There was quite an astounding story today, regarding former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, now saying 'victory' in Iraq is no longer possible.
Specifically, during a BBC interview, Kissinger said,
"If you mean by 'military victory' an Iraqi Government that can be established and whose writ runs across the whole country, that gets the civil war under control and sectarian violence under control in a time period that the political processes of the democracies will support, I don't believe that is possible."This comes on a day when more than 111 Iraqis were slaughtered, including at least 22 people who were killed when a suicide bomber, using the promise of work as a lure, blew up the vehicle he had herded the prospective day laborers into. The bodies of 56 murder victims, many of them tortured, were found in 3 Iraqi cities.
That is a page from the chaos that is now post-Saddam Iraq.
Yet, in a Washington Post Op-Ed from August 12, 2005, here is how Kissinger explained how the endgame in Iraq was supposed to play out:
"American strategy, including a withdrawal process, will stand or fall not on whether it maintains the existing security situation but on whether the capacity to improve it is enhanced. Victory over the insurgency is the only meaningful exit strategy."State of Denial
Bob Woodward's book, "State of Denial," which was published last month, further detailed the major influence Kissinger, and his 'victory' strategy, had on the Bush White House.
In an appearance to promote the book on "60 Minutes," Woodward noted,
"This is so fascinating. Kissinger’s fighting the Vietnam War again. Because in his view the problem in Vietnam was we lost our will. That we didn’t stick to it."How ironic that Kissinger's epiphany occurred while Bush was in Vietnam, the country he and his policy hawks very successfully avoided active duty in when we were at war there.
Now What?
Kissinger apparently thinks that the idea of an Iraqi Democracy may not be attainable after all, saying "It [was] a mistake to think that you can gain legitimacy primarily through the electoral process."
What does Kissinger see as the future reality in Iraq? A "confederal state," consisting of 3 Iraqi regions. The Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds would rule themselves "with substantial autonomy."
So what are we to make of this sudden realization that maybe our incursion into Iraq is not winnable, in its current incarnation, after all?
Will it lead to BushCo finally acknowledging the truth for himself?
Or will he continue the status quo, while the body bags pile up and Halliburton continues to rake in the profits?
6 comments:
Status quo: check
Profits: check!
Baker (of Baker-Botts): checkmated!
Actually, Vietnam was very simple: North vs South, with a small group of "special interests". This, I found out about while researching the "table debate" that stalled the Paris Peace talks for months! Many wanted a rectangular table that represented the two sides in opposition. Others wanted a hexagonal; still others wanted octagonal.
Finally, they settled on a round table, at which was seated just the North and South. Several small tables surrounded it, where sat the "other interested parties".
Just guess how many sides will be needed for the Iraq Peace talks...
History lesson over; no test on these points.
Frankly, I wish Kissinger would return to his "undisclosed location". He is an "attention whore"...
Naomi
Kissinger has at least come around to the point where he can admit the reality that stares him in the face.
What a sad spectacle watching him trying to carry water for GBush, as he has been doing.
naomi has a great point about the dimensions of any kind of settlement of the myriad of interests involved in a settlement of the situation created by GBush.
I doubt that there can ever be a satisfactory solution, we just need to take Murtha's cue and get out now.
I say let them kill each other and bring our soldiers home.
Interesting comment about the tables. Thanks Naomi.
I am actually surprised that, with all the recent press on the importance of Kissinger's council to Bush's decision-making, his comments din't get more front-and-center attention.
I feel that Kissinger's comments, more than any other recent development, will finally cause some significant movement from BushCo.
However, it all feels like slo-mo at this point, and we continue to see blood being shed...for what?
Absolutely nothing.
Well maybe for oil.
duh...that should be counsel, not council.
I am way too tired.
MzShugenah: And I say we bring the soldiers home and let them kill themselves. It is, after all, inevitable, after President Godsend disrupted the delicate balance in Iraq.
He's just a kid that can't resist pushing something just a little bit...
George heeding Kissinger is about as likely as heeding his own father--the cowardly father who didn't finish what needed doing. The Kid has to go in and finish the job his father couldn't manage to do.
Oh, if only we had a grown-up in the White House!
Naomi
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