It Is Over For McCain (and Gonzales)

I would now like to reiterate my belief that John McCain has lost the election:

Bomb Iran, sings US candidate

REPUBLICAN 2008 presidential candidateJohn McCain crooned the words "Bomb Iran" to the tune of the Beach Boys' Barbara Ann in a joking response to a question about any possible US attack over Tehran's suspected nuclear weapons program.

"That old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran ... bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb," the Vietnam War veteran warbled softly to the band's Barbara Ann when he was asked when the United States would send an "airmail message" to Iran.

It's bad enough when some ignorant racist makes this joke, but when a candidate for the President of the United States (the person who can decide to bomb a country) makes this joke (especially when they are campaigning), their candidacy is over.

It might be over for Alberto Gonzales too. I listened to most of his testimony to the Senate yesterday, and it did not sound good. He is a disgrace. He should have resigned as soon as his testimony ended. Of course, someone who promotes torture and thinks the Geneva Conventions are quaint never should have become Attorney General in the first place, but such is life in the Twilight Zone-like world of the Bush administration.

Not even the Republican Senators on the committee could defend Gonzales except for Senator Hatch (R-UT) who is an incredulous hack and Senator Kyl (R-AZ) who cowardly and absurdly changed the topic to "internet gambling." Is Kyl insane? Our country is experiencing some very serious Constitutional and ethical violations from the executive branch, and all he cares about is internet gambling?

Thanks a lot, Arizona. Reelecting Kyl in 2006 was a great idea![/sarcasm]

The Occupation Of Iraq Getting Worse, Not Better

Every day we get more and more bad news about the situation in Iraq, and everyday we get someone from the White House (or McCain or Lieberman) to say how great things are in Iraq. So who are we going to believe, them or our own eyes?

Well, let's see, in my almost thirty years of life my eyes have never lied to me. Politicians, on the other hand, do not have such a trustworthy reputation.

I think I am going to go with what my own eyes are telling me, and from what the polls are showing, around 70% (give or take) of Americans also are believing their eyes rather than the White House's lies.

As for the other 30%, well, they might be a lost cause, but that does not mean we should give up hope. We must continue to speak out against politicians like Senator John McCain everytime he lies about Iraq like this:

McCain firm on Iraq war

WASHINGTON -- Attempting to restart his flagging presidential campaign, Sen. John McCain delivered a dark and detailed portrait of the situation in Iraq as he assailed Democratic opponents of the war in an address at the Virginia Military Institute on Wednesday.

He maintained that the military has made "measurable progress" in securing Baghdad and fighting insurgents in Anbar province, an assertion that has drawn ridicule from war opponents. At the same time, the Arizona Republican said, "to deny the difficulties and uncertainties ahead is an egregious disservice to the public."

[...]"Will this nation's elected leaders make the politically hard but strategically vital decision to give Gen. Petraeus our full support and do what is necessary to succeed in Iraq?" McCain said. "Or will we decide to take advantage of the public's frustration, accept defeat and hope that, whatever the cost to our security, the politics of defeat will work out better for us than our opponents? For my part, I would rather lose a campaign than a war."

Politics of defeat? How about the politics of delusion, McCain?

Everything McCain and Bush and their ilk are saying about Iraq is based on lies. Every argument for invading Iraq was a lie, and the lies continue. Bush did not begin a "surge" in Iraq; he started an escalation. The situation in Iraq is not getting better; it is getting worse. This is not a "war"; this is an occupation. The war was over when four years ago when Baghdad fell. This is an occupation that Bush has escalated because things were getting worse, and that has not changed despite the escalation:

Red Cross: Iraqi Situation Getting Worse

GENEVA (AP) - Millions of Iraqis are in a ``disastrous'' situation that is getting worse, with mothers appealing for someone to pick up the bodies on the street so their children will be spared the horror of looking at them on their way to school, the international Red Cross said Wednesday.

[...]Medical professionals also have been fleeing the country after cases where their colleagues were killed or abducted, the group said in a 13-page report. ``Hospitals and other key services are desperately short of staff,'' Kraehenbuehl said. ``According to the Iraqi Ministry of Health, more than half the doctors are said to have already left the country.''

The report, ``Civilians without Protection: The Ever-Worsening Humanitarian Crisis in Iraq,'' was produced over the past two to three weeks, a spokesman said - well after the stepped-up American-led military operations in the capital began Feb. 14.

[...]``Once I was called to an explosion site,'' it quoted a young Baghdad humanitarian worker named Saad as saying. ``There I saw a 4-year-old boy sitting beside his mother's body, which had been decapitated by the explosion. He was talking to her, asking her what had happened.''

That news is horrible enough, but today, insurgents were able to attack members of the Iraqi parliament within the Green Zone, the most heavily protected area in all of Iraq. This is solid proof that things are getting worse:

Explosion hits Iraqi parliament; 2 dead

BAGHDAD (AP) — A bomb exploded in the Iraqi parliament's cafeteria in a stunning assault in the heart of the heavily fortified, U.S.-protected Green Zone Thursday, killing at least two lawmakers and wounding 10 other people.

The blast in the parliament building came hours after a suicide truck bomb blew up a major bridge in Baghdad, collapsing the steel structure and sending cars tumbling into the Tigris River, police and witnesses said. At least 10 people were killed.

The bomb in parliament went off in a cafeteria while several lawmakers were eating lunch, media reports said. In addition to the two dead, state television said at least 10 people were wounded.

If that does not convince the other 30% of the populace that still believes the Bush administration that they are being lied to, then I do not know what will. Maybe this:

Army Extends Iraq Tours to 15 Months

WASHINGTON (AP) - Stretched thin by four years of war, the Army is adding three months to the standard yearlong tour for all active-duty soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, an extraordinary step aimed at maintaining the troop buildup in Baghdad.

The change, announced Wednesday by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, is the latest blow to an all-volunteer Army that has been given ever-shorter periods of rest and retraining at home between overseas deployments.

Or this:

Report: Claims Reveal Toll of U.S. Wars

NEW YORK (AP) - Iraqi and Afghan civilians have received more than $32 million in compensation from the Army for noncombat-related killings, injuries and property damage, The New York Times reported Thursday.

The details of hundreds of the claims, obtained from the Army by the American Civil Liberties Union through a Freedom of Information Act request, offer a glimpse into the daily violence that has marred the lives of civilians in both war zones.

And these are just the stories from today.

The ratio of these reports on the worsening situation in Iraq per day are horrifying. I am amazed that anyone still supports this war, but 30%?! That is beyond absurd.

Our military occupation of Iraq must end now.

The White House likes to call us defeatists, but they have already been defeated in the public's perception here and abroad. The majorities of both Americans and Iraqis want our troops out of Iraq.

The White House likes to question our patriotism. Well, I question theirs with their insulting and immoral penchant to lie daily to the American people, sacrifice our soldiers for Bush's "glory", waste our hard-earned money, risk our economic stability, exploit Iraq for greed, and destroy the Iraqi people.

This is an escalation of conflict, not a surge. The situation in Iraq is getting worse, not better. This is an occupation, not a war. Occupations cannot be won or lost, but they do end. Occupations end when the occupiers decide to leave or when the occupiers eliminate everyone who wants them to leave.

I would prefer it if we just leave.

John McCain vs. John McCain

It was not too long ago that McCain seemed likely to be the next Republican presidential nominee. Now, it seems like he has lost his mind (from ThinkProgress.org):

Faced With Facts, McCain Denies His Own Straight Talk

Yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) told CNN that that President Bush’s escalation in Iraq is going so well, “General Petraeus goes out there almost every day in an unarmed humvee.” On Monday, he told radio host Bill Bennett that there “are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and I could walk through those neighborhoods, today.”

This morning, during an interview with McCain, CNN’s John Roberts rebutted McCain’s assertions, stating, “I checked with General Petraeus’s people overnight and they said he never goes out in anything less than an up-armored humvee.” He added that a new report by retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey “said no Iraqi government official, coalition soldier, diplomat reporter could walk the streets of Baghdad without heavily armed protection.”

Faced with overwhelming evidence that he was wrong, McCain denied he’d ever said it: “Well, I’m not saying they could go without protection. The President goes around America with protection. So, certainly I didn’t say that.”

The MSM might criticize McCain by speculating that he might be too old to be president. However, I do not have a problem with his age. What I have a problem with is that McCain is (1) in denial about the reality in Iraq and (2) in denial about the reality of what he said ONE DAY EARLIER.

After Bush, the last thing this country needs is another reality-denying president. McCain is out of the race as far as I am concerned. I do not think that even Republicans will support another delusional (or deluding, depending on your outlook) candidate. I highly doubt that McCain will win the GOP's nomination.