Iraq

Both Bremer and Powell are saying that if Iraq asks them to leave, the Americans will leave.

Permit me to snort in disbelief.

After all that effort, after the cost of the war, the price paid... of course they will stay. They will simply make sure the people who they choose to form the new government are positive towards any and all US wishes.



I have been disgusted with this entire charade from the moment the US started beating the Iraq war drum. The disinformation, the purposeful ignorance, the double standards, the outright lies, the plausible deniability... leading to an invasion where no WMD are found (remember Powell's slide show with detailed maps and graphs?) and the entire basis for the war is rewritten (right now it is: bringing democracy to these poor people), the branding of any and all opposition as terrorist (preferably, foreign terrorist)... cynical does not even begin to cover it.



Right now, trickling into Najaf bullet by bullet, tank by tank, the Americans are hoping to flush out opposition while their very presence and actions are fuelling it. I can see this ending with the whole of Najaf leveled; I believe the current American leadership of such an apocalyptic mindset that they would actually do this.



And, though I hope that Bush is defeated in the coming elections, I am not sure his replacement will be a hair better. From what I can gather, Kerry plans to substantially increase troops on the ground in Iraq... and stands 100% behind Bush and Sharon in their unilateral plans for the Palestinians. So far, Kerry has shown a staggering lack of knowledge of the area, and the level of the US involvement there, that fuels most of the "hatred" for America.



How I hope the USA will bankrupt itself with these adventures and so doing, clip it's own imperialist wings! I sometimes think: only that way will the world become a safer place.