Like poppy Bush and pre-insane Dick Cheney, most of us now understand that invaded and occupied Iraq probably had zero chance of spitting out shining ponies that poop candy and flowers. Nonetheless some of our more inspired decisions along the way would doom any war. Atrios:
No one could have predicted that building a massive $600 million fortified embassy compound in Saddam Hussein’s palace would maybe send the wrong signal.
I know it’s so stunningly obvious that no one bothers to point it out anymore, but didn’t anyone raise their hand at a meeting [meetings? -ed.] and say that maybe, just maybe, taking control and occupying Saddam’s palace might not be such a good idea?
Reopening abu Ghraib. Disbanding the army. Stocking the Green zone with bright-eyed ideological nincompoops. Even if Iraq wasn’t hopeless, the Bushies tried to lose.
Pb
Oh come on, how could America possibly lose, with the Ledeen family on our side…
Don
I am reminded of an exchange from a Spencer novel. After a boob of a hotel clerk spends almost twenty minutes trying to check Spencer in, he puts his head down on the counter in frustration. The clerk, somewhat indignant, says “sir, please, I am doing the best I can here.”
Spencer responds “Oh, please, please don’t say that. The idea is far too sad.”
Jake
The Iraqi people should have been too busy throwing flowers and candies whilst waving their purple fingers of freedom to notice. No one could have possibly foreseen they would be so ungrateful.
17. Thus we may know that there are five essentials
for victory:
(1) He will win who knows when to fight and when
not to fight.
(2) He will win who knows how to handle both superior
and inferior forces.
(3) He will win whose army is animated by the same
spirit throughout all its ranks.
(4) He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take
the enemy unprepared.
(5) He will win who has military capacity and is
not interfered with by the sovereign.
Zifnab
I wouldn’t say that. Bush just wanted to try and win by playing out of his own, private, neo-con approved rule book. The fact that the rest of the world didn’t play by the same rules isn’t Bush’s fault.
Don’t hate the playa, hate the game, yo.
Wilfred
This seems an appropriate place to mention the influence of people like Ledeen and Daniel Pipes, to name only two, has been accompanied by intense pressure on any academic dissent. Lots of people with years of experience were shunted aside for lack of the ideological purity demanded by Bushco. I urge people to take a quick look at the link to understand what’s going on behind the curtain here
Dreggas
how much you wanna bet W. stands in front of a mirror each day wearing a beret and fake moustache shouting “I’M SADDAM!”
ThymeZone
I am I am ….
I’m Saddam I am.
Dennis-SGMM
Yet this is the outfit being encouraged by many to start another war despites its serial catastrophic blunders in this one.
Kristol, Kagan, Ledeen, et al, continue to have influence, a place in public forums and paychecks as they gloss over current follies and propose new ones.
It’s like giving the captain of the Exxon Valdez another tanker because he has a new strategy for not running aground.
Faux News
Tim, did you HAVE to go ahead and simply ruin the day for Princess Sparkle Pony? She will be devestated when she reads that post. I don’t think anyone told her there were never any ponies in Iraq. :-(
TC
“Reopening abu Ghraib. Disbanding the army. Stocking the Green zone with bright-eyed ideological nincompoops.”
Don’t forget: Telling Iranians that, if they know what’s good for them, they should vote for the reform candidate for president, instead of the hard-line fundamentalist.
myiq2xu
Murphy’s Law – “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.”
Bush’s Law – “Anything that can be fucked-up, will be fucked-up.”
Tsulagi
Okay, maybe they didn’t put in a lot of thought taking account of local sensibilities for the embassy location. But I’m thinking they can make up for it.
Since Abu Ghraib also has a few negative connotations, put another spare $B into transforming it. Let your everyday Iraqi stroll through (with the requisite Marine company and 5 combat helos of course) an oasis learning more about their beloved freedomizers: Creation Museum ME! No doubt it would be a hit with the locals, plus it would just have that patented Bush touch of brilliance that awes The Base.
ThymeZone
Just saying.
myiq2xu
G-Dub is steadfast and resolute that he will not leave office until everything is fucked-up.
Brachiator
Apart from the self-serving, duplicitous claims of neocon-backed goons like Ahmed Chalabi, I am not aware of any Iraqis at the time who were begging for the US to “help liberate” their country, with or without the accompanying destruction. Iraqi gratitude, like WMDs, was largely an illusion, a cover for the Bush Administration doing whatever they wanted to do in Iraq. Any relief that the Iraqis felt at the toppling of Saddam was understandably countered by the unintended consequence of the destruction and instability unleashed as a result of US actions.
TenguPhule
Fixed.