"Yes, you see — you see it on TV, and that’s the power of an enemy that is willing to kill innocent people. But there’s also an unbelievable will and resiliency by the Iraqi people…. I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma because there is — my point is, there’s a strong will for democracy." George W. Bush to Wolf Blitzer, CNN - Emphasis mine.
2,703 dead American commas, 19,910 wounded and maimed American commas, 35 – 40,000 dead Iraqi commas.
What do you think it feels like to be a soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq without the proper body armor to protect you?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq without the proper armored vehicles to protect you?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq on your third tour and to not know when you’ll go home to your family because you’ve been involuntarily extended….again?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq on your third tour and 24 hours before you’re suppose to go home you find out you’ve been involuntarily extended….again?
What do you think if feels like to be a soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq and know that fully two thirds of American combat units are not combat ready?
What do you think it feels like to be and American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq knowing that the Chief of Staff of your Army withheld submitting the budget to fund you and your equipment because the Secretary of Defense slashed $25 billion off of your budget?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq knowing that the National Guard back at home doesn’t have the equipment it needs to train to replace you and to help your family when another Katrina strikes?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq knowing that your President wants to modify the Geneva Conventions and jeopardize your life and treatment and those of your comrades who follow you so that his administration can torture other people?
What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq knowing that the Taliban are coming back in Afghanistan as strong as or stronger than ever taking large swaths of country your comrades bled and died for?
Now…..What do you think it feels like to be an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq on your third tour and to not know when you’ll go home to your family because you’ve been involuntarily extended….again and your Commander in Chief has just referred to you and what you are doing in Iraq as a COMMA?
What do you think it feels like to be a mother, father, husband, wife, brother, sister, son, or daughter of an American soldier killed, maimed, or wounded in Afghanistan or Iraq and your President referred to your mother, father, husband, wife, brother, sister, son, or daughter as a COMMA?
For nearly three decades I was that soldier and today many of the soldiers I trained are those American soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq and I will say this for myself and if I maybe so bold for those soldiers.
Mr. President I’m no damn comma!!
I am an American soldier and if you have no more respect for me than that, then I say to you sir that your words and indeed your deeds can only lead me to believe you are ignorant at best and a coward at worst and certainly not deserving of my respect and since you are in fact the President of the United States I must say I tend to believe you must be the later.
Those Are The Sergeant Majors Thoughts On That.
9 comments:
After reading the full transcript of Bush and Blitzer's conversation, I have a different take on his statement. I believe Bush was referring to the way some (Kofi and others) have said that Iraq may collapse into a full-scale civil war. Bush notes that over 12 million Iraqis voted last December and that there is a strong will for democracy. I believe the "when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look just like a comma" comment is in reference to the civil war scenario. He stated his admiration for the will and resiliency of the Iraqi people. It seems like he implied that they will overcome this adversity and create a sustainable democracy. Then again...I could be wrong.
I don't think anyone could believe that Bush or any politician (left or right) has such disregard for the military and their sacrifices. Scratch that...Hilary Clinton loathes the military. Other than her, most Americans respect and admire the military.
You could EASILY find something better to criticize Bush over. He had a poor choice of words but I think you’re stretching on this one.
Anonymous
That would make some sense if it weren't, for one thing, what was I believe the use of a code to Christian religious extremists. Take a sec and check this out.
A lot of people have been slamming Bush for his comment that Iraq is "just a comma". As an e-mail correspondent pointed out, this is another case where Bush is using code words to speak directly to his Christian right base.
The phrase is: "Never put a period where God has put a comma." Which is to say - it ain't over yet, and God may well make it better. So Iraq's bad, but if we trust in God, he'll make it better.
Given that and looking back at what he said, doesn't the phrase just kind of seem odd? It'll "look just like a comma"? Who says that? Out of the blue? the interjection of code into a serious conversation about mutilated iraqis is sick enough, but the brush off it gave it is sicker.
And look at the comment again: I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma because there is -- my point is, there's a strong will for democracy.
"It" is just the civil war? doesn't look like it with the "I like to tell people" intro.
I said it on dKos, and I'll say it again - Ooo-rah Sgt. Major.
I am interested in what the anonymous poster said - "I don't think anyone could believe that Bush...has such disregard for the military..."
He has to be kidding right? He couldn't have read the Sgt Major's post and then wrote that Mr. Bush supports and takes care of the US military. If this is the way he takes care of something he "respects" it's scary to think what he would do otherwise.
anonymous is full of it - no progressive I have read has anything but the greatest admiration for our soldiers and the greatest concern for their welfare - and Hillary Clinton is no exception.
What progressives don't respect is the mindlessly combative attitude that chickenhawks exhibit when they commit fine, brave people to hardship, futility, injury and death - solely to fulfill their ignorant, warped, personal ambitions.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think history shows a lot more examples of good soldiers being betrayed by flawed leadership than the other way around.
Sergent Major:
Thank you for your service to our country.
I disagree with your assesment. We are not fighting against the forces of a nation state, we are fighting against a irregular force that is not bound by the Geneva Conventions. Nor do they follow any traditional of a national army.
They are terrorists who fight without uniform and without the "honor" of a country.
Sergent Major: When you compair this conflict to those of the 20th century how do the casulties of our military compair? WW1? WW2" Korea? Viet Nam?
We loose more people in the US each year to murder then we have during the entire "war" what does that say???
Grapes - you are ignorant to the facts behind Hillary Clinton's views. Educate yourself. The woman hates the military but she'll say/do anything to get elected or look good.
I wish posters would use some kind of name so you can address their comments directly.
The first anonymous post I am going to simply respectfully disagree with. I believe I fully understood the "comma" comment and at any rate the C in C needs to consider more carefully his comments and I have a different perspective on Clinton him and her. They supported the military as forcefully or more forcefully than any other President and Senator. That's my humble thoughts on that.
As to the comments by anonymous number two I believe that if you review my earlier posts you will find that I strongly disagree with refering to a "war" on terror. I fully understand the dynamics of terrorism and the fact that one does not wage war on a radical ideaology. Secondly I believe it to be extremely disingenuous to compare the struggle against terror or the deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq to World War II or any other war and I find it both disingenuous and offensive to compare the deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq to the muder rate in the United States. I apologize but if you don't grasp those dynamics I don't believe your looking hard enough.
Best Regards.
SMAGE
As Steve Gilliard pointed out, the comma thing was a "dog whistle to the fundies."
Sure, it demeaned the troops, but when has Bush ever cared about the troops except as a handy political tool.
He was really signalling to his Christianist base, yet again, that he is God's guy, who can do no wrong.
In looking at the use of the word "comma", it occurs to me that President Bush was suggesting that the Middle East has, as we know, a very long history, with much bloodshed going back for a few thousand years. Since a "comma" is a brief pause in a sentence, it follows that his use of "comma" was to imply that this conflict is also a "pause" of sorts. Consider the following fact:
In World War II, America sent some 16,000,000 troops to various parts of the world. We lost some 455,000 of them, and that was in just a 3+ year period. In VietNam, we had a total of close to a half million soldiers, and about 55,000 died. Now THAT war dragged on much longer than did WW II.
So far, this war has seen some 3,000 American soldiers paying the final price for our liberties, fighting against a group of barbarians who would not know the meaning of the word "civility" if it came up and smacked them in the face.
Frankly, I'm damned proud of our American soldiers, as well as our President, and so should everyone else. They've unseated a tyrant on his own turf, and the result (for now) is a new Democracy has come into being in a part of the world that has seen very few of them.
A Comma? Yes, in the long term....or perhaps I should say...in a larger sense....this periof of time in which we are fighting over there will be like the pause that is offered by a comma. Ultimately, Liberty will win out, and freedom for the people of the Middle East will prevail.
It's time to stop nit-picking on every last little word that comes forth from the mouth of our President, and give him the support that he deserves! Give it a REAL chance, instead of being led astray by those who would, in reality, want to see the ruination of America.
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