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Saturday, September 25, 2004
Bury the Rag Deep in Your FaceNow is the time for your tears:
Mr. Rumsfeld, who did not set out a timetable for any troop withddrawal, said, "Any implication that that place has to be peaceful and perfect before we can reduce coalition and U.S. forces, I think, would obviously be unwise, because it's never been peaceful and perfect, and it isn't likely to be."
Why would Rumsfeld say something like this now, at the bottom of the ugly chaos in Iraq? It sounds to me like he's retreated from the dream of creating a stable and democratic system there, just like John Kerry. ("John Kerry and John Edwards will make the creation of a stable and secure environment in Iraq our immediate priority in order to lay the foundations for sustainable democracy.") No one now in line to lead the U.S. wants to contemplate leaving troops in Iraq long enough to convert it to a working democratic state. That might be wise, if you believe this Counterpunch poll, but it also means that instead of a "liberated" Iraq at the heart of the Middle East we'll wind up with something, um, else.
posted by Michael Scott Moore |
5:43 PM
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