Say Anything Blog

As opposed to the President going on the campaign trail over the past two week using the inside information to scare us into believing that only the republicans will keep up safe and using 9-11 to once again try to tie 9-11 to Iraq while at the same time saying there is no connection.  What bullshit!

Rob writes: 

So what can the left do to overwhelm the right’s steadfast support of Iraq and the war on terror?  Why, run a political hit that makes it seem as though the war in Iraq has actually made us less safe and that the Democrat talking points were right all along.

But really, what can the right do to overwhelm the left’s steadfast support of the need to implement the 9-11 commission recommendations, which the current adminstration has miserably failed to, including protecting the ports and shipping and now we find out that the Administration has known that the war in Iraq has actually made us less safe and continue to lie to the public that we are safer.

Yeah, Rob, we just a bunch of people from the Bush Administration come out and deny the report, right?  NOT!  If this were not correct doncha think they would have out on the talk shows this morning.  I seem to remember back when the war talk was hot and heavy, Cheney going on the talk shows and using those very leaks to the “MSM” to juice up his calls for war with Iraq.

Nice try, Rob!  We’re just following the Republican/Rove playbook!

and now we find out that the Administration has known that the war in Iraq has actually made us less safe and continue to lie to the public that we are safer.

We find what out? According to whom?

Nice try, Rob!  We’re just following the Republican/Rove playbook!

So, according to your own claims of what the “Republican/Rove playbook” consists of, you’re lying.

You’re telling us that you’re lying.

Nice Try Lik, but you know that if the article wasn’t accurate, Rove et al would be all over this story, so you continue to live in La La land, we’ll continue to fight for a safer US and to make sure our soldiers are safe and protected and that our country is safe and protected.

Nice Try Lik, but you know that if the article wasn’t accurate, Rove et al would be all over this story, so you continue to live in La La land...

Is that why the right so often asks why the administration doesn’t defend itself enough from these biased and often erroneous reports? I guess you missed that often-made criticism while you go on about “La La land”.

...we’ll continue to fight for a safer US and to make sure our soldiers are safe and protected and that our country is safe and protected.

Yeah. Right.

Wake me up when you start to recognize, let alone act, on reality.

Defend itself?  What the hell are you spewing?  The pres works for us and does not get to slant the information to get his way or to justify his position.  I don’t know what the right is complaining about, it wanted a war, it got a war. The right just didn’t figure that the public would get on to the ruse that if we just keep scaring the citizen we can keep them from asking the right questions about what is going on. 

Oh, Lik,I haven’t missed anything, I ‘m just not buying what you righties are trying to sell.

Defend itself?  What the hell are you spewing?  The pres works for us and does not get to slant the information to get his way or to justify his position.

I am “spewing” nothing. The simple fact of the matter is that the President and his positions are attacked and smeared daily by the press. Often these attacks and smears are unwarrented. The administration too often does not come out and correct the record. Notice that I didn’t advocate that they come out and “slant” any information.

Why can’t the President justify his positions?

I don’t know what the right is complaining about, it wanted a war, it got a war.

What?

The right just didn’t figure that the public would get on to the ruse that if we just keep scaring the citizen we can keep them from asking the right questions about what is going on.

Yeah, could you explain that? Thanks.

Oh, Lik,I haven’t missed anything, I ‘m just not buying what you righties are trying to sell.

What am I trying to “sell” here?

Is everything a conspiracy Puzzlefeet? Good grief.

Nice try, Rob!  We’re just following the Republican/Rove playbook!

Well, the Dem/leftie/MSM “playbook” is to lie and smear and to do nothing against the terrorists but talk to them, so YES!  Absolutely.

It’s easy to win when the other team won’t even take the field, and simply stands on the sidelines spewing hate and insults.

Rob:
From this thread:
“The war in Iraq has made us safer because it took down a terror-sponsoring regime that bred terrorism through its oppression and replaced it with a democracy
From an earlier thread today:
“I have little doubt that our occupation of that country (Iraq)is a good recruiting tool for the Islamic fascists”

Which is it?  Is Iraq making us safer, or breeding terrorists?

I dream al-Qaede will someday have the same presence within Iraq it did during Saddam’s regime ..

puzzledfeet opines:

Yeah, Rob, we just a bunch of people from the Bush Administration come out and deny the report, right?  NOT!  If this were not correct doncha think they would have out on the talk shows this morning.

Acutally, puzzled one, the unravelling of the Plame kerfuffle demonstrates the exact opposite.  There was no coordinated effort by the Bush Administration and the Dark Lord Rove to counter the columnies and misrepresentations of former Ambasasador Wilson.  If a calumny of that nature is allowed to stand without counter by the Administration, why would this allegation from one of the most biased and contra-factual organs of the MSM deserve more?

puzzled continues:

I seem to remember back when the war talk was hot and heavy, Cheney going on the talk shows and using those very leaks to the “MSM” to juice up his calls for war with Iraq.

I can’t answer what I don’t recall, so what say you provide us with some links instead of hand waving at a memory which may, or may not, bear some resemblence to observable reality.

Out Here
Rodney Graves

Out Here
Rodney G. Graves

Ceterum censeo Parthia esse delendam
Latin: “Furthermore, Parthia (Persia aka modern day Iran) should be destroyed.”

It’s easy to win

Not
When the field is an Iraqi shit storm and
foreigners are calling the plays.

Not
When the indigenous cheerleaders you trained and hired
are blowing up the team buses and reporting team positions
to your league rivals.

Not
When coach GWB says

I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma

Looking at the scoreboard-
A 3000 dead, 20,000 American wounded
COMMA
3&1/2 years played unknown time left.

When his wrong looks right…
though he always treats you bad
You find little excuses
for all the sadness and abuses

Conservatives
You’ve Been in Love Too Long

Let’s see here, the report is from April of this year and the President continues to assert we are safer and that we are winning the war in Iraq and the war on terror. And now we come to know that this isn’t the case. 

But why would we have the administration actually being candid with the American people?  Oh yea, that’s right, the election is only 43 days away.  The president’s account of where we are in the war on terror is starkly different than those of the intelligence experts.  God forbid if we listen to the intelligence officials without the slant of Bush/Cheney/Rove.  No, we get more of the same from Bush, we are safer, we are safer but only if you elect republicans.  What a bunch of hooey.

Woof: Thanks for encapsulating all the leftie lies about the war on terrorism in one comment.  This is the perfect illustration why you guys can’t be trusted with any elective office in this country.  You don’t have either the intelligence or the competence.  You are cowards who run at the first sign of adversity.  Good luck, suckers!

What a bunch of hooey.

I agree.  The report from the NYT, a known leftie operative organization, of an unseen memo, is hooey of the highest order.  It has been reported 43 days before an election that is going down the drain for the Dems/lefties, and they are desperate to create yet another lie with which to demonize an administration that is acting in the best interests of the country, unlike your side, which only cares for short term political gain.  Shame on you!

Robert:

Do you have a ‘hot key’ that produces words and phrases like ‘Lefty’, ‘the Left’ and ‘Lefty Lies’?  It might save your wrist if you got one.  Just tryin’ to help you know.
If the government wants to refute the NYT piece, how about releasing the NIE?  Let the unwashed masses read it and decide for itself.

No, R108, the shame is on this administration once again slanting the intelligence information so that they can attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of the American people.  The shame is on this administration for continuing to pursue this strategy and then claim we are winning and we are safer when the evidence proves otherwise. 

If this report were not accurate, Bush/Cheney/Rove would be all over this on the Sunday shows.  Not a peep. Not a sound, zilch,nada, bupkis, zero.  But you keep wallowing in the sludge of this administration.  The shame is all yours.

puzzled one repeates the previous assertion:

If this report were not accurate, Bush/Cheney/Rove would be all over this on the Sunday shows.  Not a peep. Not a sound, zilch,nada, bupkis, zero.  But you keep wallowing in the sludge of this administration.  The shame is all yours.

and declines to answer the previous challenge to it, which I now gladly repost:

Acutally, puzzled one, the unravelling of the Plame kerfuffle demonstrates the exact opposite.  There was no coordinated effort by the Bush Administration and the Dark Lord Rove to counter the columnies and misrepresentations of former Ambasasador Wilson.  If a calumny of that nature is allowed to stand without counter by the Administration, why would this allegation from one of the most biased and contra-factual organs of the MSM deserve more?

Out Here
Rodney Graves

Out Here
Rodney G. Graves

Ceterum censeo Parthia esse delendam
Latin: “Furthermore, Parthia (Persia aka modern day Iran) should be destroyed.”

Just tryin’ to help you know.

I strongly question your sincerity as obfuscation is your normal mode

If the government wants to refute the NYT piece, how about releasing the NIE?
So it’s the responsibility of the government to refute all the media lies.  Ok, if you feel that way, refute the lie that you are a wife beater and a child molester.

gregdn: This is the typical leftie tactic: Put out a lie, then order the President to refute it.  It’s just more BS, until they produce the actual memo.  The Dems/lefties want to believe anything of this type, of course, since they have nothing else.  It’s not the administration’s job to do their work for them.  Bring on the proof!

P:

...when the evidence proves otherwise.

What evidence?  They need to produce some evidence, since they are known liars and their claims are worthless.  The NYT has no credibility.  The burden of proof here is on them, not the administration.

Robert:
If the NYT has no credibility as you assert than you have nothing to worry about: no one will believe the article.
Even so, I would like to see the government release the entire Intelligence Estimate. They’ve released them before.

DocDave: ‘Obfuscation is my normal mode?’??
using 50 cent words won’t get you any farther with me than it does for Robert.
Which of my points didn’t you understand?  Perhaps I can elucidate (yeah, I own a thesaurus too).

gregdn: You guys have it exactly backwards.  Your entire point is bound up in the assumption that the NYT is being truthful, and that the administration has something to prove.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.  The NYT is claiming something destructive to the administration, but is refusing to provide any evidence other than their say-so.  Plamegate is not the least of their pecadillos, only the most recent.  They puffed it up from nothing for three years.  Why should we believe them now?  The burden of proof is on the one making the claims, which would be the NYT.

Clearly the NYT Hates the President. AND, is willing to lie and repeat lies in its opposition to the Administration.  There were a number of reasons to justify bringing Saddam down. One of which was his support of terrorism against US interests.  It is to America’s credit that we have stayed in Iraq attempting to create the Mideast’s second democratic-style govt.  I have no doubt that Islamic terrorists have popped up in many areas of the world since the beginning of the Iraq war. It’s illogical to believe had we not gone into Iraq it would have stopped spreading.  This war will last a long time and take many lives and I pray we continue to fight it until the enemy is defeated! That victory that will come, No Thanks to the NYT and its deluded allies…

Robert:
“The NYT is claiming something destructive to the administration”
How, pray tell is this ‘destructive’ to the administration? It’s either the truth or it’s not about our Iraqi adventure.  In our democratic society it’s subject to debate.
If the Government doesn’t want to release the rest of the report than I guess they’ll have to put up with the what the NYT says is the gist of the report.

r108 said

The report from the NYT, a known leftie operative organization, of an unseen memo, is hooey of the highest order.  It has been reported 43 days before an election that is going down the drain for the Dems/lefties, and they are desperate to create yet another lie with which to demonize an administration that is acting in the best interests of the country, unlike your side, which only cares for short term political gain.

Now that truly is a comment for the ages. It hits all the important points...the biased media, the pending Democrat defeat, the stout defence of the Administration and the identification of Dems as only interested in politics. There may or may not be intersections with reality but as a piece of propaganda, and I use that term in its strictest sense, your comment immediate induction into the SA Hall of Fame.

Well done sir!

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

Well, at least the Democrats have figured out how to keep from getting caught pushing a fake memo.

Don’t show the memo.

MikeA: No substantive arguments, I see.  Please refute any of it, if you can.  Rob’s post on the Dem hit machine is right on the money.  None of what I wrote is new news.

gregdn:

If the Government doesn’t want to release the rest of the report than I guess they’ll have to put up with the what the NYT says is the gist of the report.

No we don’t.  The NYT needs to prove what they said is no only factually true, but that it is the whole truth.  They haven’t done that yet, so no reply is necessary.  Anyone can make up anything, if there is no hard copy.
Either way, it’s destructive to the administration, and you know it.  You are being disingenuous again.  Shame on you!

Most of us know it isn’t true, because it doesn’t reflect the reality of what is going on.  It is just another feeble attempt by the Dem hit machine to make up something out of nothing, like Plamegate.

Robert:
I said:
“If the Government doesn’t want to release the rest of the report than I guess they’ll have to put up with the what the NYT says is the gist of the report.”
You said:
“No we don’t.  The NYT needs to prove what they said is no only factually true, but that it is the whole truth.  They haven’t done that yet, so no reply is necessary.  Anyone can make up anything, if there is no hard copy.
Either way, it’s destructive to the administration, and you know it.  You are being disingenuous again.  Shame on you!”

‘Destructive to the Administration’?  This report is either true, or not true. Whether it’s ‘destructive’ to an Administration depends on how the Administration itself handles the information.

gregdn: It could also be a complete fabrication, with the sole purpose of lying about the administration.  I never said it would be destructive to the administration, if the report exists, and is anything like the NYT claims it is; what I said(and I apologize if this wasn’t clear) is that the NYT is involved in trying to be destructive to the administration.  This isn’t really about semantics, you know.

When you think about it, if the NYT really has something, why are they holding back on it? If what they claim is true, what a bombshell if they actually produced the memo!  Why don’t they?  Instead, they want to tell us what they have selected for us to know about it, without proof of any kind.

gregdn: I notice that you haven’t given the only argument here that might hold water: The NYT is a reliable source, and so should be believed.  Maybe you don’t like the sound of belly laughter, I don’t know.
You see, the NYT is so agendized against the President that if they did produce the memo, or if it is produced by the administration, and it gives the lie to their “leaks”, they will simply claim that it has been altered in some way, again without any proof. They have played this game before.

How the the war in Iraq made us safe ?.It made the Iraqis safe not us.You are talking like the Bush Admin before the war,and when they made the world beleive that Saddam possesed WMD,which Powel was unconfortably holding a tube of Bullshit and explaining Bull.

The whole world knows the reason we went to war,cause of 9-11 and not cause Saddam was murdering his people.We did not give a dam about them and still don`t

None of the 9-11 were Iraqis and had nothing to do with Saddam.So instead of attacking the countreis they came from,we did Iraq.We grounded all saudi and other Arab nationals,and allowed the Osama`s family to safly LEAVE.Why?,maybe it was a deal between Laden and Bush ,that he would do what Bush want him to ,for the safe evacuation of his Family,who MUST be suplying him with Money to do and buy young men to his side.

r108...I would sooner answer the riddle of how many angels can dance on the head of a pin than attempt to refute that comment.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

lisa asks the stupid, How the the war in Iraq made us safe ?

Saddam is gone. He will no longer try to assassinate one of my Presidents. He will no longer take Oil for Food money for who knows what. He will no longer pass the torch onto his now dead sons.

You are talking like the Bush Admin before the war,and when they made the world beleive that Saddam possesed WMD...

No, Mrs. Ignorant. The world already believed that Saddam had WMD. It was the major selling point because it was the one thing that everybody already agreed on. And for all we know now, Saddam probably did have them. It’s not like he didn’t have 14 months to move them out of the country in the “rush to war”.

We did not give a dam about them and still don`t

Who is this “we”? Speak for yourself.

None of the 9-11 were Iraqis and had nothing to do with Saddam.

Who cares? I’ll exlain it once again: the war against terrorism is in no way limited to those who committed 9/11.

We grounded all saudi and other Arab nationals,and allowed the Osama`s family to safly LEAVE.Why?

We let them leave after we vetted them. Other Saudis and Arab nationals got similar treatment.

maybe it was a deal between Laden and Bush ,that he would do what Bush want him to ,for the safe evacuation of his Family,who MUST be suplying him with Money to do and buy young men to his side.

You’re a kook. Most of the bin Laden family has no ties to Osama other than blood. You’d know this if you were concerned about the truth.

You should learn something about what you’re talking about.

How the the war in Iraq made us safe ?.It made the Iraqis safe not us.

Lisa,

Actually, the Iraq war was not intended to make you safe.  As a European, you should be aware that the responsibility of the US President, any US President is to the Constitution and the people of the United States, and not to the socialist failures of Europe.  Your War with radical Islam is already being fought… in Europe.  And between your stagnant economies, your cradle to grave socialism which you can ill-afford, and a steadily dclining birth rate, it is clear that the Islamists already have the upper had.  So, don’t worry, Lisa, the US is not about to force on you a solution to a problem you refuse to acknowledge and have little interest in trying to solve yourselves.

The whole world knows the reason we went to war,cause of 9-11 and not cause Saddam was murdering his people.We did not give a dam about them and still don`t

Ah, the sheer, unmitigated presumptuousness!  The leftie flower child is now speaking on behalf of the whole world.  What appalling arrogance.

Tell me, please.  Do read any less poorly than you write?  Probably not, but if so, I’ll be glad to recommend some reading materials which will enlighten you.  I’m always in favor of aiding those who are disadvantaged.

Actually, the Iraq war was not intended to make you safe.

Is Iraq the focal point of the war on terror in the Middle East or not? It seems to me that Bush supporters can not have this both ways...either Iraq has been made the place where the battle against the jihadists has been taken in order to beat them thus making the world safer or we’re forced to go back to the original WMD/imminent danger justification.

So, don’t worry, Lisa, the US is not about to force on you a solution to a problem you refuse to acknowledge and have little interest in trying to solve yourselves.

I think you underestimate the influence that American actions have in the world. America may not implement any specific policies aimed at changing European behaviour but surely you would agree that Europe is affected by American policy in general.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

Is Iraq the focal point of the war on terror in the Middle East or not?

Yes. It is the major focal point at the moment. This, of course, may change in the future (especially if we grow some nuts with regards to Iran).

It seems to me that Bush supporters can not have this both ways...either Iraq has been made the place where the battle against the jihadists has been taken in order to beat them thus making the world safer or we’re forced to go back to the original WMD/imminent danger justification.

What is both ways about that?

I think you underestimate the influence that American actions have in the world. America may not implement any specific policies aimed at changing European behaviour but surely you would agree that Europe is affected by American policy in general.

Bat One’s point was that Europe will fight the war against terrorism in their own streets. They’ve already begun. We Americans can’t make them fight the threat, they’ll be forced to fight the threat by the enemy itself.

What is both ways about that?

Bat One said that the war was not intended to keep Lisa safe but that seems to be the rationale for it these days. Your interpretation of Bat One’s second point does make sense...thanks.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

Bat One said that the war was not intended to keep Lisa safe but that seems to be the rationale for it these days.

The rationale was never to keep the snarky Europeans safe. That’s not why America took on the action. We took on the action to keep us safe.

Is Iraq the focal point of the war on terror in the Middle East or not? It seems to me that Bush supporters can not have this both ways...either Iraq has been made the place where the battle against the jihadists has been taken in order to beat them thus making the world safer or we’re forced to go back to the original WMD/imminent danger justification.

MikeA,

Why would you suggest that there needs be only one focal point?  And why does the Left continue to insist, wrongly, that multiple choice questions be answered “True” or “False.” For a group whose recent buzzword was “nuance” this shows an appalling short-sightedness.

As for “justification” I personally believe that Saddam ought to have been summarily removed as soon as it became known that he was behind the plot to assassinate former President Bush.  One more Clintonian lapse.  So the question of original justification is wasted on me… although again, you seem to place it in an either/or, true/false frame of reference.  One which I don’t believe the Bush White House ever subscribed to.

As for America’s influence in Europe, I’m delighted to hear that those of you on the Left have come to the view that the US still retains influence.  During the 2004 Presidential campaign, most liberals seemed to be of a stenuously different point of view.  On the other hand, please take caution to guard against the silly notion that the influence of our actions on Europe implies some sort of gratuitous reciprical responsibility on our part to allow our actions to be determined by “nuanced” European whim.

lik...the beauty in defeating the jihadists will be that everyone is safe, snarky included. America may well have acted to defend itself but when the jihadists are beaten then everyone will benefit.

Bat One...I don’t think that there can be one focal point either but Iraq as the centre of the fight today is a popular theme on these threads. I am also pleased to see that you reject the true/false dichotomy...sometimes the world is black and white but more often it’s a shifting shade of grey. As for America’s influence in the world, I suspect that you are gently pulling my leg as I’m sure you know that I’m talking less about the explicit variety than I am about the consequences of American action.

I sometimes forget that you are not just another Bush apologist but rather a smart independent thinker who just happens to hold some incorrect views. Sorry for placing you in the groupthink catagory.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

hard to miss that wink now isn’t it?

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

I sometimes forget that you are not just another Bush apologist but rather a smart independent thinker who just happens to hold some incorrect views.  Sorry for placing you in the groupthink catagory.

MikeA,

Worry not.  All is forgiven.

As for those “incorrect views” you cite, I rather thought that was the point of gathering here in the first place.

MikeA:

Is Iraq the focal point of the war on terror in the Middle East or not?

The President has been quite clear on this issue from the beginning.  To paraphrase, it’s something like: “We’re fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here.” Not an exact quote, but close enough.  The lefties are spinning this as “increasing terrorism”, when the truth is that we have called all the terrorists out of the woodwork; they were already there, but hiding.  Why do you think we call them “sleeper cells”?  None of the lying or distraction or obstruction gets the job done.

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

None of the lying or distraction or obstruction gets the job done.

You speak of fighting them over there so you don’t have to fight them at home, you speak of lefties spinning and you speak of sleeper cells when all I asked is whether Iraq is the focal point or the central front of the war on terror. The answer is either yes or no or, as Bat indicates, that there isn’t a single focal point. You say that your President has been quite clear on this issue but I don’t know what you think having read your latest comment.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

we’ll continue to fight for a safer US and to make sure our soldiers are safe and protected and that our country is safe and protected.

Lik, here are the keys to puzzle’s riddle.

fight—malign the President, undermine the troops efforts, encourage our enemies.

safer—temporary comfort that comes from appeasing enemies, and establishing world opinion as foreign policy.

safe, protected soldiers—surrender the battlefield to terrorists and abandon the Iraqi people.

safe, protected county—no real border security, amnesty for illegal aliens, no voter ID’s, no republican control in either houses, no republican president, a humanitarian military.

You mean, kind of like when gas prices fall almost 50 cents a gallon right before election time.  Interesting, lower gas prices, higher Pres. approval....all in the same week.

Come on dude, it’s called politics and everyone’s playin em.  Can’t blame one set over the other.  We’re the idiots believing all of this crap.  We are the ones to blame, not the media.  They’re just doing what they’re told to do by us.....we believe it, they print/report it.  From Fox to the NY Times....we are ultimately responsible.

Quit pointing fingers at each other, wake up and realize that we are all being taken for a ride and turned against one another by something that only we can control.

You mean, kind of like when gas prices fall almost 50 cents a gallon right before election time.  Interesting, lower gas prices, higher Pres. approval....all in the same week.

Of course, the Israeli/Hezbollah war winding down, Iran giving in a bit on its nuclear ambitions, and the post-Labor Day drop in oil prices that happens every damn year couldn’t possibly account for this, could it?

What a dark world you live in when everything is a plot or conspiracy to screw you.

MikeA: Sorry, I should have connected all the dots for you.  Iraq is the main focal point in the Global War on Terror.  That means we are fighting terrorism all over the world, but for several sensible reasons, our largest effort right now is in Iraq.  Clear?  I don’t know why you even asked the question, so perhaps you could explain that.  Isn’t this all rather obvious?

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

BR: Welcome to the wonderful world of leftie “thinking”.  When gas prices go up(for obvious economic reasons), it’s a conspiracy to enrich Bush’s oil buddies.  Now, when gas prices go down(again, for obvious economic reasons), it’s a conspiracy to aid the Republican Party in the upcoming elections.  Brilliant!

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

You mean, kind of like when gas prices fall almost 50 cents a gallon right before election time.  Interesting, lower gas prices, higher Pres. approval....all in the same week.

Brian,

I’d be very much interested if you could explain the exact mechanism/procedure being followed by the White House to accomplish what you have accused here.  Care to offer any details?

If you don’t have anything specific to back up your allegation, maybe you could try inventing something.  Those of us who actually know something about economics and markets, supply and demand, commodity fungibility, forward pricing, and production capapcity promise not to make fun of you if can manage to make your explanation at least modestly believable.

MikeA: After rereading my previous comment and your comment, I realize I might not have spelled things out clearly enough for you to understand.
Iraq is a focal point in the Global War on Terror for the terrorists, because of their obsessive need to kill all the infidels.  That explains the President’s statement to that effect.  If you still don’t understand, let me know, and maybe I can make it simpler.
Iraq is not our only focal point in the Global War on Terror, but it is the main one right now, due to the number of troops and assets involved.  Clear enough? If not, please let me know.

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

When his wrong looks right…
though he always treats you bad
You find little excuses
for all the sadness and abuses

Woof,

This perfectly captures the attitude of liberals to the likes of Chavez, Ahmadinejad, Sadaam, and every other mad-man.  Meanwhile, Bush is the perceived evil liberals focus on.  This is pure cowardice.

HG: I find it amusing that Hugo and Mahmoud became the spokesmen for the Democrat Party, while the spokesman for the Republican Party is...the President of the United States!

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

MikeAdamson said, lik...the beauty in defeating the jihadists will be that everyone is safe, snarky included. America may well have acted to defend itself but when the jihadists are beaten then everyone will benefit.

Well yeah. No doubt about it. That’s more like a side benefit though.

...sometimes the world is black and white but more often it’s a shifting shade of grey.

And sometimes it is purple!

HG: I find it amusing that Hugo and Mahmoud became the spokesmen for the Democrat Party, while the spokesman for the Republican Party is...the President of the United States!

R108,

Great point.  It’s nice to know who stands with the demo’s and who stands with the republicans.

Of course, Times readers won’t get to actually see the memo in question we’ll just have to rely on these unnamed sources and the Times’ own professional objectivity.

The story was independently reported by several different newpapers, including the Washington Post and the LA Times.

Will: This is no surprise; they are also in the leftie camp, playing “Get the President”.  Still no hard evidence, just hearsay.  No matter how many people repeat hearsay, it’s still just gossip.

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.

r108...thanks for your further thoughts. I have to confess that I’m getting kind of dizzy trying to follow your clarifications...it’s a minor point though and I suspect that our efforts are better spent arguing something else. I’ll take your last comment as your position and move on unless you have an objection.

Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives.

John Stuart Mill

MikeA: I don’t see the complication, but OK then.  The President’s stance has been the same since the beginning.  Not so for the lefties trying to spin everything, though.

Hope and change, in a free world, are the private possessions of motivated individuals.