I’ve been fighting to get the truth out to the public about as long as I’ve been back from Iraq. I’ve tired greatly from the “Bush Lied, People Died” crap that seems to have taken a chokehold on the anti-war mantra! The problem is that Bush didn’t lie about anything and definitely didn’t kill Soldiers. Those Soldiers were killed by terrorists, insurgents, and the Iraqi Army under Saddam Hussein.
Randall Hoven has a great article on the American Thinker called Who Lied About Iraq? He dispels a lot of the myths that I’ve been combatting for a few years myself. It’s good to know that I’m in good company. So, in the spirit of Obama’s “Fight The Smears” website, I offer you Hoven’s words:
The False Story
“The United States invaded Iraq based on false premises. The administration orchestrated a public relations drive to prove that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and connections to the 9/11 terrorists - both proved false.” USA Today
While these two sentences came from USA Today, they describe the words behind the music of the “Bush lied, people died” meme echoing throughout the media chambers since at least 2004. The lies in just these two sentences are almost Shakespearian in their layered texture. The statement even lays out a false premise in accusing the Bush administration of using false premises. If lying is an art, our media have mastered it.
The Premise
Our invasion of Iraq was not based on a public relations drive; it was based on Public Law 107-243, otherwise known as the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq, passed by the 107th Congress in October of 2002 . (Herein referred to as the “Authorization”.) It passed the House with a vote of 296 to 133 (by 69%) and the Senate with a vote of 77 to 23 (by 77%), including 58% of Senate Democrats. In short, it was overwhelming; it was bipartisan; and it was law.
Did the Authorization try to “prove that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction”? Was that proved false?
No and no.
Did the Authorization try to “prove that Iraq had connections to the 911 terrorists”? Was that proved false?
Again, no and no.
What are some of those “other things” that made Iraq in “materiel and unacceptable breach of its international obligations”?
* Iraq agreed to a cease-fire when it surrendered in Desert Storm in 1991. It was in “direct and flagrant violation of the cease-fire.”
* Iraq agreed to eliminate its WMD programs in 1991. It was later caught continuing those programs, concealing them and thwarting weapons inspectors to the point of kicking them out of the country.
* Iraq agreed to “end its support for international terrorism” in 1991. It continued to “aid and harbor” international terrorist organizations, including those “that threaten the lives and safety of United States citizens.”
* Iraq “engaged in brutal repression of its civilian population.”
* Iraq refused “to release, repatriate, or account for non-Iraqi citizens wrongfully detained by Iraq, including an American serviceman.”
* Iraq failed “to return property wrongfully seized by Iraq from Kuwait.”
* Iraq attempted “to assassinate former President Bush.”
* Iraq fired “on many thousands of occasions on United States and Coalition Armed Forces engaged in enforcing the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.”
* Iraq persisted in violating multiple United Nations resolutions. Congress authorized the President “to use United States Armed Forces pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 678 (1990) in order to achieve implementation of Security Council Resolution 660, 661, 662, 664, 665, 666, 667, 669, 674, and 677.”
If Saddam’s Iraq was not an “outlaw regime,” then there is no such thing.
I’ve only provided some excerpts here, so you’ll have to read his article to get the whole story. I guarantee you’ll be educated.
What am I talking about? The US Military isn’t involved in the Olympics. No, but Afghanistan has four athletes competing in the 2008 Summer Olympics. And today, Rohullah Nikpai won the Bronze Medal for Men’s -58kg weight class Tae Kwon Do. This is the first time EVER that Afghanistan has won ANY medal. I think our Soldiers who made their participation possible deserve some of the credit for this feat! So, congratulations to Rohullah Nikpai AND the US Military.
“I Hope This Will Send A Message Of Peace To My Country After 30 Years Of War,” Nikpai said after winning the medal.
This is from an email sent to a good friend that I think is worthy of passing along:
I haven’t had the opportunity to write to you since we chatted back and forth about my blog in Iraq, 365 and a Wakeup, so I hope this doesn’t strike you as inopportune. Please know that if this wasn’t an issue I felt deeply about I wouldn’t clutter your inbox with this email.
More then two years have passed since those fire bright days in Iraq, but several Soldiers I served alongside still struggle to recover from the physical and psychological wounds of our deployment. Within the last year the Veterans Administration (VA) has started to implement a new recreational therapy program to help my Soldiers, and others like them, begin to become whole again. The program utilizes cycling to help injured Soldiers regain a sense of normalcy and accomplishment during their recovery process. Cycling is a low impact activity that combines the health benefits of physical activity with the psychological benefits of being outdoors, and it has been shown to reduce depression and accompanying issues.
The Fitness Challenge Foundation and the VA would like to expand this program to allow more Veterans to take advantage of this important program, and I am committed to helping them meet this challenge. On September 28 of this year I will take part in the Road 2 Recovery, a charity ride from the San Francisco VA facility to the West Los Angeles VA facility to help fund the expansion of this program. 100% of the funds raised from this ride will be used to expand the cycling trauma recovery program to other Soldiers in need.
You can help expand this important program, and help build a therapeutic path that injured Soldiers can use to reconnect with their community by making a tax deductible donation to the Road 2 Recovery. Making a donation takes only a moment, but it will have a profound impact on those most in need of help. To make a donation simply navigate to: http://www.r2rriders.com/sponsor/, annotate Danjel Bout as the rider you are sponsoring, and make your donation.
America’s heroes didn’t hesitate to sacrifice their very lives in the defense of this nation, please don’t hesitate to help me support them in their time of need.
The events occurring in Georgia between the country and Russia have required the Georgian Army assisting with the security and stabilization of Iraq to return to their homeland. With those Soldiers no longer patrolling the streets in Iraq, who is picking up the slack?
Most in this country think that we American Soldiers are having to pick up the slack. If you’re one of those, you’d be wrong.
Iraqi Security Forces will partner with the 41st Fires Brigade and occupy several checkpoints and patrol bases previously manned by the 1st Georgian Brigade.
“We want to train and work with the U.S. Army,” said Sergeant Namel Watak, 32nd Iraqi Army Infantry Brigade.
Namel is with a contingent of soldiers from the 32nd IA Infantry Bde., who are working together with soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment at checkpoints in Wasit to keep the province stable and secure.
“We like our job here of running the traffic control point and providing security at the entrance of the patrol base,” he said.
The plan is to have a complete partnership with the Iraqi Soldiers, said 2nd Lt. Charles Hines, with the 2-20 FA Regt., and the IA liaison at the patrol base.
“Right now, the Iraqi soldiers have taken over the responsibility of the traffic control point, but we are going to train them to be able to take over the entire patrol base, go and do presence patrols and set-up temporary traffic control points in our area,” he said.
The 41st Fires Bde. established a very good working relationship with both the Iraqi Police and the IA, said Col. Richard M. Francey, Jr., 41st Fires Bde commander.
“We are integrating with the ISF to make us a better fighting force,” he said. “They have stepped up to the plate, and their partnership is why we are able to take over the mission that the Georgians had to leave behind, with no change in the security and safety of the Iraqi people.”
For Namel, working with the Americans is a chance to get better training, and learn as much from the U.S. Soldiers as he can. “I want to fight fiercely alongside the U.S. Army,” he said. By working with the Americans, “I get more training to be able to do the job.”
The past few weeks have been crazy. I’ve been gone more than I’ve been home. My weekends have been wrecked by travel and work and it seems as soon as I recover from one trip, the next one sneaks up on me. But, I’m not complaining - I could be deployed (though, I wouldn’t mind!). A few days ago I spoke with a friend of mine who manages PatriotWatch.com. I won’t give his name since he didn’t ask me to do this. Hopefully, when he sees it he won’t be upset. But first, some history. Continue reading this post…
The Milblog Conference is fast approaching. Last year, more than 225 people attended. This year looks like it blow out all records of attendance. The milbloggers are converging on Las Vegas and crashing the party of the Blog World Expo. The blogging world will never be the same when JP, Marcus, B5, Greyhawk, John, me and other get together and bring the house down. You think those techno geek blogs are going to be interesting? Just wait. But you have to register quickly! To register, simply follow this link and sign up. Hey, Vegas is calling!!
Marcus and I will be there to cover the entire thing for THIS blog and THIS blog alone!! Our reports will NOT be written on ASP, so make sure you tune in!!
When the numbers of troops killed in Iraq was at all-time highs, the media stumbled all over itself to bring the pain of those families to the forefront of television screens and the front pages of newspapers across the country. When times were tough, the stories of suffering of our troops was everywhere. Have you noticed that as the situation in Iraq improved, the level of press coverage equally DECREASED?
The mainstream media - and most every other media outlet - gets most of its information either from the Associated Press or Reuters. When the numbers of fallen troops was high, the reports came loud and clear from the AP. The media couldn’t find enough to talk about. Now, the AP is reporting a different story, but have you seen it anywhere?
The monthly U.S. toll in Iraq fell to its lowest point since the war began, with 11 American deaths as July drew to a close Thursday after the departure of the last surge brigade.
Iraqis also are dying at dramatically lower numbers with the war in its sixth year. July saw the lowest civilian toll since December 2005, though a series of suicide bombings this week and rising ethnic tensions in northern Iraq reflect the fragility of the security successes. An Associated Press tally shows at least 510 Iraqi civilians and security force members were killed in July, a 75 percent drop from the 2,021 deaths in the same period last year as the U.S. troop buildup aimed at quelling rampant Sunni-Shiite violence was nearing its peak.
Another common dead horse that beat beyond belief is the lack of progress of Iraq’s security forces. It was also force fed into our homes and workplaces as the drumbeat for why Iraq was a lost cause. What you aren’t hearing about now should be criminal in response.
Iraq has nearly doubled its police force to nearly 300,000 officers. The Iraqi Interior Ministry under Jawad Bolani said that more than 200,000 police officers were hired since 2006. The ministry said police have taken security responsibility in 10 provinces. “These steps have not come without great sacrifice,” Maj. Gen. Abdul Karim Khalaf, the ministry’s operations director, said. “We have had 10,000 police officers killed or injured trying to bring peace to our communities.”
Melissa Stockwell is an incredibly inspiring 28-year-old from the Twin Cities who was the first US female amputee of the Iraq War; as well as the first Iraq War Veteran, male or female, to qualify for the Beijing Paralympics. In the 4 years between Baghdad and Beijing - she has accomplished an incredible amount - including completing 8 triathlons, 2 NYC Marathons; becoming a prosthetist so she can help other amputees; and setting 3 US Paralympic swimming records;
TakePride [an influential support the troops project] has launched a charitable t-shirt inspired by the last 4 years of Melissa’s life called Stronger. The shirt not only serves as a way to get her story out to more people, but for the first time, it offers Americans a way to channel the good feelings that her story generates into meaningful support – both moral and financial – for Melissa and for all wounded US Veterans (a minimum of $5/shirt is donated to Wounded Warrior Project).
Stronger features a drawing of Melissa swimming as well as columns of text that tell her story, and which are comprised mainly of direct quotes from Melissa. Stronger is exclusively available at www.TakePride.com. The shirt is offered in men’s sizes small through XXL and women’s sizes small through XL for $25. A minimum of $5 from the sale of each Stronger shirt will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Project. The shirt is also being offered in combination with the Stronger athletic bag featuring a screen print of the text from the shirt (the ‘Stronger Spirit Pack’) for $40.
Melissa is a truly amazing person whose story has the power to inspire millions of Americans.
