Yay! We Won!
The Associated Press has it:
Hey, don't be so glum, people -- look how much safer we are.
A little farther down in the article ...
The mission is finally accomplished.
BAGHDAD (AP) — Nearly nine years after American troops stormed across the Iraq border in a blaze of shock and awe, U.S. officials quietly ended the bloody and bitterly divisive conflict here Thursday, but the debate over whether it was worth the cost in money and lives is yet unanswered.
While many of the speeches painted a picture of victory — for both the troops and the Iraqi people now set on a path for democracy — the gnawing questions remain: Will Iraqis be able to forge their new government amid the still stubborn sectarian clashes. And will Iraq be able to defend itself and remain independent in a region fraught with turmoil and still steeped in insurgent threats.
Stark reminders of the fragile and often violent nature of the situation in Iraq engulfed the 45-minute ceremony. It was tucked into fortified corner of the airport, ringed with concrete blast walls. And on the chairs — nearly empty of Iraqis — were tags that listed not only the name of the VIP assigned to the seat, but the bunker they should move to in case of an attack.
The speeches touched on the success of the mission as well as its losses: Nearly 4,500 Americans and 100,000 Iraqis killed. Another 32,000 American and tens of thousands Iraqis wounded. And $800 billion from the U.S. Treasury. US formally ends Iraq war with little fanfare
Hey, don't be so glum, people -- look how much safer we are.
A little farther down in the article ...
With this withdrawal, the Americans are leaving behind a destroyed country," said Mariam Khazim, a Shiite whose father was killed when a mortar shell struck his home in Sadr City. "The Americans did not leave modern schools or big factories behind them. Instead, they left thousands of widows and orphans. The Americans did not leave a free people and country behind them, in fact they left a ruined country and a divided nation."
Some Iraqis celebrated the exit of what they called American occupiers, neither invited nor welcome in a proud country.
"The American ceremony represents the failure of the U.S. occupation of Iraq due to the great resistance of the Iraqi people," said lawmaker Amir al-Kinani, a member of the political coalition loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
The mission is finally accomplished.
posted by JimK at 9:18 AM
6 Comments:
When all air travel was suspended after 9/11, Bush ordered the Bin Laden family to be flown out of the US.
Then on May 1, 2003, Bush declared "Mission Accomplished" in Iraq. That declaration was obviously premature and a mistake and yet it took the dumb one 5.5 years to admit it.
"In November 2008, Bush indicated that he regretted the use of the [Mission Accomplished] banner, stating in a CNN interview, "To some, it said, well, 'Bush thinks the war in Iraq is over,' when I didn't think that. It conveyed the wrong message.
In January 2009, Bush said that "Clearly, putting 'Mission Accomplished' on an aircraft carrier was a mistake."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Mission_Accomplished_speech#Subsequent_comments
We're in much better hands now.
President Obama's 2008 pledge to kill Osama bin Laden is a Promise Kept
"What I have said is we're going encourage democracy in Pakistan, expand our non-military aid to Pakistan so that they have more of a stake in working with us, but insisting that they go after these militants. And if we have Osama bin Laden in our sights and the Pakistani government is unable or unwilling to take them out, then I think that we have to act, and we will take them out.
"We will kill bin Laden. We will crush al-Qaida . That has to be our biggest national security priority."
Thank you to our troops! Welcome home for the holidays!
when Bush left office, the Iraq war was won
the surge had worked, the people of Iraq sided with us, Iran's influence was in decline
next fall, how our most unAmerican President managed to lose the war, and why, will be thoroughly discussed
A man allegedly attempting to rob a clerk at a Florida McDonald's was shot by a Homeland Security officer who happened to be in the store.
The incident happened at about midnight Saturday in West Palm Beach, according to the Palm Beach Post. The suspect, who was dressed as a woman, later died at a local hospital.
"Unemployment Falls in 43 States, Rises in 3
Unemployment rates fell in 43 states in November, the most number of states to report such declines in eight years.
The falling state rates reflect the brightening jobs picture nationally. The U.S. unemployment rate fell sharply in November to 8.6 percent, the lowest since March 2009. The economy has generated 100,000 or more jobs five months in a row — the first time that's happened since 2006, before the Great Recession.
Only three states reported higher unemployment rates in November, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Four states showed no change.
Nevada for the 18th straight month had the highest state unemployment rate: 13 percent. It was followed by California at 11.3 percent. North Dakota again enjoyed the lowest unemployment rate: 3.4 percent. It was followed by Nebraska at 4.1 percent and South Dakota at 4.3 percent.
The biggest decline in the unemployment rate in November compared with October was in Michigan. Its rate dropped by 0.8 percentage point to 9.8 percent, from 10.6 percent in October.
Alabama, Minnesota, South Carolina and Utah all reported declines of 0.6 percentage point in November from October.
Employers added jobs in 29 states and the District of Columbia. Employment decreased in 19 states and was unchanged in two. The largest month-over-month increases were in New York, up 29,500 jobs, and Texas, with a gain of 20,800.
The largest month-over-month decline occurred in Wisconsin, a drop of 14,600 payroll jobs.
The drop in unemployment rates in 43 states marked the most number of states to show declines since October 2003. "
in a similar vein, the Indianapolis Colts won for the first time in fourteen games this week
it's the season of miracles !!
you see, America is the Colts
the Republicans are Peyton Manning
the Democrats are Curtis Painter
let's remember that unemployment is still significantly higher than it was when Obama took over three years ago
ho ho ho !!
Yeah, and let's all remember how the Bushies got us to the precipice of the Second Great Depression and got the hell out of Dodge while President Obama's stimulus package kept us from falling all the way to the bottom of the pit of despair Bush left us racing toward.
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