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Politics : Don't Blame Me, I Voted For Kerry -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: longnshort who wrote (70751)	11/22/2005 10:46:47 AM
From: 10K a day	Respond to of 81568

That has NOTHING to do w/ TODAY dude. DEAL w/ it...

To: longnshort who wrote (70751)	11/22/2005 12:18:01 PM
From: paret	Respond to of 81568

Traitor John Murtha EATS HIS WORDS: ............................................................... Traitor Murtha VOTED AGAINST withdrawing from Iraq just after he said THIS: Rep. John Murtha: War in Iraq Not Going as Advertised Rep. John Murtha The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all they can in Iraq, but it is time for a change in direction. Our military is suffering. The future of our country is at risk. We can not continue on the present course. It is evident that continued military action in Iraq is not in the best interest of the United States of America, the Iraqi people or the Persian Gulf Region. General Casey said in a September 2005 Hearing, "the perception of occupation in Iraq is a major driving force behind the insurgency." General Abizaid said on the same date, "Reducing the size and visibility of the coalition forces in Iraq is a part of our counterinsurgency strategy." For 2 1/2 years I have been concerned about the U.S. policy and the plan in Iraq. I have addressed my concerns with the Administration and the Pentagon and have spoken out in public about my concerns. The main reason for going to war has been discredited. A few days before the start of the war I was in Kuwait--the military drew a red line around Baghdad and said when U.S. forces cross that line they will be attacked by the Iraqis with Weapons of Mass Destruction--but the US forces said they were prepared. They had well trained forces with the appropriate protective gear. We spend more money on Intelligence than all the countries in the world together, and more on Intelligence than most countries GDP. But the intelligence concerning Iraq was wrong. It is not a world intelligence failure. It is a U.S. intelligence failure and the way that intelligence was misused. I have been visiting our wounded troops at Bethesda and Walter Reed hospitals almost every week since the beginning of the War. And what demoralizes them is going to war with not enough troops and equipment to make the transition to peace; the devastation caused by IEDs; being deployed to Iraq when their homes have been ravaged by hurricanes; being on their second or third deployment and leaving their families behind without a network of support. The threat posed by terrorism is real, but we have other threats that cannot be ignored. We must be prepared to face all threats. The future of our military is at risk. Our military and their families are stretched thin. Many say that the Army is broken. Some of our troops are on their third deployment. Recruitment is down, even as our military has lowered its standards. Defense budgets are being cut. Personnel costs are skyrocketing, particularly in health care. Choices will have to be made. We can not allow promises we have made to our military families in terms of service benefits, in terms of their health care, to be negotiated away. Procurement programs that ensure our military dominance cannot be negotiated away. We must be prepared. The war in Iraq has caused huge shortfalls at our bases in the U.S. Much of our ground equipment is worn out and in need of either serious overhaul or replacement. George Washington said, "To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace." We must rebuild our Army. Our deficit is growing out of control. The Director of the Congressional Budget Office recently admitted to being "terrified" about the budget deficit in the coming decades. This is the first prolonged war we have fought with three years of tax cuts, without full mobilization of American industry and without a draft. The burden of this war has not been shared equally; the military and their families are shouldering this burden. Our military has been fighting a war in Iraq for over two and a half years. Our military has accomplished its mission and done its duty. Our military captured Saddam Hussein, and captured or killed his closest associates. But the war continues to intensify. Deaths and injuries are growing, with over 2,079 confirmed American deaths. Over 15,500 have been seriously injured and it is estimated that over 50,000 will suffer from battle fatigue. There have been reports of at least 30,000 Iraqi civilian deaths. I just recently visited Anbar Province Iraq in order to assess the conditions on the ground. Last May 2005, as part of the Emergency Supplemental Spending Bill, the House included the Moran Amendment, which was accepted in Conference, and which required the Secretary of Defense to submit quarterly reports to Congress in order to more accurately measure stability and security in Iraq. We have now received two reports. I am disturbed by the findings in key indicator areas. Oil production and energy production are below pre-war levels. Our reconstruction efforts have been crippled by the security situation. Only $9 billion of the $18 billion appropriated for reconstruction has been spent. Unemployment remains at about 60 percent. Clean water is scarce. Only $500 million of the $2.2 billion appropriated for water projects has been spent. And most importantly, insurgent incidents have increased from about 150 per week to over 700 in the last year. Instead of attacks going down over time and with the addition of more troops, attacks have grown dramatically. Since the revelations at Abu Ghraib, American casualties have doubled. An annual State Department report in 2004 indicated a sharp increase in global terrorism. I said over a year ago, and now the military and the Administration agrees, Iraq can not be won "militarily." I said two years ago, the key to progress in Iraq is to Iraqitize, Internationalize and Energize. I believe the same today. But I have concluded that the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq is impeding this progress. Our troops have become the primary target of the insurgency. They are united against U.S. forces and we have become a catalyst for violence. U.S. troops are the common enemy of the Sunnis, Saddamists and foreign jihadists. I believe with a U.S. troop redeployment, the Iraqi security forces will be incentivized to take control. A poll recently conducted shows that over 80% of Iraqis are strongly opposed to the presence of coalition troops, and about 45% of the Iraqi population believe attacks against American troops are justified. I believe we need to turn Iraq over to the Iraqis. I believe before the Iraqi elections, scheduled for mid December, the Iraqi people and the emerging government must be put on notice that the United States will immediately redeploy. All of Iraq must know that Iraq is free. Free from United States occupation. I believe this will send a signal to the Sunnis to join the political process for the good of a "free" Iraq. My plan calls: To immediately redeploy U.S. troops consistent with the safety of U.S. forces. To create a quick reaction force in the region. To create an over- the- horizon presence of Marines. To diplomatically pursue security and stability in Iraq This war needs to be personalized. As I said before I have visited with the severely wounded of this war. They are suffering. Because we in Congress are charged with sending our sons and daughters into battle, it is our responsibility, our OBLIGATION to speak out for them. That's why I am speaking out. Our military has done everything that has been asked of them, the U.S. can not accomplish anything further in Iraq militarily. IT IS TIME TO BRING THEM HOME. -Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) is a former Marine, a Vietnam Veteran and the former Chairman of the House Committee on Defense Appropriations.

To: longnshort who wrote (70751)	11/22/2005 12:38:46 PM
From: ChinuSFO	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 81568

As always the idiotic Bush Administration does not get it. What the Administration is being accused of is how they about starting the war and conducting it. NOT WHETHER TO GO TO WAR OR NOT. Besides, the President does not need Congress' OK to ward off imminent threat to the country. There is a very significant difference between the way Bush Sr. went to war and Bush Jr. went into it. Bush Sr. built a coalition by sending James Baker on several missions to several countries. This President just raced into it and what is even worse thumbed his nose at the world community. He did not have a plan and hence could not articulate it other world nations. Now this country, like other world nations is beginning to wonder why Bush went to Iraq in the first place and why he still continues to be there. What his objectives are etc. Now the US is left all alone and forced to bear the consequences. What a shame that the S. Korean Prez announced his troop pullout from Iraq while he was hosting Bush. This man Bush just doesn't get it.

To: longnshort who wrote (70751)	11/22/2005 1:40:58 PM
From: paret	Respond to of 81568

Buh-Bye, Ted Koppel...And Good Riddance! (Debbie Schlussel celebrates Koppel's end) debbieschlussel.com ^ \| 11/22/05 \| Debbie Schlussel Tonight is a time for celebration. Why? Ted Koppel is leaving ABC News and "Nightline" forever. Koppel (whose real name is Ed, not Ted) made his career off the backs of America's hostages in Iran, who spent well over 400 days in captivity. And Koppel's nightly broadcasts about them--which morphed into "Nightline"--didn't help their plight. No, Koppel's constant nights of attention to the Islamic hostage-takers in Iran helped Islamic terrorists, not just those under yesterday's Ayatollah Khomeini, but today's Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi and Osama Bin Laden. They knew--with the advent of constant attention to their evil acts, whether hostage taking or the murder of 3,000--that they would get nightly attention to their demands. And nightly attention to their demands is exactly what Koppel gave them. Nightly consideration of their point of view. Consideration of the "other point of view"--no matter how evil, no matter how dedicated to America's defeat--became the hallmark of Koppel's career. In fact, with Koppel, it wasn't just consideration. It was sympathy for the "other" point of view, no matter how absurd. Then there was his snideness, his arrogance, his smug leftism--all under the facade of "journalism." Conservative point of view or policy? Koppel always managed to deride it with his biased brand of snoot. His snooty manner extended even to his phony, incorrect accent in mispronouncing Hebrew names and words, which didn't fool anyone who knows or speaks Hebrew. If only it were just the mispronunciation that was the problem. Koppel's unabashed pro-Palestinian terrorism slant in the disproportionate "Nightline" coverage of Israel was as obtrusive as a plus-sized model in a Victoria's Secret catalog. Don't believe the hype over Ted Koppel in all of today's mainstream newspapers. He wasn't a great journalist or even a great interviewer. Ted Koppel was just a great ego. When Peter Jennings died, this summer, I was critical of him while the rest of America gushed. The same criticism is equally appropriate to Koppel. Ted Koppel is just Peter Jennings in a cheaper toupee. Unfortunately, while Koppel retires from Nightline, his equally biased, leftist daughter Andrea Koppel spews on as a "reporter" at CNN. Good Riddance, Ted Koppel. One down; many, many more to go.