The next president of the United States?
US issues, Uncategorized - - Posted on February, 12 at 1:14 pm by Ken L
I guess McCain has to be a good chance at succeeding Bush, given the entrenched prejudices that either Clinton or Obama will have to endure. So what’s his take on the main issues he’ll have to confront in 2009?
SPIEGEL: Your army has already been in Iraq for five years, and almost 4,000 American soldiers have died. What makes you so certain that an increase in the number of troops and the surge can actually have an impact?
McCain: I intend to win the war, and I trust in the proven judgment of our commanders there and the courage and selflessness of the Americans they have the honor to command. I share the grief over the terrible losses we have suffered in its prosecution. There is no other candidate for this office who appreciates more than I do just how awful war is.
SPIEGEL: But?
McCain: But I know that the costs in lives and treasure we would incur should we fail in Iraq will be far greater than the losses we have suffered to date. And I will not allow that to happen.
SPIEGEL: And what would happen if this were to happen anyway?
McCain: Al-Qaida would sound the trumpets to the world that they had defeated the United States. And the further we withdrew, the greater they would advance — until they reached us in America directly.
Gee, what a penetrating analysis. And I don’t see any grief over the terrible losses inflicted on the Iraqi people - as usual with the neo-cons, concern for the human cost of anything starts and ends with the USA.
But the biggest worry is that this doofus apparently believes - or is happy to persuade others - that al Qaeda is some sort of enormous threat with the capacity to take over the world. His running mate might well be Mike Huckabee, who believes in miracles and thinks he’s god’s chosen instrument. And there’s a very good chance they’ll end up running the place.
For god’s sake China and India hurry up and make a new world order. The present one scares the hell out of me.
Posted in US issues, Uncategorized |
February 12th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
McCain’s reliving the Great Military Adventure in Vietnam, right down to a kind of modified Domino Theory (TM).
February 12th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I’ve blogged recently on the US candidates’ global warming policies: http://laborview.blogspot.com/search/label/global%20warming
McCain shows some promise. Huckabee will bring his creation science view of the world (its origin that is) to the technological solutions he seems to support.
February 12th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Yeah I’m surprised the Americans can mount any resistance to Al Qaeda at all, suffering under the jackboot of their Vietnamese Communist conquerers as they are.
February 12th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
John Pilger certainly agrees that someone should take over real soon. He says:
“Barack Obama is a glossy Uncle Tom who would bomb Pakistan. Hillary Clinton, another bomber, is anti-feminist. John McCain’s one distinction is that he has personally bombed a country. They all believe the US is not subject to the rules of human behaviour, because it is “a city upon a hill”, regardless that most of humanity sees it as a monumental bully which, since 1945, has overthrown 50 governments, many of them democracies, and bombed 30 nations, destroying millions of lives.”
Meanwhile, a nice round of applause for the half-century, boys. The USA has overthrown 50 governments in 60-odd years, nearly one a year. Almost like a run a minute at the cricket. Well battered, er, batted, chaps!
February 12th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
where is Martin Sheen when you want him,Billary gets my vote and obama as VP but the real world does not get a look in shamer
February 12th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
Why, oh why, when one of these clowns says something like this:
“McCain: Al-Qaida would sound the trumpets to the world that they had defeated the United States.”
doesn’t the reporter say: “Pity you didn’t think of that before you created the world’s biggest training camp for them!“
February 12th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
‘cost in lives and “treasure”……
February 12th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
It seems to me that the US has already lost this one. They have revealed to the world the limits of their (conventional) power and reach. Of course they do have the nukes as backup, but it is unlikely that they will ever be used, mutual destruction and all that….
A relatively small insurgency with the support of the locals can just wait it out and watch the military machine drain the coffers dry. The US populace won’t stay the course when it hurts financially and as it currently stands, this adventure is going to cripple them long term already. What about if they do stay for another 50 years.
February 12th, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Shrub & Co (incl Billary & BO) often complain that their troops are in danger. Surely if they stayed in Fort Bragg they’d only be attacked by other good ole boys?
The Chimp-in-Chief recently declaimed “There can’t be democratic elections in a country under foreign military occupation!”.
Turned out he was referring to Lebanon but…
February 12th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
At least with Chinese & Indian influences we will not get empires that think they are ‘exceptional’. Indeed, their internal dynamics would probably not allow either to go on military adventures - unlike US history which seems to have been military adventure after the other.
February 13th, 2008 at 1:38 am
It’s a worry that a man who passionately holds views like that could be the next president of the United States.
Could John McCain possibly be a more dangerous president, in terms of foreign policy, than George W. Bush?
Then again, I understand he’s been flip-flopping all over the place on other issues. Could he flip-flop on this one as well?
February 13th, 2008 at 7:37 am
Election 08. For Gawd’s sake what is all the hysterical hyperbole about?
I’m reminded of the Oscars/Grammies ad nauseum (nauseous?) All that’s missing is a red carpet for the egotists to parade, posture and pose on, accompanied by inane prattle from gay-to-the-max fashionistas and backgrounded by screaming tragics known as fans.
But wait, change a few words and that’s what we have anyway.
February 19th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
The neocons think terrorists will follow them home if they leave Iraq, as if they’re like puppies. Puppies of doom.
The simplemindedness of this world-view never ceases to amaze me. Look around the world at where terrorism actually happens, it’s almost always in places suffering some form of military occupation, isn’t it?
Northern Ireland? Check! Palestine? Check! Spain? Historical, but Check! Afghanistan? Big check! Iraq? You betcha. Pakistan? Occupied by an army from within, but Check!
Are there events which don’t follow that pattern? Certainly. But you’ll always get statistical outliers. In the 60-odd years since Israel has formed, mainland USA has suffered, what, two attacks from islamic terorists? Hardly an epidemic, but definitely a statistical glitch.
Unless the neocons are going to put the USA under martial law, it doesn’t strike me that there’s much chance that the suicide bombers will make many inroads; They’ll just have to keep themselves busy with abortion clinic bombings and school shootings, which, as we know, are nowhere near as important to the Republican’ts.