Bodies and Rubble

A country that can find the cash to wage a 10-year, $2 trillion campaign against an imaginary enemy but can't afford to feed its poorest families has no moral compass.

We know that airstrikes in Syria won't make anything better. What we can realistically expect is more bodies and rubble and animosity against us. And yet here we go again, writing another check to the weapons manufacturers.

The American occupation of the world must end.

nwb

To Do List

Chum

Ok, he's dead, shot and dumped like a bucket of chum into the sea.  Now that the chest beating and chants of U-S-A! are out of the way, let's take a calm look back for a minute.  That ten-year manhunt sure took a toll, didn't it?  You wonder just how long we, and the world, can go on like this.  Doesn't it seem that, countless lives and a trillion dollars later, it might be time to reevaluate things going forward?

After a intense 48-hour session fueled by coffee, cigarettes and a mountain of cocaine, here's the twelve-point agenda drummed up by the think tank division of McBone, Inc:

-End wars

-Bring troops home

-Dismantle empire

-Cut military budget in half

-Repair infrastructure

-End Bush tax cuts

-Raise capital gains taxes

-Rebuild cities

-Shrink income gap

-Grow green energy sector

-Educate kids

-Care for sick and elderly

We know a lot of people won't go for any plan that attempts to remove violence from the equation, and we are very much aware how cool folks are with 1% of the population commanding a quarter of the wealth, but we're going ahead with the scheme we believe will transform us from big, fat, bullying deathmongers into a healthy, industrious, compassionate and, yes, civilized state.

Playtime is over, America.  Time to grow up.

nwb

The Stars at Night...

I think the record will one day show that McBone was hardly a shill for Obama.

Yeah, right.

Fine, but do allow me this one point in his favor.

It's difficult to imagine consecutive administrations more rabidly detested by the opposition than those of Bush and Obama.  However!  Lest there be any mistake about which presidency will prove more catastrophic in the eyes of future generations, let us always remember that the man pictured to the left today announced an end to the combat operations that the man on the right needlessly began in 2003.

Like it or not, this is the fulfillment of a campaign promise, and not a small one.  As someone who has ceaselessly criticized the Iraq war, I admit to breathing a small sigh of relief when I read this headline.  Then I started thinking about the 4,400 dead Americans and the 100,000 dead Iraqis and I got so hopping mad that only one thing could possibly douse the fury within.

I totally hated this part of Obama's address, by the way: It’s well known that he and I disagreed about the war from its outset. Yet no one could doubt President Bush’s support for our troops, or his love of country and commitment to our security.  This ever so diplomatic distancing is just a little too gushing for my taste.  I know it's not politically savvy to blame the failings of others, especially when your own ratings are sagging, but let's he honest: the dude deserves all the fingers pointing at him.

Anyway, America screwed this thing up so royally that we basically owe the Iraqis a country.  As a gesture of solidarity, I propose we offer them a consolation prize.

This vast chunk of the American southwest offers many advantages to beleaguered Mesopotamians.  Here is just a handful:

-Similar climate

-Plenty of oil

-Functioning infrastructure

-100,000 square miles of extra space

-Delicious Tex-Mex

You wanna set things right, Obama?  Don't rebuild, relocate.  It's worked for us before.  Surely it can work again.

nwb

War is Stupid

We have been at war in Aghanistan since October, 2001.

The Iraq War started in March, 2003.

A little perspective:  World War II lasted six years.

People are still talking about military 'solutions' in Iran.

nwb

We Had a Really Good Day Today

Today I woke up at 10, made some coffee and read the sports page.  Then Alex and I had breakfast.  After that we went for a walk in the park and checked out the birds--woodpeckers, robins and nuthatches abounded.  We got back and popped open a half bottle of Veuve Clicquot. Hey, why not? It's Valentine's Day, after all, and with that in mind, we decided to put the work down for a couple hours and enjoy each other's company.  I made dinner--a souffle and a nice bottle of red wine.  Now I'm going to build a fire in the fireplace and together we'll bask the warmth and comfort of our home on a cold winter night.

And ten Afghani civilians got blown up.

nwb