Monday, March 16, 2009

Iraq Update

ABC News says 59% of Iraqis now feel very safe in their communities
65% say things are going well in their lives
Posted by Common Sense Joe at 6:56 PM

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

ABC is corporate propaganda they know nothing about what is going on in Iraq, if you want the truth you need to interview the veterans who were there and who have the courage to speak out , go to the web site IVAW , I pulled this out of it below:

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Why we're against the war

Q: Why are veterans, active duty, and National Guard men and women opposed to the war in Iraq?

A: Here are 10 reasons we oppose this war:

1. The Iraq war is based on lies and deception.
The Bush Administration planned for an attack against Iraq before September 11th, 2001. They used the false pretense of an imminent nuclear, chemical and biological weapons threat to deceive Congress into rationalizing this unnecessary conflict. They hide our casualties of war by banning the filming of our fallen's caskets when they arrive home, and when they refuse to allow the media into Walter Reed Hospital and other Veterans Administration facilities which are overflowing with maimed and traumatized veterans.
For further reading: www.motherjones.com/bush_war_timeline/index.html

2. The Iraq war violates international law.
The United States assaulted and occupied Iraq without the consent of the UN Security Council. In doing so they violated the same body of laws they accused Iraq of breaching.
For further reading:
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/imt/proc/imtconst.htm
http://www.westpointgradsagainstthewar.org/

3. Corporate profiteering is driving the war in Iraq.
From privately contracted soldiers and linguists to no-bid reconstruction contracts and multinational oil negotiations, those who benefit the most in this conflict are those who suffer the least. The United States has chosen a path that directly contradicts President Eisenhower's farewell warning regarding the military industrial complex. As long as those in power are not held accountable, they will continue...
For further reading:
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0714-01.htm
http://www.publicintegrity.org/wow/

4. Overwhelming civilian casualties are a daily occurrence in Iraq.
Despite attempts in training and technological sophistication, large-scale civilian death is both a direct and indirect result of United States aggression in Iraq. Even the most conservative estimates of Iraqi civilian deaths number over 100,000. Currently over 100 civilians die every day in Baghdad alone.For further reading:
http://www.nomorevictims.org/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1338749,00.html
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70A1EF73C5A0C758DDDA10894DE404482

5. Soldiers have the right to refuse illegal war.
All in service to this country swear an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. However, they are prosecuted if they object to serve in a war they see as illegal under our Constitution. As such, our brothers and sisters are paying the price for political incompetence, forced to fight in a war instead of having been sufficiently trained to carry out the task of nation-building.
For further reading:
http://thankyoult.live.radicaldesigns.org/content/view/172/
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Qa6ZHYcG_EM
http://youtube.com/watch?v=1dAXQeH7y9g&mode=related&search=
http://girightshotline.org

6. Service members are facing serious health consequences due to our Government's negligence.
Many of our troops have already been deployed to Iraq for two, three, and even four tours of duty averaging eleven months each. Combat stress, exhaustion, and bearing witness to the horrors of war contribute to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a serious set of symptoms that can lead to depression, illness, violent behavior, and even suicide. Additionally, depleted uranium, Lariam, insufficient body armor and infectious diseases are just a few of the health risks which accompany an immorally planned and incompetently executed war. Finally, upon a soldier's release, the Veterans Administration is far too under-funded to fully deal with the magnitude of veterans in need.
For further reading:
http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/
http://www.vets4vets.us/

7. The war in Iraq is tearing our families apart.
The use of stop-loss on active duty troops and the unnecessarily lengthy and repeat active tours by Guard and Reserve troops place enough strain on our military families, even without being forced to sacrifice their loved ones for this ongoing political experiment in the Middle East.
For further reading: http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,FL_loss_092704,00.html

8. The Iraq war is robbing us of funding sorely needed here at home.
$10.3 billion per month is spent on a war which could have aided the victims of Hurricane Katrina, gone to impoverished schools, the construction of hospitals and health care systems, tax cut initiatives, and a host of domestic programs that have all been gutted in the wake of the war in Iraq.
For further reading:
http://www.costofwar.com

9. The war dehumanizes Iraqis and denies them their right to self-determination.
Iraqis are subjected to humiliating and violent checkpoints, searches and home raids on a daily basis. The current Iraqi government is in place solely because of the U.S. military occupation. The Iraqi government doesn’t have the popular support of the Iraqi people, nor does it have power or authority. For many Iraqis the current government is seen as a puppet regime for the U.S. occupation. It is undemocratic and in violation of Iraq’s own right to self-governance.
For further reading:
http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/
10. Our military is being exhausted by repeated deployments, involuntary extensions, and activations of the Reserve and National Guard.
The majority of troops in Iraq right now are there for at least their second tour. Deployments to Iraq are becoming longer and many of our service members are facing involuntary extensions and recalls to active duty. Longstanding policies to limit the duration and frequency of deployments for our part-time National Guard troops are now being overturned to allow for repeated, back-to-back tours in Iraq. These repeated, extended combat tours are taking a huge toll on our troops, their families, and their communities.
For further reading:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-military12jan12,0,7198945.story?coll=la-home-headlines





Q: Why do Iraq Veterans Against the War call for the immediate withdrawal from Iraq?

A: There are several reasons why immediate withdrawal is the critical first step toward solving the problems in Iraq.

1. The reasons and rationale given for the invasion were fraudulent.
There were no Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq during the time of the invasion according to US officials and former chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix. The idea that Al Qeada and the 9/11 terrorist attacks were connected to Saddam Hussein and the Baath party were proven false in the 9/11 Commission Report. Members of the Bush Administration have admitted that they “misspoke” in the run up to the war.

2. The presence of the US military is not preventing sectarian violence.
The US occupation of Iraq has proven to be unable to prevent sectarian violence and halt an escalation towards a civil war. Despite having an average of 140,000 troops in country since the occupation began, internal violence and attacks against civilians and Iraqi security forces have been on a steady incline.

3. The occupation is a primary motivation for the insurgency and global religious extremism.
The insurgency can be broken down into many individually named factions with various goals, beliefs, and techniques. However, our membership of veterans believe that the occupation of Iraq is the primary thing encouraging the insurgency and giving it legitimacy in the eyes of many Iraqis. Likewise, other people of the Islamic faith are encouraged to resist America ’s policies internationally based on how they perceive our military operations in the Middle East.

4. We can no longer afford to fight this war of choice.
The financial burden is destroying our domestic programs that could be used to protect us from natural disasters, provide medical programs, or help improve education. We are jeopardizing the US economy and putting strains on the budgets of important government agencies like the Veterans Affairs Department.

5. National security is compromised.
Funds that could be used to protect our ports and transportation are being stripped away while our National Guard units are on constant deployments instead of being used to protect and defend us here at home.

6. The world is becoming more dangerous.
International terrorist attacks have increased and it has become more dangerous for Americans to travel abroad. Approval for US policy has decreased and the dislike of Americans has increased.
7. Our national “moral authority” is being undermined.
The US has lost credibility to much of the world as the defender of liberty and freedom and our national identity is eroding. We can no longer deploy our armed forces for peace keeping measures with the good faith of the international community. We need to regain the respect and faith of the global community. This begins by withdrawing our troops from Iraq and helping the Iraqi people rebuild their country and society.

8. The majority of American citizens, Iraqi citizens and US military would like to see an immediate end to the war in Iraq.
If we are truly a democracy and we aim to create a democracy in Iraq our leaders will represent the will of the citizens and lead according to their wishes.

9. The military is broken.
We are abusing the small population of armed service members with multiple deployments while using inadequate vehicles and equipment. Less than one half of a percent of the American population is serving in the active armed forces, which is the least amount in the last century. Only 25% of the troops in Iraq are there for their first tour, while 50% are there on their second tour, and the remaining 25% are there three times or more. We continue to involuntarily extend soldiers with Stop-Loss, recall them repeatedly for additional service using the Individual Ready Reserve, and send soldiers with diagnosed medical problems into combat.

March 17, 2009 at 6:34 AM
Common Sense Joe said...

8. The Iraq war is robbing us of funding sorely needed here at home.

LOL. As recent history shows, the government can find the funding whenever they need it. With $7 Billion is pork for just the last 6 months of the fiscal year, blaming the war for lack of funding of other items can not be taken seriously.

March 17, 2009 at 1:12 PM
Common Sense Joe said...

4. Overwhelming civilian casualties are a daily occurrence in Iraq.

How old is this list?

March 17, 2009 at 1:14 PM
Anonymous said...

Use your common sense, the Iraq war has already cost taxpayers a minimum of 3 Trillion dollars, perhaps our wars will end up costing us as much as 10 Trillion when all is done, if we had this money we could have offset the Trillions lost by investment banks and the Republicans who destroyed government oversight of these banks,.... we have gained nothing from the war in Iraq accept to create thousands of additional potential terrorists. Now we are there to contain all these newly created terrorists thanks to all those idiots who voted Republican in 2000 and 2004 and a right wing supreme court created out of 30 years of Republican rule!

Worse than all the money and health Republicans have cost Americans in health care, war, banking, food safety, etc...Republicans have destroyed the moral reputation of Americans around the world with torture and bombing children in poor countries to protect our oil corporation's profit margins! Republicans have destroyed America morally and financially and now that the damage is done , enough people who voted Republican in the past now woke up and voted in Obama and Democrats to fix everything....you however apparently are still asleep...from looking at all your postings! Wake up and use your energy and time for something productive like fighting poverty in Africa or even at home in America, instead of fomenting more Republican propaganda that crippled America and killed and maimed millions of third world children and innocent adults, in the first place...you don't make money off spreading propaganda like Rush Limbaugh or Glen Beck so why do you do this???? What is your motivation for spreading hate propaganda that causes millions to suffer needlessly around the world when you get no money out of it???? I am really curious to know!

March 18, 2009 at 7:28 AM
Common Sense Joe said...

It is a shame you think spreading the news the Iraqis are feeling better is considered "spreading hate propaganda".

It is interesting that you prefer a world where Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq with tyranny. That you support a dictator that started two wars with his neighbors, that gassed the Kurds, and killed all dissent.

Why do you support the Taliban, which throws acid on little girls who want to go to school?

March 18, 2009 at 1:05 PM
Anonymous said...

Neither I nor anyone on the left ever supported Saddam or the Taliban, on the contrary it is Republicans who put both in power, armed to the teeth both Hussein and the Taliban and supported their atrocities for decades until they stopped being Republican puppets!!! And you know this to be true, you are not stupid!!!

Secondly what you write is hate propaganda because it's not true and you know it's not true, you're not stupid, so you do it deliberately. Sure you can say that an Iraqi mother who lost two of her children to a cluster bomb or bullets is feeling better because the other two children are not being bombed right now, sure you can say that she's feeling better because the infected water she's been drinking for years is a little better now , yet to what good does it do to say she's doing better when she is still doing quite horribly compared to how she was doing under Saddam Hussein, which probably seems to her like good times now despite his tyranny,... sure she is doing better, so is a man who's been severely burned all over his body, but now he's doing better because now he's being treated in the hospital.

Your post confuses Americans to think that the Iraqis are better off now than they were under Saddam Hussein, but that's false, they are far worse off, we obliterated their country, bombed their homes, killed and maimed their children...your posts reduces Americans anger to hold Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Yoo, Wolfowitz, etc (all working for the oil execs) accountable for war crimes...you should be blogging to put these guys in jail for crimes against humanity not trying to brainwash those who read your blog to think things are now better in Iraq, so thus the war was justified...that is evil and you know it...so again what is your motivation??? I know you're not stupid so what is your motivation? It's not money, so what is it????

March 19, 2009 at 6:14 AM
Common Sense Joe said...

The U.S. never supported the Taliban. The U.S. supported different fighters against the U.S.S.R. in Afghanistan. The main supporter of Taliban was/is Pakistan.

The U.S. supported Iraq, as did many countries.

But that you were/are against the war, means the you are in favor of their rules.

March 19, 2009 at 12:21 PM

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