Beth's Contradictory Brain

Moussaoui

As usual, Peggy Noonan puts my thoughts much better than I could.

I happen, as most adults do, to feel a general ambivalence toward the death penalty. But I know why it exists. It is the expression of a certitude, of a shared national conviction, about the value of a human life. It says the deliberate and planned taking of a human life is so serious, such a wound to justice, such a tearing at the human fabric, that there is only one price that is justly paid for it, and that is the forfeiting of the life of the perpetrator. It is society's way of saying that murder is serious, dreadfully serious, the most serious of all human transgressions.

I hope he doesn't do any more damage. I hope this is the last we hear of him. But I'm not hopeful about my hopes.

Go read the whole thing

Iraq Votes

Early voting has started in Iraq. Iraq the Model has lots and lots of updates.

Mosul Attack

I didn't cry today, but when I heard the news this morning about the mortar attacks on the base in Mosul, my heart broke. I can imagine what the families of soldiers in Mosul were feeling and fearing today. How horrible so close to Christmas.

I'm not usually a big fan of CNN, but the stories we saw early this afternoon, and the people they interviewed, seemed to have a pretty good idea of what was and wasn't going on in this situation.

I read some speculation about how the insurgents could have such an accurate hit. I don't think it's anything suprising. That base has been there close to two years, as well as several other bases around the city of Mosul. Mortars are lobbed onto those bases on a very regular basis. Of course something of this size was only a matter of time. The more suprising aspect is that after almost two years the chow hall, a known target, was still a tent and not a much, much more safe facility.

The other topic discussed was that of Iraqi's having access to US military bases over there. I guess because I knew it was a regular event, and not necessarily a big deal, I took it for granted most people knew this. People from Iraq, Turkey, Fiji, the Phillipines, South Africa, from all over the world, work on the bases as cooks, they run laundry services, they sell trinkets, stolen goods, bootleg dvds, food, you name it. Is this safe? Mostly. Nerdstar was extremely grateful to have a stand that sold Turkish food in her last weeks there.

I don't begin to know the ins and outs of the economics of having local contractors for some services as opposed to only using military personnel. Nerdstar thinks it's a political move - helping the locals out economically.

I guess what I'm rambling about is that while today was a heartwrenching tragegy, it's not an unusual event. Unfortunately, in war there is no safe place.

Nerdstar wrote an entry about it all as well.

A New Beginning

By Ayad Allawi

On Wednesday the sovereignty of Iraq will be restored, and the Iraqi people will take their first major steps toward a free and prosperous future, after more than three decades of tyrannical rule, repression, wars and sanctions. This will be an important milestone for Iraq, the region and indeed the whole world, endorsed by the unanimous approval of the U.N. Security Council in Resolution 1546 earlier this month. As Iraqis, we thank the coalition for the sacrifices made by its soldiers and its people for the liberation and rebuilding of Iraq, and for the contributions by all the countries, international organizations and nongovernmental organizations that have braved the risks to help Iraq in its time of need. We hope for the continued support of the global community, as we Iraqis take the crucial steps in assuming responsibility for our own future.

That's the first paragraph, go read the whole thing.

Diverging Points of View

Seeing Control Room made me vaguely aware of the huge divergence between the way the average American sees Americans and how the Arab world sees Americans. Or maybe it served to make it more clear and understandable to me. (Although understandable might be the wrong word.) Then, yesterday afternoon I caught the last ten minutes of a program on CNN World News (not the American version of CNN) that was a panel discussion of the Arab world's views of the handover of power in Iraq. Two statements made in the ten minutes stuck with me. Someone on the program said, in relation to an emerging free press in the Arab world that it was just an alternative to "the major media in America that we all know is controlled by Jews". Huh? No one in that room even blinked at that statement, it was just a given. Then someone else made a statement about the US occupation of Iraq being directly equal to the occupation of Palestein. Huh?

Those are not ideas that more than a handful of Americans would even believe exist, much less be true. But I'm understanding just a little that until we accept the reality of those beliefs and find a way to counter them, this war of cultures is hopeless.

So now it's almost 2 am and I can't sleep and I'm hoping to catch my Nerdstar online and I'm surfing thru Lucianne to scan headlines. I run across a story about increased anti-Islam sentiments in the US after the beheading of Paul Johnson. Oddly enough it's a link to Aljazeera's English version website. Ok, might as well see what it has to say.

And actually there are many interesting articles about reform in the Arab world.

A common theme seems to be that reform must come from within and not be imposed by outsiders. But I'm just not seeing where Saddam was in any hurry to reform his mass murdering ways.

And while the Arab world isn't too happy about the leaked Greater Middle East Initiative, I'm happy to see that this administration is at least studying the problems.

Personally, I'd love to see Arab countries reform from the inside out - as long as that process and reform didn't include calls to wipe out the American infidels. I'd love to see Arab leaders come together and help Iraq rebuild and Iran end the rule of oppressive Mullahs. I'd love to see them address the problems in Sudan. But until their unreformed selves are no longer a threat to us, I don't see any alternative to intervention.

There's also this article on how Americans continue to misunderstand Islam in spite of a rising trend in seeking out information on Islam I'd have to say that actions speak louder than words - especially when the actions are car bombs and beheadings and the words are "but we're a peaceful religion."

Message vs Messenger

I was playing poker during Bush's speech last night so I recorded it and watched it later. I thought the plan seemed clear enough, simple enough. (No, the reality of making it happen isn't simple.) I kept wondering if you simply took the text and didn't say who wrote it or spoke it or anything, and had people who are sort of against us being in Iraq but not dogmatic about it read it, if they would say oh, ok, that makes sense.

Basically, I wonder if hating the messenger prevents hearing the message. (Yes, that's a rhetorical wondering.)

I mean, I keep wondering how you can hear how totally brutal life under Saddam was, how there are now more jobs, more schools, more hospitals, more electricity, internet cafe's, and within a year or so 26 million people will be able to vote in a real election and think - this must stop now!!

When Bush was talking about the first elections, probably a year and a half away, I thought, wow, that day will totally bring tears to my eyes. And by then Nerdstar will be long home, our lives in any normal way totally unaffected by elections in Iraq, but still, it'll bring tears to my eyes.

How people can be cynical about Iraq and think everything matters except that life is better for Iraq's is just beyond me.

Spanish Bloggers

Just another example of why blogs beat old media hands down every time. Tim Blair has a fantastic post from two Spanish bloggers. (found via Jeff Jarvis.)

Terror in Spain

Every day when I get up, I still check CNBC for how the stock market is doing, then hit the cable news channels to see what's going on. There's always still a slight sense of dread knowing I could hear about attacks where my Nerdstar is, or even attacks here in the States.

So hearing about the ten bombs that went off in Spain just makes me sad. After 9/11 I'm no longer disconnected from victims of events like this just because they live so far away. Seeing the wholes left in those trains from the blasts makes my breath catch in my throat. And I know that it's not impossible for such things to happen in any city in America.

For updates about Spain try the Command Post.

Iraq

Naturally, Nerdstar and I spent considerable time talking about not just her own situation over in Iraq, but the bigger picture as well. Now, Nerdstar is not a big picture person like I am. Give her a good meal, People magazine, snuggles, and our pets and she's content. Me, I'm partial to yelling at the news on tv.

I think it's stunning and fantastic that the Iraqi's have a new constitution today, even if it's an interim one. But, like Vodka Pundit, I am more than aware that it's now up to the Iraqi people on what they're going to do, to allow to be done, with their new freedom. As I wrote back when SH was first removed from power, I can not begin to imagine going from living under constant fear and oppression to having, at least on one level, real freedom. Nerdstar isn't really sure what the locals are going to do now or next. She's going to try to really keep her ears open for the feel of things over there once she gets back and write about it for us.

The hardest thing for her is still feeling like she has no real job or purpose over there, and says there are lots of soldiers in the same boat. When every little aspect of every job in the military is so specific - and in the past for good reason - it's very hard to go from a fighting army to a rebuilding one. Yet for all kinds of reasons, practical as well as political, the president can't very well start sending troops home just yet.

July is going to be the test of the past year and a half. Either the Iraqi's are going to figure out very quickly how to run a civil society or it's all going to go to hell. Nerdstar's afraid there is just too much bad blood between the different factions for them to let bygones be bygones. So, we have to keep our strong show of force over there until it all plays out. The most interesting option is that the new Iraqi government could very well tell us to get all our troops out of there asap. I can see where that would be very tempting for them. Hell, I would be thrilled to have Nerdstar home as soon as possible. I think she's going to be in a hell of a lot more danger come June/July.

Interview

Wow. You really should read this interview with Hoder.

A leading figure (quite probably the leading figure) in the Persian blog community is University of Toronto student, Hossein Derakhshan or 'Hoder', as he is known online. Hoder's Persian blog gets an average of more than 3,500 visitors daily. This makes Torontonian Hoder one of Canada's most influential bloggers.

The idea that the Internet and blogging, in particular, can serve as important vehicles for social and political change is something that people in the Middle East seem to have adopted wholeheartedly. In Iran, anonymous blogging has allowed the current generation to disregard the strict rules imposed by politico-religious authorities. Despite censorship and filtering, the Persian (Iranian) blogging community is one of the strongest and most active worldwide.

As they say, read the whole thing!! There's a lot more going on in this world, and in blogging, than you'd ever imagine and certainly won't hear from mainstream media.

(Found via Instapundit - of course.)

Exactly

I don't think I can put my reaction to yesterday any better than Andrew did:

For me, the moment I won't forget was the sudden roar of excitement and jubilation from Iraqi journalists in the press conference room when Jerry Bremer gave the news. Salon describes it well:
"The room erupted in cheers and shouts. Iraqi reporters in the room began yelling, crying, sobbing. A middle aged Iraqi man sitting near me wept while he frantically took notes. Other Iraqis called for Saddam's death. A man sitting in the front row wailed with his head in his hands. The press conference paused briefly while the man calmed down."
It is not for us to understand fully what these people were put through. At a moment like this, when we can see fully and clearly the evil that existed for so long - evil that we in the past did our part to maintain - it is important simply to recall the dead and their loved ones. Think of every moment when some poor soul believed he was about to die, every moment spent in hellish prisons, every person tortured beyond imagining, every child dumped in a mass grave, every person of faith treated as an enemy of the state. To watch the perpetrator of this extraordinary evil brought low - into a rat-hole in the ground - is a privilege. It happens rarely. It is a moment when some kind of cosmic justice breaks through the clouds, and all the petty wrangling and mistakes and political jockeying fall away in the face of liberation from inescapable fear and terror and brutality. It was a day of joy. Nothing remains to be said right now. Joy.

The personal side

While I'd like to hope and think that the events of the past 24 hours would mean that my Nerdstar will come home earlier, I can't say I think that will be the case. There is still much to be done in Iraq. I'm sure that with the pending trail of Saddam things will still be tense there, and then the expected transfer of power to an Iraqi government this summer will also need a lot of supervision.

Also, even if the Defense Department feels they can reduce the number of troops in Iraq, most of them have been there longer than Nerdstar and the Stryker Brigade. She's not exactly at the front of the line to come home.

My biggest hope is that these events mean that Nerdstar and all of our soldiers will be safer while they have to be there. I'd trade soon for safe any day!

Joy and Hope

I don't think as Americans, with all the freedom we have and take so completely for granted, we can truly appreciate the relief and joy and all the other emotions the people of Iraq are feeling today. There are no adequate analogies. And not only in Iraq, but imagine the people still under the rule of evil leaders, to hear that Saddam has truly lost, and will never be in power again, and the hope that must bring to their hearts.

Could it be any more appropriate that this happens so close to Christmas - the worldwide time of joy and hope?

Thank God

Oh My God. You just never know what the hell you're going to read when you turn on the computer or hear when you turn on the news. I was looking at the Tacoma newspaper site trying to find news about the Sryker Brigade and see a caption about Saddam being captured. So I turn on Fox News - and sure enough, they really have him. I can't believe it. I'm almost in tears. I think I'm one of those who wish they'd found him dead - it would certainly make things more simple. But, thank God they found him and captured him. I can't imagine the relief the people of Iraq are feeling today. Wow.

Update:

Links with lots of info:
Command Post
Michele
Instapundit He's got some great posts about the elite media response - bastards!
And of course, Mr. Jarvis with his links to the Iraqi blogs themselves.

Iraqi Leaders

Let me state from the beginning this post is just my mostly uninformed thoughts, no research, no google searches. I might get to those later.

The latest round of terrorist attacks in Iraq, killing both Iraqis and U.S. soldiers, reminds me a lot of the situation in Israel. After 9/11 I thought a lot about Israel and how they could train the U.S. in dealing with small scale (small compared to 3000 dead in one day) terrorist attacks, car bombs, suicide bombs, etc. Last week I was thinking how the Iraqi leader should call up the people in Israel who are trained to look out for these attacks and respond to them and get some training. Of course, my next thought was, uh, wait a minute, who the hell IS the leader in Iraq?

And that's what I see as the biggest problem in Iraq right now. There hasn't been an Iraqi leader to step up and unite the people. I understand there are several different groups in Iraq and that is supposed to make this more difficult. But that doesn't mean the need for one is any less.

Afghanistan has Hamid Kazai, and I assume (remember, no research yet) that having him step up has helped tremendously. (Simply based on the fact that I'm not hearing of as many terrorist attacks there right now.)

Yes, the U.S. military can do a lot to help in Iraq, especially with the help of locals giving them tipoffs. But until the Iraqis really come together and say enough, we will not be terrorized any longer, not by Saddam, not by the Ba'athist (sp?) not by outsiders, not by anyone, this is our chance at freedom and we're not going to let a bunch of f*ckheads ruin it for us, there will continue to be big problems.

Where is the strong, loud Iraqi voice stating that message??

9/11 Annivesary

It's really not all that long until the two year anniversary of the worst day I've lived thru as an American. I know this time last year I was still very emotionally affected by 9/11, and the passing of the one year anniversary seemed to be a hurdle that once crossed that brought some healing.

BuzzMachine has some good suggestions for stories for this two year anniversary. Somehow, I think the media's going to screw it up.

I don't have any plans, I won't be taking the day off from work (unless Nerdstar gets orders really fast and I have to go see her off). But I will spend the day thinking of all the lives affected, and wishing it had never happened, and wishing even more that it never happens again.

I don't get it

Sorry if you've had trouble getting the site to come up today - something about Hosting Matters moving sites to a new server - which would have been fine with ANY advance notice.

I don't understand evil. Really. I'm sure I've written about this before, but I'm too lazy and pissy (yes, still) to look it up right now. I can't fathom living in a country where this is anything other than a really really bad movie:

A chef at Baghdad's exclusive Hunting Club recalls a wedding party that Uday crashed in the late 1990s. After Uday left the hall, the bride, a beautiful woman from a prominent family, went missing. "The bodyguards closed all the doors, didn't let anybody out," the chef remembers. "Women were yelling and crying, 'What happened to her?'" The groom knew. "He took a pistol and shot himself," says the chef, placing his forefinger under his chin.

Last October another bride, 18, was dragged, resisting, into a guardhouse on one of Uday's properties, according to a maid who worked there. The maid says she saw a guard rip off the woman's white wedding dress and lock her, crying, in a bathroom. After Uday arrived, the maid heard screaming. Later she was called to clean up. The body of the woman was carried out in a military blanket, she said. There were acid burns on her left shoulder and the left side of her face. The maid found bloodstains on Uday's mattress and clumps of black hair and peeled flesh in the bedroom. A guard told her, "Don't say anything about what you see, or you and your family will be finished." From Time magazine. Found via The Corner who I still won't link to.

I also can't imagine anything but sheer joy at the news that this evil fuckhead and his brother are dead.

So when the democrats respond with shit like this:

...I'm running for president because I believe George Bush has left us less safe and less secure than we were four years ago. I'm calling for new national leadership because the Bush-Cheney bravado has left us isolated in the world — fracturing 50 years of alliances, calling into question our credibility, squandering the global goodwill that was showered on us after 9/11.

I'm seeking the presidency because foreign policy isn't a John Wayne movie, where we catch the bad guys, hoist a few cold ones and then everything fades to black. Richard Gephardt

The AP reports that Howard Dean "shrugged off" the news saying, "the ends do not justify the means."

Well, needless to say all that just makes me even more pissy.

Can you even imagine having a man as president who wouldn't even see it as a good thing that mudering, raping, fuckhead dictators were not only removed from power but dead??

The words less safe would have a whole new meaning if a democrat were elected in 2004.

Iran

From what I can tell, there are some amazing things going on over in Iran. The protesters aren't just students anymore, and it seems they're really trying for change. This site is by the Student Movement Coordination Committee. This is a list of Iranian bloggers posted by BuzzMachine.

History In My Lifetime

History seems to be happening all the time. I'm old enough to remember the Berlin Wall coming down, but I wasn't old enough at the time to really understand it's impact. Although I remember being absolutely terrified of an atomic bomb going off and obliterating everything, the Cold War and it's reality for the people suffering under Communism wasn't real to me.

Even the Challenger disaster didn't really register with me, although I was in high school.

So the first historical event to truly make an impact on me was 9/11.

And then there was yesterday. At work I was reading and hearing about the fall of SH's statue in Baghdad, but it wasn't until I got home from work and saw it all on tv that I couldn't hold back the tears.

I simply cannot imagine what it must be like to live your life in real terror and fear and then have the day come when those who terrorized you are no longer in power over you. I try to imagine it. I try to read as many stories of what the Iraqis are saying as I can.

I can't express how deeply I wish I were a braver person. If I were I'd be on a plane to Iraq to help in any way possible the rebuilding of that country. To help bring the internet and communication and education and just plain old fun to people who so desperately deserve it.

There are people out there who would say I'm just being an arrogant American. And while I probably am an arrogant American, I still believe that freedom is something everyone is this world should have.

I hope and pray the people of Iraq embrace freedom and don't let more thugs into power. I try to wrap my brain around all of the things required to start a new democracy, a new economy and everything else. Wow. The task of starting sort of from scratch, but not really. How do you hire policemen and set up laws when the people are so used to the police being the bad guys?

I've read a little about the rebuilding in Afghanistan. I saw a documentary on how they developed and established a new currency and such. I wish the media would do more stories about how well things are going over there, and even the problems they've had so we (the general public) would have a better idea of some of the things the future hold for Iraq.

Well - here's to a new day in Iraq.

Feeling Solemn

Once again, I'm still finding it so very strange how I've been reacting to the past couple of days in exactly the same way I felt after 9/11. This morning I'm all serious and somber and having a very hard time being patient with people who aren't feeling the same way.

Last night I watched Angel. Seems I keep starting to watch a tv series toward the end of them. But wow. Way cool show. Thankfully there are dvds I can go back and watch from the beginning. Survivor was a nice distraction as well. I tried not to watch too much news, because there really wasn't anything to watch. Endless speculation just wears me out. I think that's why I like reading my news instead - it's not as repetitive.

It struck me as really strange to watch the live shots of Bagdad in the time between the end of the 48 hours and the presidents speech. To see the sun coming up halfway around the world. But the oddest thing was seeing cars on the roads there, and even people out walking around. I mean, where in the hell were those people going?? It's not like the stores were open.

After the speech I just went to bed. Because it was daytime over in Bagdad I didn't expect much to happen over night. Nerdstar wasn't home from work yet. I layed in bed and prayed. I actually felt peaceful and fell asleep for a few minutes.

I try to imagine what it must be like to live in Bagdad this week. I've read several times that there are many Iraqi's who are waiting for liberation. I hope it comes quickly for them.

Damn, Buffy is another re-run. Yes, it's a fantastic episode, and maybe the "people in chage" are running this one again to remind us of stuff before they get on with it. But damn, it's still a re-run.

Last night Ramen was funny. First, Silly was outside the fence to the tiny back yard, and Ramen ran out there barking at her like he was protecting his house from this mean old cat. Problem is, she's his cat. I've tried and tried to explain to him that Silly and Little Man are his cats and he really should be nice to them. But because they won't play chase with him, I don't think he likes them much. So I yelled at him to be nice and explained to him that if I ever have to make a choice between making the cats happy and keeping him, he's going to go live with grandma! Not too much latter, I went into the bedroom to get something and he followed me in there and went to bed. It was like he was all sad so he called it an early night! Yep, life with pets is good - or so I'm told!

Rant time. Remember how everything was supposed to be different at 9/11. It was "the death of irony", there would be no more partisan politics, etc. etc. etc. I guess I'm kind of feeling all of that again. I'm losing patience with "trivialities" and politics and bullshit. If I'm ever world dictator, rule #1 is going to be honesty in all things. Can you imagine what business and politics would be like if they all had to state their true intentions?

pause

I don't know how to express what I'm feeling. All the shit going on these days isn't about politics, it isn't about patriotism or anti-americanism, or opinions and censorship. It's about freedom and safety and a better world.

What's happened in this world in the past fifty years that we can't see a damn thing clearly anymore?? Was it really Vietnam that changed this country so much? How can the "american psyche" really be stuck like that?? Maybe it's not, but the talking heads sure are.

I guess my irony is that even as I call this site "beth's contradictory brain" all I ever want is truth and absolutes. I don't want shifting shadows, I want things to be plain and clear.

Well fellow readers - what's your take on all of it?

After the speech

Well, here we go. My chest has felt tight all day today. I guess this is what anxiety feels like. In some ways it was good that work was swamped today. On top of the phones being busy as hell, one of my coworkers was out today. It kept me from obsessing all day.

I know it gets said time and time and time again, by so many people. But this tightness in my chest is all about 9/11 and some deep fear that something like that can happen again in the next few days or weeks. Every time I log onto my computer and check Drudge, or turn on the tv to check the news, I kind of hold my breath and hope that there aren't buildings on fire, that I don't see gas masks on first responders in LA or Chicago or Dallas. 9/11 and the months that followed are seared in my heart and mind in ways I can't explain or articulate. Even after the time that has passed, I still tear up so much more easily than before that day. And that's just the one tangible after affect.

So I have to hope and pray and trust that my government feels that searing so much deeper than I can imagine. And that from that, they honestly are doing what they see as necessary to prevent such horrible things not only from happening here, but also in the rest of the world.

Other than another terror attack here in the U.S., Nerdstar and I really fear biological and chemical attacks on our troops. She just missed being in the army for Gulf War I, but she has seen the affects of the Gulf War Syndrome. And we both know this time could be even worse.

But I truly believe the risk of doing nothing is greater. And I'm proud to live in a country that is not content to seal our borders and disengage from the rest of the world, but is willing to send our loved ones to liberate people in other parts of the world.

I've read some pro-war writers' blogs today and they've wondered if the divide between pro-war and anti-war is too deep for friendships to survive. There are a lot of blogs I read every day, mostly thru DykeWrite, that are so sternly anti-war. I just can't understand that position, as I'm sure they can't understand mine. Only time will tell if the course our government is on is the right one.

I'd give anything to know what the world will look like in five or ten years. I believe the world will be a different place. Again, I can only hope and pray it's different for the better.

Not Again - The Space Shuttle is gone

How sad. How very sad. Another tragedy on another beautiful day. It feels even weirder knowing it was over Texas, so relatively close to my parents' house. It's a modern miracle there is a space program at all, accidents are bound to happen. But that doesn't make it any less of a tragedy.

God bless the families of the astronauts.

update 11:22 am For the best on the web I've seen about all this - please go read Instapundit. The info and links there are amazing.

Such strange times we live in. 9/11, war, the general overall threat that another terror attack could happen at any time, this space shuttle Columbia disaster... but what strikes me as odd is the way we all just keep on keeping on, as if we're not living in strange times.

Nerdstar had gotten up to drive to Houston this morning for the Chinese New Year. Not long after she left, I went back to sleep and she called. I could hear CNN being broadcast over her XM radio. She said, turn on your television. My first thought was we're at war, the second was more terrorism. If I'd been driving with her to Houston, it would have been so tempting to drive on over to where all the debris is today. Now I'm not sure what I'll spend the day doing. Watching the tv, reading.

One more link - this blog is going to try to keep up with the various info being posted about the space shuttle. The weather radar pics showing the debris trail are stunning.

Reason for war

Recently, for me, war with Iraq has come down to the question - if I were living in Iraq, under this dictator, in these conditions, would I want any country who was able to to come in and remove this dictator and in doing so improve my life.

Yes, there is a valid argument for a country to be isolationist - although in modern times I think it's hard to pull off. But other than that, do we (Americans) not have an obligation, not only to protect our own citizns (and Hussein is a threat to us, if not today, then in the near future), but to also help liberate oppressed people in other countries? Because if we don't, then let's stop spending so much on foreign aid and such.

So I don't really care if Bush thinks this is about oil or revenge (but I don't think he does!), I care that when it's said and done there are more people living in more freedom in this world.

Yes, there will be Iraqi casualties, as well as American soldiers who die. But, I'd be willing to bet, that unless Hussein intentionally places his citizens in harms way, there will be less Iraqi civilian casualities than there were Americans who died on 9/11. Not that I expect any press in the world to accurately report Iraqi casualties.

It's too easy to get bogged down in the political bullshit and forget about the people who need our help.

If/then?

While it seems a forgone conclusion that we're going to war with Iraq, I've been wondering how it will all play out. By the end of this month, it's reported there will be at least 130,000 U.S. troops over there. I know the stated goal is a regime change in Iraq, meaning Hussein will no longer be in power. For the record, I believe that is the goal and am highly in favor of it, and yes, even believe the Iraqi people are for it.

So, I'm assuming Rumsfield and company have some pretty damn good plans for actually finding the man and ... and that's my question - then what? Let's say the amazing Army/Marines actually find Hussein - do they shoot to kill or do they capture him? What in the world will be the reaction both here in the states and around the world for either scenario? Will the bad guys in the world who threaten more terrorist attacks threaten us more if we kill him or if we capture him? And let's say we do capture him (or Bin Laden for that matter) what the hell do we do with him? I can't even imagine the kangaroo world court that would arise.

I also can't imagine that there won't be thousands of American soldiers killed in the attempt to kill/capture this one man - no matter how good the plans are. I mean, sure, it would be beyond great if we could go in after a couple of days of having bombing and find that the bombs had dropped on his head, one of his own men had blown his brains out, or barring that, if one of our guys (girls?) blew his brains out. But I don't think it will be that simple.

So, why in the hell isn't the administration and media honestly getting this country ready for what's to come. CNN (which I hate beyond belief) has almost non-stop Iraq/war "coverage" - but are they actually giving us any useful information or tellings us best/worst case scenarios and how we can deal with them?

I have a feeling Bush will be doing many more such news conferences once the war actually starts "for real." (I think it's already started in some ways.)

I just don't see too many good tunnels on the way to that light at the end.