The State of Disunion Address Sickens Me

Rare indeed is the time when President Bush and I agree. Today I am angry as can be. “This is not the fight we entered in Iraq,” says he in the State of the Union Address. And right he is. There was no fight in Iraq when we entered. We were the schoolyard bully who attacked a country without provocation. We started this war. We destroyed the economy and the infrastructure of Iraq. We Americans lost the respect of the world thanks to our illegal actions in Iraq. And to hear the President make our actions into something of which to be proud just sickens me.

We as a country must change course. The President no longer speaks for a majority of Americans. His course continues to fail in Iraq while we pour money and lives into the effort. The time is here for Congress to take a real stand and follow the will of the American people. We cannot afford either more money or more lives in the lost cause that is Iraq.

Reconstruction Failing in Iraq

In recent letters to the editor readers suggested the media should report all the positive events in Iraq as well as the negative ones. Positive aspects are difficult to find in a country where recent estimates put the number of children in school as low as 35% of eligible children. In Baghdad, the capital city of Iraq, electricity supplies remain lower than before the invasion. Surveys put availability of clean water as low as 53% across the country. Untreated sewage continues to pollute the Euphrates River due to malfunctioning treatment plants and ruptured sewer lines.

While one might argue there are improvements being made, the progress to date has been small. Most of the current reconstruction effort is the result of damage done by American destruction of the infrastructure. As much as half the funds allocated for reconstruction are consumed by overhead costs. Reconstruction efforts are hampered in large measure by the lack of stability in the region.

The solution to these issues is not at all obvious. A military presence seems to aggravate rather than to resolve the issues of a failing country. Perhaps the solution is removal of the American military and the provision of support so the Iraqis can rebuild their own country. We Americans seem to be spending inordinate amounts of money for a failing enterprise.

The Morass In Iraq Continues

After four years of fighting in Iraq, the President proposes sending an additional 20,000 troops to secure Baghdad. Just to secure Baghdad and to offer nothing more. How far we have come in this morass. A military victory in Iraq must be out of our reach when the major goal of increased troop numbers is increased security in a single city.

The blame increasingly is laid on the Iraqis. They are said to not be doing enough. They are blamed in every way possible for the failure of the American occupation. No one bothers to look at the destruction and violence brought to Iraq by the American forces. We are hated as invaders by the Iraqi people as a whole. A majority of Iraqis today wish the Americans to leave the country. How can anyone expect support in terms of military involvement when the force to be supported is so despised.

The only solution is military withdrawal. Then and only then can diplomatic efforts be instituted to allow the Iraqi people a chance to resolve their internal problems. With adequate support in rebuilding a damaged infrastructure, peace may at least have a chance. With the continuing occupation the only chance is for increasing violence.

Urge Biden to Oppose Funding for Iraq

Congress is about to be presented with another supplemental request for military spending. Rumor has this request in the $100 billion range. At the rate of $800million per day in Iraq, that is only about a 4 month supply for the Pentagon. When will this process end? Senator Biden said recently he is opposed to any troop surge in Iraq and yet at every turn he votes to support the increasing expenditures for the occupation of Iraq. As a longtime member of the Senate Biden must know the President acting as commander-in-chief controls troop deployments. The Congress is responsible for appropriating monies to fund the military.

With the country on an increasing debt course the responsible position is not only opposition to the troop surge, but opposition to any future supplemental requests for Iraq. Senator Biden in the past has voted in favor of every supplemental spending bill to reach the Senate floor. Now is the time for a change. Beyond a simple message of opposition we must ask that Senator Biden vote against any further expenditures for Iraq beyond what is necessary for an American withdrawal. Senatory Bidens words are worthless without supportive action.

Biden Opposes Troop Surge at Last

In an Sunday perspective article, Senator Biden adds his voice to the growing clamor against a troop surge in Iraq. Such opposition from the Senator has been a long time coming, but is indeed a welcome move. The current situation in Iraq is untenable. Any increase in American troop strength is likely to only provide additional American targets and increase the numbers of our dead troops rather than bringing any real solution to the problem.

The real solution to Iraq lies in American withdrawal. Many have said the Iraqis must find their own political settlement. Such a settlement is near impossible with an American presence in the country. Senator Biden was careful to avoid suggesting any such solution in Iraq. He was also careful to avoid suggesting the Senate stop funding the war. Only by ending the money support for the occupation can the Senate hope to stop any troop surge proposed by the President. Senator Biden must strengthen his stand and act to oppose any further monies for the Iraq occupation. Otherwise words remain cheap indeed.