The Score
2000 American soldiers: Dead
Weapons of Mass Destruction Found: Zero
posted by mary bishop | 6:48 AM
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Wednesday, October 26, 2005
The Score
2000 American soldiers: Dead
Weapons of Mass Destruction Found: Zero
24 Comments:
I have a frustration about this.
First and foremost of course is the frustration that 2000 and more people of died because of stupidity, pride and propaganda.
However, I somehow go on the mailing list for some of the democratic groups as well as for some of the republican groups. (those can be amusing emails to say the least.)
While I am fanatically anti-"shrub" in so many ways, I find that the move-on type groups get a WEEE bit too fanatical and it's scary. The email i got today was complaining that there wasn't enough national media attention for the MILESTONE of 2000 people killed.
a) i saw that headline on CNN yesterday so it was in the media.
b) the rant...WHY?? WHY should we "celebrate" a milestone with all of this attention??? yes 2000 people are dead. Does that mean that the 2000th's sacrifice was worth more than the 1736th? It's just a number and ALL of the deaths and sacrifices should be honored. There shouldnt' be complaints that we've finally hit this number and well there wasn't enough attention. There hasn't been enough attention PERIOD to what's happening and getting it fixed. I hope this rambling makes some sense...
Ilanna, I didn't get the move-on email, but I think I do understand why they want to focus on the number. Just because it's a milestone. Maybe that particular number will wake people up.
Like wedding anniversaries, some seem bigger, 5, 10, 20 years etc.
Also, I think because there's no change and no hope for a change in the current mindset, the number looms as a symbol of how many lives lost will be enough?
Maybe they hope that 2000 will seem larger than 1999 soldiers.
I know I think about the brave American soldiers who have died a lot, but still, I have become almost inured to the rising count.
The 2000 mark got me riled up again. Maybe the reason is as simple as that, reminding people nothing has changed. No weapons of mass destruction (reason for invading) and no hope in sight for an end.
You didn't ramble, you brought up good solid points...!
Terrible. When can the kids come home?
The two questions I have are:
1) Are the people of Iraq better off today?
2) How many non-US soldiers have been killed, that probably would not have if the US minded their own business. (And don't gimme that shit about them being an oppressed people under the previous regime... if that were the case, the US would be invading about 40 countries...)
But hey, it is worth the price of trying to clean up for daddy, right?
LB - I say now!
JDJ -- oh about 30 thousand Iraqis...
and no, they aren't better off and we aren't better off and Osama is still missing and there are no weapons of mass destruction...
Good points MB. I think a good clarification would be that I hope that while the milestone of 2000 stands out that they dont' single out the particular soldier who was 2000 in media stories b/c that would just be crude and make no sense.. i don't think the 2000th soldier really wanted to be ya know?
but i understand how you all feel - it's like "umm i can't find osama so lets distract the public with an even bigger war that i can't win . . ." (never said he was bright...)
Ilanna, I agree about being the 2000th soldier who died in the war...that would not be something anyone would want to be noted for...
I still wish all our military resources were going to find osama...he spreads hate daily and shows the world that America can't get him...
Hmm... death total not just for the U.S. - that's got to be even worse and who is still responsible?
Definitely a milestone we could do without.
I think the more chilling scoreboard would be:
Number of American soldiers killed: 2000
Number of new, committed terrorists created and unleashed on the world: ?,???,???
There is this persistent belief - in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary - that the war on terror can be won by physical or military force. When a village is destroyed and innocent people are turned into "collateral casualties", their families and friends do not blame the terrorists - they blame those who dropped the bombs, fired the rockets, and lobbed the grenades that killed their children. No amount of "We did it for you and your country" will be enough to assuage their pain or deflect their anger.
How can we not see this? If your neighbour - that tree-chopping bastahd - was discovered to have a cache of arms in his basement, and the government responded by levelling his house and all those around, and in that attack, members of your family were killed ... you would be implacable in your hatred of those who inflicted that damage on you, despite their intentions. How hard would it be for your neighbour's colleagues to persuade you that " ...this is what we were talking about, this government is evil, and you need to join our cause?"
You began with no sympathy for your neighbour, and ended loathing a force that only intended to protect you. And the people you now loathe are the same as you. How much more focussed would your hatred be if they were an outside force, people from a different, richer, dominant culture?
Truly Pogo was right - "We have seen the enemy ... and he is us."
Echrai and Weetzie...I agree...
Nilbo, you said it. The very worst part of all of this is we have become a hated country - not that ten years ago we were at the top of the hit parade, but now we are loathed.
Countries that are loathed are very fine targets for terrorism.
On the Howard Stern show the other morning (I think it was Monday) he was talking about how they should put this statistic up everywhere. He said to use the golden arches of McDonald's......instead of billions served, they were saying put 2000 served and then some other cryptic message.
The other thing about this number, is this is ONLY the people that have died there, in Iraq. This doesn't include any of the people that died later, in a hospital nor does it include all the people that are seriously f-ed up from their wounds, I think the number is much higher.
Nothing has changed there in Iraq. There will be more people dying and for what?
I had a wish when that fucker got re-elected and with these indictments, it just might come true.
Wow, lots of people's comments prior to mine hadn't shown up. Now I feel really silly. :) Yes, sillier than usual.
Echrai, my dear, nothing to feel silly about...I'm commenting to comments I find in my email that aren't showing up on my blog...must be one of those blogger days/daze.
AMK - oh I hold my breath for my greatest wish for Georgie is to go down in history as the worst president ever.
Oi with the death toll. Rice says we could be in Iraq another ten years. What is the protesting going to be like when it's 20,000 soldiers, 2,000,000 Iraq citizens dead?
MMM, that's my husbands wish and he truly believes that he will. My dream is impeachment which my husband doesn't think will happen....I'm not so sure. 3 years is a long time.
Damn, MB. You write 12 words and get 1300 in comments!!
That's some serious return on your blogging.
P.S. Please don't ask if I actually counted all 1,322 words in the comments.
I despise that score. Its just so wrong. I'm ashamed to admit I was a proponent when we first went in. We have to get those weapons of mass destruction after all. Now, WTF? Just end it and call it good. Enough has been lost, on both sides. We are all human beings. All the innocent people who have done nothing but live in the wrong place at the wrong time...
Paintergirl...that Rice comment about another ten years chilled me to the bone.
AMK - we can keep hoping for impeachment...can't wait to see what happens to Rove...indictments might come down today.
Sylow...sometimes fewer words have greater impact. I just couldn't blog on my feelings...but I did want to ackowledge that this war in Iraq is not being "won" and it's not going away and innocent people are being killed.
Gothamimage said: Meanwhile, in DC the right is worried that a few pustules serving Bush might have to tell the truth in court.
Great sentence Gotham!...hope they get one too.
Along -- your words are not only welcomed they are exactly what the best of blogging is: bringing people together from different backgrounds, faiths, ethnicities -- and finding common ground.
I detest Bush and his war. I am ashamed of the bad decisions that have been made under his administration.
I fear for my country because being hated is certainly an impetus for extremists to target the US for terrorism.
I don't understand why Osama runs free and is never talked about anymore and Iraq is the target for US interest.
Lawbrat - we don't expect our government to blatantly lie to us...so many people believed U S security depended upon invading Iraq.
As for Saddam being a nasty son of a bee...yes, he was and so are many other current dictators around the globe.
So I wonder how many countries need to be invaded? It's got to stop and our global oneness has to have some meaning.
I'm glad somebody's keeping score because Bush sure isn't.
Just for the sake of perspective; including the Twenty six words added from this comment, this entry has now earned 2010 words.
One for each soldier?
Flag on the play. Inaccurate score, check your facts on the number found.
Also, the "score" is not dependant on the finding. Can you convict a murderer without the weapon? You can when you have 5,000 gassed bodies, people who built them for Hussein, and the reciepts for the weapons. (They were once the enemy of our enemy, so they were our friend. As is commonplace in life)
Did Bush lie?
http://http://www.factcheck.org/article222.html
Media coverup of evidence discovery.
http://http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=38213
http://http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/1/11/141836.shtml
The high horsed Washington Post article on it that was strangely enough not linked on their main page when released but was found in the archives. Almost as if they wanted to look like they ran the story, but only if you searched for it.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/13/AR2005081300530.html
Just the facts Ma'am, just the facts.
The facts remain Irish:
2000 American soldiers: Dead
Weapons of Mass Destruction Found: Zero
Oops more dead now...still no WMDs
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