Ya know something? I think I could stomach our endless war policies

[truedelphi]

A tiny bit better if just for once, the politician selling the war did not invoke this nation's greatness.

Hearing the section of the speech in which President Obama declares that our nation does not oppress other nations, or rip off other nation's for its resources ...

WTF?

So where did the land beneath our feet come from? How many Indian nations were destroyed to let us plant our crops, grow our cities and build our forts.

Then there is the whole thing of many African nations that were shaken up by slavers coming in and taking away the local populace. I really would have thought that Obama might have thought about the slave trade.

And then WTF?

Has he really never read about the Phillipines, Cuba, the many Banana Republics of Central and South America and Mexico?

Then there is the matter of the indirect oppression. Someone send the guy the Perkins book on "Confessions of an Economic Hitman." Please!

[tridim]

1. The President is for "ending" the wars, not "endless" wars like the Neocons. nt

[mike_c]

3. more argument for "fucking for virginity..."

Destroying the village to save it. Bombing for peace. Escalating the war to end it. Where's that "light at the end of the tunnel?"

[tridim]

7. Obama is ending both wars.

If you think he's lying, fine, but then I'll have to ask you why you think that.

[Javaman]

8. When they are "ended" I will believe him. nt

[mike_c]

23. I think that it's patently absurd to end a war by sending additional troops...

...and escalating their mission. Is he "lying?" I don't know. He is wrong, I'm certain of that. I won't guess at his motives without more data.

on edit: and I'm not really interested in anyone saying they're "ending" the wars. "Ending" is not the desired outcome. "Ended" is.

[John Q. Citizen]

4. Obama is no Einstien then, that's for sure.

“One cannot simultaneously prepare for peace. and prepare for war” – Albert Einstein

[tridim]

6. Obama is ending both wars.

Einstien would be proud.

[Javaman]

9. Until they are ended, they are still active. nt

[NYC Liberal]

11. But one can prepare for peace by preparing to end war.

That's what's going on right now.

[John Q. Citizen]

14. Oh, and here I thought that Obama was committing another 30,000 troops or more.

So he's withdrawing 30,000 troops?

Gosh, I wonder how I got that wrong and how come the Repos are so in favor of it?

I was sure he was sending another 30,000 men and women into war.

[NYC Liberal]

15. We finally have an exit strategy that will get us out of Afghanistan

after Bush spent 8 years doing nothing there and letting it go to hell. I support that.

Like it or not, Obama is ending both wars.

[John Q. Citizen]

19. I'm not sure that leaving 50,000 troops in Iraq is ending it. It will make it smaller, yes, but it

won't be over until all the troops are home.

Or are you ignoring the 50,000 troops that Obama plans to leave deployed in Iraq and pretending they don't exist?


Also, do you know if that means total troops including mercenaries, or is that just the low paid volunteer military and not including the mercenaries?

[Luminous Animal]

33. FYI, it does not include mercenaries whose numbers have increased

since Obama took office.

[mike_c]

24. by getting us in deeper...?

I'll tell you what-- I'll bet that there are more U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2012 than are there today. If that's an exit strategy, I'll eat my hat.

[treestar]

17. As to this, wouldn't they have been in Iraq

were that not ended?

[John Q. Citizen]

18. We have 120000 troops currently in Iraq. It's far from ended at this point. The plan is

shrink the occupation down to 50,000 permanent soldiers. I'm not sure if that counts mercenaries or just GIs and National Guard troops.

[MadHound]

22. Actually yes, he's all for endless wars

He stated last night that we would follow Al-Qaeda wherever they went, Somalia, Sudan, wherever.

War forever and ever, amen.

[no limit]

2. I guess getting on TV and talking about how much this country sucks would have been much better

[John Q. Citizen]

5. Far more honest, at any rate. This need to go to war all the time really sucks.

[kimmerspixelated]

10. I hear ya, TD!

All of this boggles the mind. I'm still trying to digest it, but it's hard to, much like the hot dogs that contain the nitrates, etc.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. Erect bogeyman, wave flag, give money to the Pentagon, send in the cannon-fodder. Works every time.

All for "peace", "democracy", and the 'Murikan way.

[Warpy]

13. The only reason we're still there is that STUPID FUCKED IT UP

While I'm less than thrilled at the escalation, I can understand the reason why and I think he drove the hardest bargain he could, giving the generals less than they wanted, redefining what we're doing there (although it's still muddled) and setting a date to get the hell out.

We have to bring the military under control in this country if we're to survive, at all. This isn't a very good way to start that process.

However, if Stupid hadn't let bin Laden's bunch go to destabilize Pakistan because he wanted to chase glory in Iraq, we likely would already have left.

[treestar]

16. No President can say that stuff

Any President is going to be complimentary on the American people. They elected him. Let the POTUS see our better side. There's plenty of people who can take up the cudgel on our evilness. Michael Moore, etc.

We do have a good side.

[truedelphi]

34. Our good side tends to develop better when there are NO ILLEGAL WARS.

It is our Founding Fathers' Mandate that we only fight in those conditions in which we are experiencing the direct threat of attack.

If we are truly in danger, then we should have a draft, with every man and woman over the age of eighteen and under the age of fifty enrolled in that draft. They do it that way over in Israel (It's one of the few things I like about Israeli policy on war.)

So if you're a stockbroker in your thirties, intent on gaming the market for the profit margin in body bags, you understand your own damn tennis-playing body might be encased in one of those soon.

Our economy would be healthier if we had no illegal wars. Our psychological profile would be healthier - no more twenty somethings home from Iraq working as Taser-happy cops out in the local traffic brigades.

And carnage of civilians - who are often 90% of the damage we leave behind - would be less likely.

So both our people and people in outher nations could live happier and healthier lives.

[berni_mccoy]

20. The slaughtering and abuse of the Natives and trade in Slaves began under the British Empire

Not under the U.S.

It was, however, continued in the U.S. for more than a hundred years after the revolutionary war.

[truedelphi]

28. Yes the slave trade was happily carried on by the Quakers and others

in the north, Who when not out killing whales were busy helping transport slaves.

And the South depended heavily on slavery for the plantations.

Your timeline is a bit off - The Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery in 1863, which was eighty years after the Revolutionary war ended.

[change_notfinetuning]

21. But no one beats us at making the world safe for hypocrisy. n/t

[truedelphi]

30. Very succinct slogan, and a lot more truthful than the notion of promoting

Our way of life.

Why would any other nation want our way of life? We have 44,000 people a year dying from lack of health insurance. And how many others die on account of gangs in the cities. And then there is all that stress at work.

The situation makes one wish that France would go on a rampage and take us over - I think most American workers could use a leisurely and daily French lunch and all that relaxing wine.

[Matariki]

25. That was my exact thoughts at that point in his speech

"our nation does not oppress other nations, or rip off other nation's for its resources ..."

Oh really? Tell that to Native Americans.

[NNN0LHI]

26. The rest of the world knows most Americans would steal the pennies off a dead mans eyes

We aren't kidding no one but ourselves.

Don

[anonymous171]

27. Unlike the genocide of the Native Americans, Slavery was not a uniquely American institution

I wish people would stop comparing the two.

[truedelphi]

29. In his memoirs, Albert Speer reports a conversation that he had with Hitler

In which Hitler talks about his getting his ideas on how to handle an unwelcome population directly from our treatment of the Native Americans during the Frontier Days.

We may have imported the concept of slavery, but we exported the idea of genocide.

[omega minimo]

31. Slavery was not a uniquely American Institution but America has a unique slavery history

Not sure what nit you're trying to pick but certainly the history of slavery in America is unique.

[omega minimo]

32. Great post, TD

And ya got me with the :wtf: :rofl:

[truedelphi]

35. Me and my lil ol' potty mouth.

My poor dear of a father is probably having two beers in heaven on account of me talking like that. (And wondering if I won't end up in that other more sinisster place.)

RIP Dad.

And Hi to you too...

:toast: