace at large has lost interest.

It makes me so angry when some pathetic irrelevant shite rates as the top news story when so much relevant bad shite is still happening in Iraq, Somalia and elsewhere.

At least there's a few of us who haven't completely forgotten or lost interest and still care.

 

[Brian Foley]

Al Qaeda's latest escapade

Dr. Gal Luft: Bin Laden’s Out to Destroy U.S. Economy
18:09 Apr 11, '05 / 2 Nisan 5765
Dr. Gal Luft, Director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security says Osama Bin Laden’s main goal is the destruction of the U.S. economy - and that, so far, he appears to be succeeding.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=79998

Yeah sure Osama Bin Laden was the culprit which made the US goverment spend more money than you can shake a stick at on invading Iraq . Its Osama Bin Laden's insurgents in Iraq which is costing the US economy $5 billion a month in occupational costs . Its Osama Bin Laden deliberate plan to make the US taxpayer fork out to Halliburton and gang some $150 billion in reconstruction costs . And of course it was Osama Bin Laden whose diabolical plan was that in order to fund this war on terror America had to rape its infrastructural and Social spending pot . This was the grand plan of Osama Bin Laden and judging by the economic vandalism that the Bush Junta has inflicted on Americas economy Id say the entire administration must be members of Al Qaeda working on the direction of Osama Bin Laden . String the bastards up !

 

[Baron Max]

I think ye're giving ol' Osama much too much credit. And for a guy who's probably going to live the rest of his life on the run and in a damned cave, he ain't got much out of what he did/caused/planned ....and that's even if he's still alive, which I doubt.

Brian, you just don't like America ....and anything, anywhere that you can find that puts us in a bad light, you leap on it with glee. I'm not sure what pschologists would call someone like you, but I'll bet there's a clinical name for it.

Baron Max

 

[Brian Foley]

I'm not sure what pschologists would call someone like you, but I'll bet there's a clinical name for it.

Baron Max

From someone who endorses the current criminal US adminstrations policy on Iraq which since 1990 has killed 1.5 million Iraqis and defends the US war on terror campaign that has killed God knows how many and will undoubtedly back and justify any invasion of Iran however illegal hmmm... The correct psychological term for the state of your mind would be Sociopathic .

 

[foucaulteco]

I wonder what will be next? There's been no sabre ratling for a while. It's probarbly best to sort out the current mess before starting anything else anyway.
I still think Iraq is a tinderbox, just because it's off the front pages for now doesn't mean we've heard the last of the place, unfortunately.
Does anyone else think there's still a possibility of civil war there? I hope it doesn't happen, but personally I think it's a destinct possibility

 

[ursula]

any germans here, other than myself?
ursula

 

[Raven]

Are you speaking of people who are German by blood or who actually live or have lived in Germany?

 

[vslayer]

From someone who endorses the current criminal US adminstrations policy on Iraq which since 1990 has killed 1.5 million Iraqis and defends the US war on terror campaign that has killed God knows how many and will undoubtedly back and justify any invasion of Iran however illegal hmmm... The correct psychological term for the state of your mind would be Sociopathic .

i thought that was known as compulsive stupidity disorder

 

[hypewaders]

Turkey is now making more visible preparations to toss their hat in the ring. The makings of a regional war are becoming more obvious. Will the Busheviks ever answer for what they have triggered?

 

[madanthonywayne]

Turkey is now making more visible preparations to toss their hat in the ring. The makings of a regional war are becoming more obvious. Will the Busheviks ever answer for what they have triggered?

What they have triggered is what they wanted to trigger. A change in the middle east to eliminate the conditions that support and create terrorism. Our previous alliances with dictators in the middle east was like our alliance with communists to defeat fascists: necesary, but never a long term solution. Now we are creating a democratic alternative to dictatorship or Islamic extreemism in Iraq and Afganistan which are already serving as an example and an inspiration throughout the middle east. It may not be pretty, and it will definately get messy, but since it's just a matter of time before some Islamist gets his hands on a nuke, we can not afford to let things continue the way they were going. Our choice is victory or death.

 

[madanthonywayne]

Why have the mainstream newschannels completely stopped to report on the war in Iraq? A couple of months ago, you couldn't avoid but hearing the day-to-day events going on in Iraq and now its like the war is over and we only see diplomats shake hands and some isolated car bombs once a week.

Out of sight out of mind?

Obviously, with no scandal that puts the US military in a bad light, the media is not interested. Don't worry, as soon as a US soldier mistakenly gets some dust on a Koran, the media will be back in full force.

 

[Go Down Moses]

Now we are creating a democratic alternative to dictatorship or Islamic extreemism in Iraq and Afganistan which are already serving as an example and an inspiration throughout the middle east.

You must be kidding.

The new Iraqi constitution will most likely be based on Sharia. Women will most likely not be able to vote and, ironically, will have fewer legal rights than they did under Saddam Hussein. Additionally, the new Iraqi government will almost assuredly be closedly allied with Iran ---- part of the Axis of Evil. Is this what our tax dollars and our soldier's lives are subsidizing?

Now it appears that the very Iraqi police forces that we are training and subsidizing are using Glocks that we paid for and Toyota Land Cruisers that we purchased to systematically kill Sunnis. Stephen Vincent, who reported this in the New York Times just a few days ago, was abducted by men dressed as Iraqi policemen just yesterday and murdered. Is this what the President envisioned?

This isn't what Mssrs. Wolfowitz, Pearl, Adelmen etc... envisioned at all. Rather, they envisioned a staging area in Iraq (14 U.S. military bases) for the United States to go on supporting Israel. They also envisioned a "cakewalk" and that, by the end of 2004, only 30,000 U.S. troops would be needed in Iraq. Well, we still have 140,000 troops in Iraq, 21 fine U.S. marines have been killed in the last three days, and the country is sliding into civil war.

Oh, and we're spending about three hundred million dollars a day ---- money that we don't have and money that is simply being tacked on to the debt, the interest on which we pay yearly.

What they have triggered is what they wanted to trigger.

No. You are engaging in revisionism. Based on their comments before the war, what they have triggered is certainly NOT what they wished to trigger.

 

[Mr.Jack4WAR]

haha that pic that goofyfish sent. AHH I LOVE IIT!