bobbo says:

I recall “the parliament” or the entire government was going to go on a 4 month summer recess before the US objected? Then the story said the parliament was “thinking about it” and then the story was dropped.

Now they’re on vacation? Cant be any war there if the governments on vacation? Proof Positive, GOUSA has won!!

Time to acknowledge the victory, or- – -are we staying for the oil?

ethanol says:

Cinaedh (#3),
That would be the infamous Paul Wolfowitz not Cheney who promised to pay with oil money – ” Then there was Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz’s prediction last spring that Iraqi oil revenues would pay all the costs of reconstructing the country. Instead, we have already spent nearly $20 billion in reconstruction aid — with no end in sight. or Enlisting countries to help to pay for this war and its aftermath would take more time, he said. “I expect we will get a lot of mitigation, but it will be easier after the fact than before the fact,” Mr. Wolfowitz said. Mr. Wolfowitz spent much of the hearing knocking down published estimates of the costs of war and rebuilding, saying the upper range of $95 billion was too high, and that the estimates were almost meaningless because of the variables. Moreover, he said such estimates, and speculation that postwar reconstruction costs could climb even higher, ignored the fact that Iraq is a wealthy country, with annual oil exports worth $15 billion to $20 billion. “To assume we’re going to pay for it all is just wrong,” he said.

ArianeB says:

#5 That analysis, while factually correct, misses the big picture.

Two things happened in the 1970s that changes the picture. in 1973, we went off the gold standard and started using fiat money. In about 1975 or so, OPEC says that all purchases of oil shall be made in US Dollars.

Then in 2000, Iraq wanted Euros for oil rather than dollars. Then 2001, Venezuela wanted Euros for dollars too. So does Iran.

Bottom line, despite what you have heard, the Iraq war has been waged with the sole purpose of propping up the dollar value with military might. It is of course failing, because, we are for all intents and purposes losing in Iraq, and we are going heavy into debt to support this war which is causing the dollar to crash against the Euro.

Japan and China have lots and lots of dollars. They do not have oil reserves of their own so they use it to buy oil from many countries we consider “unfriendly”. If they cant use dollars to pay for oil, the dollar will crash… can you say “hyperinflation”

Want proof? Read Ron Paul’s analysis
http://tinyurl.com/7nuzh

Or a more entertaining analysis comes from British comedian Robert Newman (video)
http://tinyurl.com/2e9kdk

mxpwr03 says:

In developing news… Muqtada al-Sadr has called for all members of the Jaish al-Mahdi to lay down arms (even against the MNF-I) for a period of 6 months
http://tinyurl.com/24gwxo

Ralph, the School Bus Driver says:

#1, ChcknHwk03

There is no such thing as a “Shiite,” the name is pronounced closer to Shi’a with a guttural q where the apostrophe is.

Like so many other crap you post, again you screwed up. They are properly called Shiite. The English word does not have to be identical to the original. The same way we call and spell it ROME while the Italians call it ROMA; or PARIS while the French pronounce it PAREE; or we call it QUEBEC while the natives pronounce it KEBECK.

Another example would be President George Bush Bush, while the rest of the world call him dipshit. Or dipdork.

*

So how is basic training going? Like your new haircut? Don’t you feel better knowing you can go fight for your country?

doug says:

and a taste of what’s coming in September:

http://voanews.com/english/2007-08-30-voa5.cfm

mxpwr03 says:

#10 – There is no “t” sound in the name as in “talk.” I’ve spoken with several Arabic speakers, from Saudis to Syrians, and watch enough al Jazeera to know that spelling the name with two t’s is misleading.
And I’m not in basic yet, that is in January, but I am participating in ROTC and the program is going very well the people there are great, thanks for asking. I’m also on a phased withdrawal for the hair cut, but it is nice to go back to short.

#11 – I didn’t say it was a monumental move, but the development is more debatable than that meaningless cartoon. Bill Roggio hit the nail on the head when he said: “Sadr has a very real image problem to deal with concerning the Mahdi Army. Today’s statement calls for an end to violence in order “to rehabilitate [the Mahdi Army] in a way that will safeguard its ideological image.” The fighting in Karbala, the violent opposition to the Shia-led government, the criminal activity, and the assassinations of Shia governors are causes of great concern for Sadr. These activities are no longer being tolerated by the greater Shia community.” The legacy of the Jaish al-Mahdi is steeped in a proud history, but as of late rouge elements have caused the movement to lose some face among the followers of Abdel Aziz Hakim and SIIC and the moderate liberals in the Da’wa, INC, & INA. If Sadr is serious, which is the real question about his motive, he can bring together the loyal, honorable elements, while the fringe elements would become alienated and a more vulnerable target, therefore decreasing the cost of dealing with these groups. Besides I’ll take a untrustworthy cease fire with an ounce of hope, than the young cleric’s usual antics.

Also, I wouldn’t call the inter-Shi’a conflict between the Badr Brigade and Jaish al-Mahdi a “civil war.” Sensationalism only gets your so far.

tikiloungelizard says:

#6 Ron Paul is too honest and knows too much, which is why he will be prevented, at all costs, from being president.

RBG says:

8. mxpwr03. Makes you wonder how much quicker we’d have gotten to that position and how many fewer lives would have been lost on both sides if the enemy hadn’t enjoyed the comfort of continous US citizen reports that the US was about to lose the war.

1. Arabic-to-English spelling has always been notoriously non-standard. just think of the 6 or 7 ways you can spell Muammar Gaddafi/Khadafy/Qadhafi.

RBG

RBG says:

You mean Bush lied that Iraq invaded US ally Kuwait? That little…

RBG