All the media blather about elder statesman Bush painting Iraq veterans makes me ill. Scroll back and re-see and re-hear Shrub for the war criminal and tool of the truly evil Cheney machine that he was. Bush played a lot of golf while he was in the WH. Sound familiar?❤️🤍💙
All the media blather about elder statesman Bush painting Iraq veterans makes me ill. Scroll back and re-see and re-hear Shrub for the war criminal and tool of the truly evil Cheney machine that he was. Bush played a lot of golf while he was in the WH. Sound familiar?❤️🤍💙
I wept when President Bush declared war. I can also be very grateful for his comments yesterday. One does not cancel the other. We need absolutely everyone who can and is willing to speak out against the attempts to dismantle Democracy in the United States.
As a side note here. I 100% support disagreement. What I cannot support is name calling. Name calling in politics became full blown during the last Administration. I had hoped it would fade away but unfortunately it has become imbedded in our American consciousness.
As we rise up to defend against tyranny I propose we restore civility to our public discourse also.
And I remember getting mad at such a declaration of war without reason, especially knowing how we needed to especially not get involved in that region. And I thought of the college students from Iran that I had met.
By declaring a "war on terror" and first selecting a country not even involved in the 9/11 attacks, it was quite confusing to those of us who couldn't understand the connections.
It’s why my husband and I bought a house in Nova Scotia for an escape. We were ashamed snd outraged at the Bush/ Cheney/ Rumsfeld cabal and those who blindly went along. We felt sorry for Powell while being angry that he didn’t listen to others before allowing himself to be so used (as the only trusted person) by representing the lying administration at the UN.
In a technical light, I don't believe Bush Jr. even declared war. I don't remember which mitigating term he used for our invasion, but presidents and congress have avoided making declarations of war since 1942 when the U.S. declared war against a few countries which then joined the Axis alliance of WWII. It's easier to get public to accept it if war is not declared when we invade and exploit another country.
I read of a press conference President Truman gave in 1951, I believe. To closely paraphrase a reporter's question:
"Mr. President, how are things going in the Korean War?"
Truman replied, "Well, first, I wouldn't call it a war exactly."
The reporter asked back, "Well, what would you call it? A police action?"
Truman replied, "Yes, a police action. That sounds about right."
Since then, our invasions of foreign countries have not been government-declared wars.
There are so many things that I have trouble forgiving W for, but I think the biggest overall grievance was how the Bush administration, in roughly a month or two, managed to squander every single bit of good will and solidarity we had been receiving from the rest of the world. Once the bombs started dropping in Afghanistan, and then subsequently in Iraq, I remember my Dutch colleagues were very much against these actions, because civilians were being killed as well. The group I was singing with was due to begin an American tour in early November 2001, and the week before we were to leave two colleagues refused to go, partly out of concern for their own safety (we were to sing in NYC and in Washington DC), but also because of America's bombing. I found it very hard to defend the actions, so frequently held my tongue. I remember a rather contentious meeting the group had where there were a lot of my colleagues really running down America and things got pretty heated. Our then director, an Estonian, listened to it all and after a while said, in his halting English, "I think America need our music right now. Music can heal and they need us and our music." That pretty much settled it then & there, because he was right. The tour went on and was successful, but it showed me how quickly the world's opinions changed from one of compassion for what America was going through right after 9/11, but then a 180-degree turn in a matter of days and weeks when the bombs started falling. I laid this whole sorry state of affairs at the feet of the Bush administration and that, to me, was the real beginning of the end of America's loss of stature in the eyes of the rest of the world.
And the commonly used phrase “May God Bless America” irks me still, even when President Biden uses it. It contradicts the intent of the separation of church and state, and ignores the melting pot of religions, or non-religions, in this country.
Yes. Much as I really like Biden and what he's doing, and that he's a sincere Christian, I cringe when even he uses that phrase. It sounds blasphemous, implying that God prefers America when we know that isn't true. God loves all peoples. It's the traditional thing to say, I understand, but maybe it's time to retire it. Instead, say something like, "God bless those who can talk us out of war." Then reward those people in a big way when they are succeed.
When Bush decided to bomb Afghanistan's training camps for al Qaeda, I felt that it was a reasonable reaction to their attack. While the Taliban wasn't a terrorist group, they were giving safe harbor to bin Laden and the terrorists. As time went on, and we discovered that Bush had intelligence that bin Laden was in Tora Bora, it was frustrating that he didn't try to go after him. By then the training camps had been decimated, and since bin Laden was in the wind, I became angry that we were still carrying on the "mission," and it soon became clear that we were actually "nation building." We know how long it took to extricate ourselves.
When we began bombing Iraq, on questionable "intelligence" of Hussein's WMD and relationship with bin Laden, I voiced displeasure of the whole operation to co-workers. One friend flatly said that I was unpatriotic. I let her know that it wasn't my patriotic duty to stay silent when I had good reason to disagree with our military ventures. a few days later, we visited Italy with friends, and when the hotel's driver picked us up at the airport in Rome, his first question was what we thought of the Iraq invasion. After saying that I was opposed to it, one of our companions said, "Well, Hussein is a bad guy." I held that although it was the truth, it is not our responsibility to remove all of the world's bad guys, and we had some of our own. Needless to say, the trip was somewhat uncomfortable from that point on, and with all of the "PACE" banners everywhere we went, it was clear that the Italians seemed to agree with me. We have been playing defense since then, and although my instincts were vindicated, George Bush and his "advisors" began our downhill slide.
All the media blather about elder statesman Bush painting Iraq veterans makes me ill. Scroll back and re-see and re-hear Shrub for the war criminal and tool of the truly evil Cheney machine that he was. Bush played a lot of golf while he was in the WH. Sound familiar?❤️🤍💙
I wept when President Bush declared war. I can also be very grateful for his comments yesterday. One does not cancel the other. We need absolutely everyone who can and is willing to speak out against the attempts to dismantle Democracy in the United States.
As a side note here. I 100% support disagreement. What I cannot support is name calling. Name calling in politics became full blown during the last Administration. I had hoped it would fade away but unfortunately it has become imbedded in our American consciousness.
As we rise up to defend against tyranny I propose we restore civility to our public discourse also.
And I remember getting mad at such a declaration of war without reason, especially knowing how we needed to especially not get involved in that region. And I thought of the college students from Iran that I had met.
By declaring a "war on terror" and first selecting a country not even involved in the 9/11 attacks, it was quite confusing to those of us who couldn't understand the connections.
I remember feeling, Oh no! We are going to retaliate. Shit.
And retaliation against the wrong enemy made it worse.
It’s why my husband and I bought a house in Nova Scotia for an escape. We were ashamed snd outraged at the Bush/ Cheney/ Rumsfeld cabal and those who blindly went along. We felt sorry for Powell while being angry that he didn’t listen to others before allowing himself to be so used (as the only trusted person) by representing the lying administration at the UN.
"...when President Bush declared war...."
In a technical light, I don't believe Bush Jr. even declared war. I don't remember which mitigating term he used for our invasion, but presidents and congress have avoided making declarations of war since 1942 when the U.S. declared war against a few countries which then joined the Axis alliance of WWII. It's easier to get public to accept it if war is not declared when we invade and exploit another country.
I read of a press conference President Truman gave in 1951, I believe. To closely paraphrase a reporter's question:
"Mr. President, how are things going in the Korean War?"
Truman replied, "Well, first, I wouldn't call it a war exactly."
The reporter asked back, "Well, what would you call it? A police action?"
Truman replied, "Yes, a police action. That sounds about right."
Since then, our invasions of foreign countries have not been government-declared wars.
Thanks. Yes, it's much easier to slide it past the American people if it's not called "war." Another form of deception.
Yes.
There are so many things that I have trouble forgiving W for, but I think the biggest overall grievance was how the Bush administration, in roughly a month or two, managed to squander every single bit of good will and solidarity we had been receiving from the rest of the world. Once the bombs started dropping in Afghanistan, and then subsequently in Iraq, I remember my Dutch colleagues were very much against these actions, because civilians were being killed as well. The group I was singing with was due to begin an American tour in early November 2001, and the week before we were to leave two colleagues refused to go, partly out of concern for their own safety (we were to sing in NYC and in Washington DC), but also because of America's bombing. I found it very hard to defend the actions, so frequently held my tongue. I remember a rather contentious meeting the group had where there were a lot of my colleagues really running down America and things got pretty heated. Our then director, an Estonian, listened to it all and after a while said, in his halting English, "I think America need our music right now. Music can heal and they need us and our music." That pretty much settled it then & there, because he was right. The tour went on and was successful, but it showed me how quickly the world's opinions changed from one of compassion for what America was going through right after 9/11, but then a 180-degree turn in a matter of days and weeks when the bombs started falling. I laid this whole sorry state of affairs at the feet of the Bush administration and that, to me, was the real beginning of the end of America's loss of stature in the eyes of the rest of the world.
And the commonly used phrase “May God Bless America” irks me still, even when President Biden uses it. It contradicts the intent of the separation of church and state, and ignores the melting pot of religions, or non-religions, in this country.
Yes. Much as I really like Biden and what he's doing, and that he's a sincere Christian, I cringe when even he uses that phrase. It sounds blasphemous, implying that God prefers America when we know that isn't true. God loves all peoples. It's the traditional thing to say, I understand, but maybe it's time to retire it. Instead, say something like, "God bless those who can talk us out of war." Then reward those people in a big way when they are succeed.
As an atheist, that bothers me too. A lot.
When Bush decided to bomb Afghanistan's training camps for al Qaeda, I felt that it was a reasonable reaction to their attack. While the Taliban wasn't a terrorist group, they were giving safe harbor to bin Laden and the terrorists. As time went on, and we discovered that Bush had intelligence that bin Laden was in Tora Bora, it was frustrating that he didn't try to go after him. By then the training camps had been decimated, and since bin Laden was in the wind, I became angry that we were still carrying on the "mission," and it soon became clear that we were actually "nation building." We know how long it took to extricate ourselves.
When we began bombing Iraq, on questionable "intelligence" of Hussein's WMD and relationship with bin Laden, I voiced displeasure of the whole operation to co-workers. One friend flatly said that I was unpatriotic. I let her know that it wasn't my patriotic duty to stay silent when I had good reason to disagree with our military ventures. a few days later, we visited Italy with friends, and when the hotel's driver picked us up at the airport in Rome, his first question was what we thought of the Iraq invasion. After saying that I was opposed to it, one of our companions said, "Well, Hussein is a bad guy." I held that although it was the truth, it is not our responsibility to remove all of the world's bad guys, and we had some of our own. Needless to say, the trip was somewhat uncomfortable from that point on, and with all of the "PACE" banners everywhere we went, it was clear that the Italians seemed to agree with me. We have been playing defense since then, and although my instincts were vindicated, George Bush and his "advisors" began our downhill slide.
Thank you.