Ali Baba and the Thieves of Baghdad – GWB on Magic Carpet

The US cannot win the War on drugs, because there is too much profit involved to suppress the drug trade. The US cannot win the war on illegal immigration, because there is too much profit involved and will not close the borders and enforce the laws. The US cannot end the war in Iraq, because there is too much profit involved and the massive war spending has created its own powerful, self generating constituency to sustain the war, advocating that it continue open ended.

Mercantile morality that is used to justify nefarious deeds is not new in history. In war it takes on a bloody dimension as human beings are ground up in the pursuit of war profits. This greed was so bad during the Napoleonic wars that these merchants of death were caught and executed regularly. GWB appears to encourage a thieves’ market in Iraq by allowing no bid contracts, inept accounting procedures, failure to ensure completion of paid contracts, and negligence when protecting assets. One hundred twenty thousand private contractors existing under no military law and almost no civil law enforcement encourage even more bribes and corruption. Over 9 billion dollars remain unaccounted. This money along with 200,000 lethal small arms, body armor, and military equipment has just disappeared under the noses of the US occupation authorities. Unlike Bonaparte, GWB does not seem to be perturbed by the thievery, waste and abuse in his Iraq war. To date there have been very few convictions for corruption or dismissal of incompetents by the Administration. Even Congress has turned a blind eye on most of the squalid mess.

Spending over 4 billion a month, the fact is that war profiteering in Iraq is a major factor in the failure to end the war. How else can you explain the almost hysterical pursuit of the war when all justifications for war have proved to be untrue? US forces and diplomatic leadership in Iraq last week even backed away from Bush's messianic and lunatic democracy arguments. The Israel lobby and neocons still want the war to continue and are dug in against ending the surge. Fifteen million dollars has been earmarked by Freedom Watch, a private Republican support group to promote more war in Iraq using radio and TV advertising... Ari Fleischer, formally GWB's White House Press Secretary and an Iraqi war cheerleader, is in charge of the programing. Fleischer is a member of the Republican Jewish Coalition and is reported to hold dual citizenship, despite the fact he was born in the USA. Who in the Freedom Watch has contributed the funds is unknown.

Fleischer's TV clips and radio spots focus on depicting seriously wounded US servicemen who plead with the public not to end the war for their sacrifices would be in vain. The exploitation of US servicemen as stage props in wheelchairs and with artificial limbs is disgusting – extending the war will senselessly increase their unfortunate number. As the Iraqi government self-destructs and falls apart, it makes it more imperative that no more US blood be shed for Bush's misguided war. Fleischer's advertising consists of timed spots that are dovetailed in with Bush's latest exhortations not to withdraw, based on anticipated carnage in Iraq if US forces depart. I wish, in this case, our President would concern himself over the welfare of US fighting men more than the threat of Iraq, as he keeps our troops in the crossfire of a vicious civil war. As Commander-in-Chief, Bush is expected to protect his troops and not employ them recklessly.

With the Petraeus/Crocker/neocon report looming, the Bush administration is concerned over bad news. A recent National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq predicts grim realities. Despite all the exaggerated, good news posturing, the SURGE has not provided the intended security for the Iraqi government to rule effectively, and has failed. US ground forces troop lists cannot provide current US force strength in Iraq much beyond Spring, 2008. General Petraeus is still averaging more than two troops killed in action a day. Even Republican Senator Warner is pressing the President on troop reductions. US troop commanders in Iraq understand that though they have cleared some areas of insurgents, the same insurgents will return when US forces move elsewhere. So troop reductions, which are on the horizon, could spell the loss of most gains made by an unsustainable SURGE troop level.

GWB apparently is now glued curiously to Iraq/Republic of Vietnam wars analogies. His first conclusion should be that they are both lost wars. The second is the that the defeat was hastened by the US inability to establish a stable government and reliable army and security forces. It will be an interesting next few weeks as the Administration attempts last ditch efforts to delay the inevitable: WITHDRAWAL. You can be certain the war profiteers will provide aid and comfort to keep the funding flowing as long as possible under the specious rubric of SUPPORTING THE TROOPS. Colonel Robert E Bartos USA RET