This is a crosspost (with permission) of the above the fold editorial from today’s Cheers and Jeers by Bill in Portland Maine on Daily Kos.
People think he’s a funny guy, and he is. But he’s not just a funny guy and in this case he speaks for me.
Below the fold enjoy the meat without the 400+ mojo whoring comments (not that there’s anything wrong with mojo whoring, it’s a survival skill).
From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
“What do we want?” “Patience!”
“When do we want it?” “Now!”
A lot of Very Important People keep telling me that I have to continue being patient with the Iraq war. People like the President of the United States:
March: Bush Pleads for Patience in Iraq War
May: Bush Urges Patience on Iraq
June: Bush urges patience on Iraq
July: War In Year 5; Bush Requests Patience
August: Bush pleads for more patience for Iraq war efforts
September: Iraqi civilian deaths up, Bush urges patience
Contrary to what the frequently-wrong media pundits say, I (and, I’m willing to bet, you) do understand the gravity of the situation in Iraq. It’s the mother of all messes. The worst blunder our country has ever made. It’s just a big ball of bad and there’s no way to get around it. If we stay it’s bad and if we leave it’s bad. The word of the day, the week, the month, the year and the decade is: “Bad.”
And here we are, four and a half bad years after we strolled into Baghdad with our picnic baskets and Starbucks franchise leases, being asked to be patient just a little while longer because we’re this close to going from “baddest” to “badder” on the scale of bad. Fine. I’m a reasonable man and perfectly capable of being patient. I’ve even heard it’s a virtue.
But I want something in return. I want the nincompoops who orchestrated this farce in a massive rush of non-patience to excuse themselves from the public stage. That includes the president, the vice president and the secretary of state. They need to resign, find a nice rocking chair far away from D.C., and never be heard from again.
It includes the neocons and their think-tank buddies who continue to flap their gums about how awesome the Iraq war is going and wouldn’t it be swell to bring the same kind of awesomeness to Iran NOW NOW NOW!!!
It includes the journalists who helped beat the drums of war by “catapulting the propaganda” and advancing the official White House narrative. And it includes the members of the House and Senate who believe that buying “five rugs for five bucks” at an Iraqi marketplace surrounded by armed guards and attack helicopters is all the proof I should need that things are going swell, so sit down, shut up and be patient.
This, of course, will never happen. Despite all the unnecessary blood under the bridge (1.3 gallons per human x 3,800 U.S. soldiers killed = 4,940 gallons, but who’s counting), the architects of the Iraq war either a) still have jobs and are just as powerful and wrong as ever, or b) are living comfortably as consultant$ and/or lecturer$ and/or author$ and/or lobbyist$, and/or pundit$. They will always be quoted and covered by very serious journalists as if the result of their maniacal judgment on Iraq was the equivilent of spilling a glass of milk.
To all of you lunatics, I say: I’ll be patient about the Iraq war. I just won’t be patient about the Iraq war for you.
32 comments
Skip to comment form
people think C&J is all about the mojo, but BiPM’s opening editorials are often the best blend of the sharpest critique and lol humor.
I’m feeling really politically depressed today.
For some reason this article set me off. Or it could be the PMS. 😉
I expect shit to stink, and thus Bush continues his excremental ways, but, I have no patience with Pelosi. She controls the House floor, she can stop the funding, she can demand a timetable—she’ll do none of the above, and thus, she too, is a piece of shit.
I have no patience with the other Dem congressmen either, they could kick her out and get a real leader. Shit fills both sides of the aisle–and I donated to some of those shits–making me a shit enabler.
Remember the South Park episode counting the number of times they used the word shit? My comment is a worthy reprise.
69% believe the US should bring back the draft??? WTF?
Hell, let’s just kill our kids now and save tax dollars on body bags and flags.
Fucked up shit over there on DKos IMHO as an ex-draftee with ex-alive draftee friends.
set me off. I had no ‘cheers’
JEERS @#!$%!^&!*&!!
Where the hell was THEIR patience before waging wars?
Where was THEIR patience when they disallowed the rules of law?
Where was THEIR patience to investigate the links to terrorism and terrorists using our resources and intelligence under the rules of our laws?
Where was THEIR patience and belief in the American election system?
Where was THEIR patience with sound economic practices?
Where is THEIR patience with the needs of planet Earth?
Where is THEIR patience with the functioning of three branches of government?
Where is THEIR patience with the goodly grooming of our society?
Where is THEIR patience with human needs?
And THEY want patience from me, from us?
Aye, THEY want and want and want, but do not give.
It is left to US to tell them about want, unpatiently.
I’d say that the “never be heared from again” bit is fine. The “retirement to a rocking chair far from DC” is worrysome.
In addition to that already printed on the charge sheet we have an issue of international conspiracy and undermining the parliamentary processes of another permanent member of the security council – think the “straightening out” of UK AG Peter Goldsmith post Rose Garden and Crawford love ins.
I beseech you all with all the seech in my being not to allow them to slink away. Put another way we need you to get your guys so that we can get our guys – and ours recognise the ICC.
A catalogue of wickedness has taken place. It is incumbent upon the world to ensure by the passing of exemplary sentences where they are due, that it can never take place again.
Maybe if it was posted at 3am EST and there was a nationwide power outage.
Great essay, Bill (hopefully you’ll join us here soon)…
Oh, and don’t pay any attention to the mojo-whoring pootie…
