Last Combat Troops Leaving Iraq Right Now, Right on Schedule. by Kwicko

REAL WORLD EVENT DISCUSSIONS

Last Combat Troops Leaving Iraq Right Now, Right on Schedule.

POSTED BY: KWICKO
UPDATED: Sunday, August 22, 2010 10:17
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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:21 PM

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

Just as promised, the last of the U.S.'s combat troops are leaving Iraq, right now. I'm watching it live on TV; they're at the border with Kuwait, unloading their weapons.

Nobody has hoisted any "Mission Accomplished!" banners yet. Guess they don't really feel like showboating.

Thanks for this, Mr. President. It's not enough, but it's a start.

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:26 PM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Which carrier's mission was accomplished today ?

None ?

No such banner needed. Still have 50,000 troops in country.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:42 PM

DICKCHENEY

Go fuck yourself!

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:46 PM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Quote:
Originally posted by DickCheney:
Go fuck yourself!

Hey, it's a big fucking deal, sport-o

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:57 PM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Just as promised, the last of the U.S.'s combat troops are leaving Iraq, right now. I'm watching it live on TV; they're at the border with Kuwait, unloading their weapons.

Nobody has hoisted any "Mission Accomplished!" banners yet. Guess they don't really feel like showboating.

Thanks for this, Mr. President. It's not enough, but it's a start.

You really think this is any different other than in level of bravado? And if it wasn't for Bush looking like an ass with Mission Accomplished I have no doubt Obama would have done something similar, "just as I promised...." just a little less frat party but still, "we rock."

This is nothing I am celebrating cuz we're not out yet. I read "the war in Afghanistan" and it is absolutely surreal. "War?" We're at war with a country that eats donkeys? IF they can get them. Aren't we special! We're upside down, inside out, and backwards.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:02 PM

STORYMARK

Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:
And if it wasn't for Bush looking like an ass with Mission Accomplished I have no doubt Obama would have done something similar, "just as I promised...." just a little less frat party but still, "we rock."

Well, as long as you're sure, it just must be a fact....

"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:23 PM

KWICKO

Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Just as promised, the last of the U.S.'s combat troops are leaving Iraq, right now. I'm watching it live on TV; they're at the border with Kuwait, unloading their weapons.

Nobody has hoisted any "Mission Accomplished!" banners yet. Guess they don't really feel like showboating.

Thanks for this, Mr. President. It's not enough, but it's a start.

You really think this is any different other than in level of bravado? And if it wasn't for Bush looking like an ass with Mission Accomplished I have no doubt Obama would have done something similar, "just as I promised...." just a little less frat party but still, "we rock."

This is nothing I am celebrating cuz we're not out yet. I read "the war in Afghanistan" and it is absolutely surreal. "War?" We're at war with a country that eats donkeys? IF they can get them. Aren't we special! We're upside down, inside out, and backwards.

Do I think it's any different? Yeah, I do. Instead of 130,000 troops mired in that hell-hole of a quagmire, there are now 50,000. That's a reduction of more than 60% in the number of troops we've got in harm's way in Iraq.

I'll celebrate this small step while acknowledging that it's just a small step. It's not enough, as I said in the original post.

But it's a start. It's a beginning to the end of a horrible experiment in adventurism and cowboy dipshit jingoism embarked on by our last president, who was himself far too much a coward to ever serve in combat, but was perfectly happy to keep playing golf while thousands upon thousands of Americans and Iraqis were killed for his "glory" and for FauxNews's ratings.

You can't roll back the clock and undo the damage, but you can get out now, and that's what we're starting to do.

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:23 PM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

With 1/29th of our Active Duty personnel remaining in Iraq for an indefinite period, I'm not feeling warm or fuzzy. I think the British conducted their entire war with Argentina using a fraction of the forces we still have sitting in Iraq.

Also, what is a 'Combat Troop?' If the remaining 56,000 soldiers in Iraq-

(50,000 of which are slated to remain until... Well... Until!)

If they are not Combat Troops, what are they? Data-entry personnel?

Doubtless some of them are from Section 3, but what about the rest? What are we still doing in that country?

This feels very much like a non-event to me. When the only troops remaining in that country are sitting in our Embassy, protecting our Ambassador, I'll be happy.

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:25 PM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:
Quote:
Originally posted by pizmobeach:
And if it wasn't for Bush looking like an ass with Mission Accomplished I have no doubt Obama would have done something similar, "just as I promised...." just a little less frat party but still, "we rock."

Well, as long as you're sure, it just must be a fact....

I appreciate your vote of confidence!

Politicians, the lot of them, eh, wot?

Scifi movie music + Firefly dialogue clips, 24 hours a day - http://www.scifiradio.com

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:25 PM

KWICKO

Hell, Anthony, given the size of our embassy there, 50,000 troops might just be the embassy guard corps!

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:31 PM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

Okay, that made me chuckle. :-)

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:40 PM

PIZMOBEACH

... fully loaded, safety off...

We out:

"U.S. Plans to Double Private Security Force in Iraq After 2011 Military Pullout

As the United States military prepares to leave Iraq by the
end of 2011, the Obama administration is planning a
remarkable civilian effort, buttressed by a small army of
contractors, to fill the void.

By October 2011, the State Department will assume
responsibility for training the Iraqi police, a task that
will largely be carried out by contractors. With no American
soldiers to defuse sectarian tensions in northern Iraq, it
will be up to American diplomats in two new $100 million
outposts.

To protect the civilians in a country that is still home to
insurgents with Al Qaeda and Iranian-backed militias, the
State Department is planning to more than double its private
security guards, up to about 7,000, according to
administration officials who disclosed new details of the
plan.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/19/world/middleeast/19withdrawal.html?e
mc=na

I love this part: "With no American soldiers to defuse sectarian tensions in northern Iraq, it will be up to American diplomats in two new $100 million outposts."

Opulence, I has it.

I sincerely wish them the best.

Scifi movie music + Firefly dialogue clips, 24 hours a day - http://www.scifiradio.com

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:47 PM

KWICKO

Man, I wish someone could create that many private-sector jobs HERE.

Now if we could just start winding things down in Vietnamistan. Er, I mean AFGHANISTAN. Imagine if we could spend the money we've wasted on these idiotic wars to actually do something here at home, where it's needed.

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 2:53 PM

KWICKO

Piz, I wish 'em the best, too.

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 5:15 PM

HKCAVALIER

I'm just overwhelmingly relieved to hear that 80,000 troops are coming home. My heart celebrates with those 80,000 families for whom this long wait is over.

HKCavalier

Hey, hey, hey, don't be mean. We don't have to be mean, because, remember, no matter where you go, there you are.

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Thursday, August 19, 2010 4:06 AM

KANEMAN

Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Just as promised, the last of the U.S.'s combat troops are leaving Iraq, right now. I'm watching it live on TV; they're at the border with Kuwait, unloading their weapons.

Nobody has hoisted any "Mission Accomplished!" banners yet. Guess they don't really feel like showboating.

Thanks for this, Mr. President. It's not enough, but it's a start.

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

Are you sure they are not on the border with afganistan?

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Thursday, August 19, 2010 4:26 AM

KWICKO

Quote:
Originally posted by AURaptor:

Which carrier's mission was accomplished today ?

"All of 'em."

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Thursday, August 19, 2010 6:07 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

Afghans don’t eat donkeys. Or cats or dogs, horses or any other food we could laugh at. Their main staple when we were there was mutton. I hear they have cattle now; back then, there were none They raise what we called “fat-tailed sheep”...the tails are fatty, so they use them as lard; the skins make those embroidered coats you used to see, and Karakul caps the upper classes wore/wear.

Donkeys are highly prized among the lower classes, as they can carry heavy loads—it’s funny to see a little “burro” walking along almost buried under a huge load of hay, or someone riding with their legs hanging down almost to the ground, but they’re tough little beasties.

The biggest problem with donkeys and camels back then was they didn’t understand traffic lights or stop signs/intersections, nor did their riders/leaders. We only had a couple of lights, but even at those, there had to be traffic cops at every intersection to tell them to stop. It was fun to watch that, too, because it came down to the cop hollering to stop, the guy on the donkey hollering he wanted to keep going, and usually whoever hollered loudest won. There were few cars, so it was no biggie, just amusing.

Unquestionably it’s a primitive country, but FAR less so than when we were there. There were few roads then, and now I see big buildings and apartment houses and Kabul looks like it has streets all over.

I, too, am glad to see us moving out of Iraq. I didn’t watch, however; for me, it’s one step of many and not worth the wall-to-wall coverage the MSM gave it...so I watched reruns of the Closer instead. It IS only one step, and I’m pretty sure we’ll have a presence there for the foreseeable future, like we do in other countries. But it’s a GOOD step.

As to the comparison, no, I don’t think there is one. For one thing, I remember when the deal was made for us to set a deadline, and that the Iraqis were unwilling to extend our time there until Obama was elected, because they believed HE would keep his promise. And he has.

The language is a big difference for me; we’re no longer on a “crusade” there, and the trashing and “bravado” as Mike said, has been gone from the government at least since the beginning of Obama’s Presidency. The country is no longer being whipped into a frenzy to “go get ‘em”, and that’s a good thing, too.

There’s another comparison, for me. IF Bush had gone into Afghanistan as should have been originally done and put our effort into wiping out Al Qaeda and the Taliban’s influence, and left Iraq alone, think how different things would be and how many wouldn’t have lost their lives! As Mike also said, however, we can’t turn back the clock, so I’ll take every positive step as it comes and hope for the best.

Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Thursday, August 19, 2010 6:39 AM

RIVERLOVE

It is a great moment, and our troops deserve to be congratulated for the tough job they did there. I just pray that Iran doesn't get any funny ideas about doing a quick over-the-border incursion with the hope of a small or mid-sized land grab. I don't think the Iraqis can defend against that.

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Saturday, August 21, 2010 12:48 PM

KANEMAN

Your liberal cronies over at Antiwar.com don't believe that...How is the Kool-aid?

"It was another of those great TV moments. Embedded reports filming as the “last” brigade of American troops in Iraq cross the border into Kuwait bringing over seven years of unhappy conflict to its final, conclusive end. America was, at last, at peace.

But like so many other great TV moments, this one was a scripted fantasy, a fake exit done purely for political gain by an increasingly unpopular president trying to look like he is keeping at least one campaign promise.

It was perhaps a different sort of scripted, mythical end to the Iraq War than the last one, the May 1, 2003 “Mission Accomplished” speech of President Bush, but it was no more real, as over 50,000 US troops remain

n the ground in Iraq tonight.

The “end of the war” may bring some measure of relief to the American people, but it must be something of a sombre moment for those 50,000 troops, as they continue to go into combat operations with the bulk of the American public believing, because their president told them so, that the war is over and combat operations have ended.

Officials have been pretty straightforward about what really happened, not that it has been picked up by the media, which has preferred the more pleasant narrative of a decisive military victory. Instead, the US simply “redefined” the vast majority of its combat troops as “transitional troops,” then removed a brigade that they didn’t relabel, so they could claim that was the “last one.” Even this comes with the

assumption that the State Department, and a new army of contractors, will take over for years after the military operations end, assuming they ever do.

And it worked, at least for now. All is right with the world and the war is over, at least so far as anyone could tell from the TV news shows. But as violence continues to rise across Iraq, and July saw the worst violence in over two years, it will likely be difficult for the Obama Administration to keep this war a secret for much longer."

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Sunday, August 22, 2010 6:11 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

We must watch different channels. The ones I saw were quite up front about the fact that it's not an "end", but the "beginning of the end". I saw a reporter on the ground there asking questionsa about how it would be dealt with now, and if all those contractors and "trainers" was really an improvement, and about how we still have 50,000 on the ground.

I don't think any but the most surface-minded see it as truly an end to the war. The government may THINK we see it that way, but the fact that there was no hullabaloo by the administration, no "Mission Accomplished" banner, no celebration, pretty much says to me that they know this isn't anything to fuss about...it's a good thing, but it's not the definitive statement on ending the war. If they really were doing it for political gain, don't you think there would be all kinds of celebrations?

Of course it's scripted; may I ask, what exactly do you think EVER happens publicly in politics isn't "scripted"? You think either party's statements about the other aren't scripted? To think so would be rather naive, to me.

In point of fact, nowhere have I seen anyone call this a "decisive victory". Obama himself has clearly said it is the "end of combat operations" and nothing more. It was done quietly and, despite wall-to-wall coverage (which I avoided, as I'm sure many others did), no fuss was made by the Administration except to announce the end of COMBAT operations and inform people of who would be remaining.

Obama has talked about plans for the "new mission" in Iraq, and I believe everyone has been informed of how many remain and what will be done in future.

Partisanship can get in the way of how one views things and what one claims has been said and done. But the facts are something different.

Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Sunday, August 22, 2010 6:32 AM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

"it's a good thing, but it's not the definitive statement on ending the war."

Hello,

I don't know how much or how little the admin has to do with it, but every headline I've seen on this says, "LAST COMBAT TROOPS LEAVE IRAQ."

Which is so misleading as to be one degree short of a lie.

I should also point out the sad and well known fact that many people skim the news by reading the headline and possibly the first couple of sentences below it. The resultant misinformation is one degree short of deception.

The war has seen so many 'beginnings of the end' that the term means nothing to me. Current events seem much more like the end of the beginning to me.

There's your non-partisan take on the situation, from someone who loathes this war as much now as he did when he learned we were torturing folks in Saddam's old torture chambers.

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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Sunday, August 22, 2010 7:45 AM

KWICKO

I'm curious, though; what constitutes an "end", then? When there are NO troops left in Iraq?

Are we still at war with England? We have troops there. Italy? Germany?

If we pull all our troops from overseas, are we than only at war with ourselves, since we have troops stationed in every state in the union?

Is the end of our wars to come ONLY when we have no more military at all?

AURaptor's Greatest Hits:

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 20:32 To AnthonyT:
Go fuck yourself.
On this matter, make no mistake. I want you to go fuck yourself long and hard, as well as anyone who agrees with you. I got no use for you.

Friday, May 28, 2010 - 18:26 To President Obama:
Mr. President, you're a god damn, mother fucking liar.
Fuck you, you cock sucking community activist piece of shit.
... go fuck yourself, Mr. President.

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Sunday, August 22, 2010 10:14 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...

I take your point, Anthony. I would reply that nowadays, a lot more people get their news from TV, internet and radio than from printed word, and on the TV, internet and radio, what I heard was what I described above.

I also agree that we have soldiers stationed all around the world, so to say it's only over when every one of them is gone is not what I believe most people think. I am among those who would like to see ALL troops brought home, but it's not realistic the way our government is now or for a long time to come (if ever!). But to say the "war" isn't over because there are still soldiers there requres, as Mike pointed out, that we're in war with an awful lot of countries.

Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Sunday, August 22, 2010 10:17 AM

ANTHONYT

Freedom is Important because People are Important

Hello,

That's a good philosophical question.

But when none of our troops are having anything to do with Iraq or its people, I'll be satisfied to call it over. That probably means our troops will occupy an Embassy only, or possibly a military base (depending on what arrangements we wring out of the Iraqi government) and that our troops will NOT engage in any kind of conflict in the subject nation.

Our cold-war remnant massive military presence in Germany is such a presence. Though I also advocate bugging out of there, because it's an expense that no longer carries a reason.

I mean, we don't think our fifty-thousand troops are in Iraq playing tiddly-winks, do we? Perhaps they are there as 'advisors.'

--Anthony

Due to the use of Naomi 3.3.2 Beta web filtering, the following people may need to private-message me if they wish to contact me: Auraptor, Kaneman, Piratenews. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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