Bush Wows at Annapolis
By Peter Fredson
December 4, 2005
President George W. Bush gave an eloquent and emotional speech at the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland recently to another captive audience of bright and shiny cadets, plus enough admirals, generals and politicians to let the public think that someone with some sense was backing him up.
He included a 35-page policy paper "OUR NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR VICTORY IN IRAQ," a rehash of his arguments for the past 3 years, including optimistic statements about obtaining his great victory over the entire nation of Iraq and terrorists that he created by innocently invading Iraq.
It was neatly typed, with titles and subtitles and certainly looked like a Plan. Did Bush let his secretary type it up neatly instead of becoming a Supreme Court Judge? Is that enough reward for faithful service?
Bush repeated his familiar mantra to "stay the course," indicating a lack of new ideas about ending the bloody war and destruction of Iraq. He said that US troops would stay in Iraq until he obtained a "complete victory" for his neoconservative chicken hawks. Dick, and Karl and Condi and Donald must be pleased even if Scooter goes to jail with several Republican Senators.
Bush gave highly optimistic statements about training Iraqi troops so they would take over the security of the country sufficiently to let some of his troops, contractors, advisors, mercenaries and proselytizers leave Iraq if, when in his severely tested judgment, conditions improved a lot.
He made no mention of any of his corporations leaving, or abandoning all military bases, giving back the oil with compensation, accepting responsibility for the death of many civilians and the destruction of much of Iraqi infrastructure and homes, or giving up the idea of attacking other Middle Eastern nation from his huge Embassy of "diplomats."
He was careful to avoid giving any date in months or even years for his departure as he dislikes "artificial timetables" and believes that if enemies learn he is leaving at any specific date they would simply wait and then attack in full fury to prevent his departure and take back their country.
He seems to prefer that some other President inherit the problem as he still has 3 years left to strut and swagger and kill Muslims. Then his legacy will be safe and he can fill his Library with glowing reports of his courageous leadership.
But he seems sure that his triumph will be imminent, his vindication complete, and he can get back to cutting brush without worrying about American deaths, debts, or "mistakes." His legacy will be safe after 3 more years of glorious conquest, his party reelected by overwhelming majority, as Karl Rove becomes his foreman on his ex-pig farm.
Most democrats said that his speech was simply wrapping up previous speeches in tinsel for a new safe military audience. Even some doubting fundamentalist supporters were showing some restlessness.
They now believe that Bush actually never had an entrance or exit plan, and has no idea how to get out of the Iraq quagmire. They see the speech as an attempt to answer growing criticism and calls to pull troops out of the war he started intentionally and maliciously.
While Bush talks about a "victory strategy" many military men see no victory ahead, but a long, arduous and growing guerilla movement, followed perhaps with some sort of ignominious retreat disguised as a compassionate withdrawal, waving flags, loud applause, declarations of a mighty victory for Bush democracy, and many more "patriotic" speeches by either Bush or his sycophant cabinet as they fade into a Nixonian oblivion.
Prior to declaring his deceitful neocon strategy to invade Iraq, Bush and his entire cabinet pounded the war drums, danced their war dances, and lied tirelessly day and night to show the "imminent danger" Saddam was to the U.S. with nuclear bombs, mounted on hundred of drone planes flying over oceans to sow terror and destruction with mushroom clouds, bacterial sprays, and poison gas.
Bush, Condi, Dick and even Colin postulated enormous caches of Weapons of Mass Destruction, and still today some sycophants prefer to believe Saddam hid them in the sands of Iraq, exported them to Iran or lent them to Syria.
Now Bush prates incessantly about democracy, freedom and sovereignty while spreading death, destruction, chaos and deadly force. In Bush Newspeak War is Peace, violating Sovereignty is Democracy, and wage slavery is Freedom.
After he invaded Iraq Bush seemed surprised that the Iraqis resented his invasion and would unreasonably attempt to harm his troops or protest his God-ordered actions.
He thought he deserved flowers, adulation and submission to his imperial will. After all, he appointed the very best sycophant exiles to govern Iraq, and his regent made only 100 demands of Iraqis that he and his troops never are charged with crimes against that nation, or try to get back any resource he wrested from them.
He has a firm grip on fantasy, as he does not seem to know that staying as a brutal invader in a country, killing civilians daily, will ultimately attract people who wish to get their country back and punish the invader.
His logic states that the United States would be safer if he stays in Iraq killing all resisters, so none would be left to attack the U.S. This shows the lack of military experience that Bush failed to get because he went AWOL, and shows his desire to stay to further loot, kill, destroy, and mismanage the Iraqi nation.
This helps distract the U.S. nation from criticizing his ineptitude, inefficiency, failure to govern, ruination of environment, racist disregard of grave problems, and utter failure to recognize homelessness, poverty and precarious health.
He offers as justification for misinformation, stealth, lies, and deceit the disaster of 9/11 where he probably single-handedly killed all of the terrorists who flew planes into the Twin Towers by walking in shirt sleeves in the rubble as though he were going to help save victims, or by putting his arm around firemen as though he, too, were courageous and far-sighted instead of spending the day of 9/11 by reading some kiddy book, getting onto a plane into a safe military installation, and hiding out the rest of the day until his speech writers could come up with a good explanation of his inaction before and during the 9/11 disaster.
But this is his habitual conduct. During the Katrina disaster he was totally disconnected, playing a guitar, eating cake, cutting brush and making speeches while people drowned and suffered horribly without any succor from his incompetent administrators.
But still he swaggered, strutted and dramatized a hundred photo-opportunities showing what a fine caring leader he was in front of a cathedral with excellent lighting imported for the occasion.
He even patted a little black child on the head showing his concern for the poor, disadvantaged, orphaned and homeless people that he and his party have created. What more do critics want?
Now, about 3 years later his strategy is successful in getting nearly 2,200 of his "brave boys" killed, and somehow his mysterious logic of killing "terrorists" seems to have made many more arise. It is only lately that someone told him that not all protestors are terrorists but possibly could be patriots of the same type manifested in our own Revolution against the imposition of another King George.
Of course he denies all responsibility for any deaths, any destruction, any chaos, because his God told him to invade. So, he is just following orders whispered into his ear.
He really believes he is off the hook for incompetence, lying, and failure to govern. Someone else did it. There is no "buck."
How many wounded soldiers did he create? Was it 17,000, 18,000 or 22,000?
Why would wounds and loss of limbs of soldiers bother a heroic courageous president who is simply staying a failed course to show his grim determination in fighting a nation that his daddy had pretty well taught a lesson? We should not distress a caring President by even suggesting that he is responsible for any of the death and destruction in Iraq.
Bush cannot understand why his approval rating has fallen to the lowest point.
He tried so hard with tanks, cannon, planes, bunker buster bombs, Shock and Awe, destroying homes, industry and infrastructure but the ungrateful Iraqis didn't seem to appreciate his efforts to make them a colony of the mighty U.S. Even several of his previously sycophant republicans have voiced some distress at his ineptitude and outright deception. Bush probably thinks they are traitors.
Will Bush withdraw if the Constitutional Government he created in Iraq asks him to leave? The President of Afghanistan asked him to restrain troops in Afghanistan but the mighty Bush told him where to stick his head.
You see, sovereignty is whatever Bush says it is.
Puny opponents who have a "legitimate right of resistance" to any brutal foreign occupation certainly could not be referring to Bush. He is above law, imposing judges that will legitimately follow his God-given orders.
Perhaps Bush will give Iraqis the same equipment, armor, night-vision goggles, automatic weapons, tanks, cannon, grenades, bunker-buster bombs that American troops have. Perhaps Bush will compensate Iraq for all the oil he extracted, for all the deaths he caused, for all the infrastructure he destroyed, for all the orphans and widows he created.
Perhaps he will read to them about pet goats, or hand out chocolate bars to assuage their grief.
Perhaps he will abandon all the palaces he has seized, all of the military bases he occupied, all of the industries that his contractors and mercenaries grabbed, all of the jobs he generously gave to foreigners for about 50 cents an hour while Iraqis stood by without employment.
And perhaps he will make Millennium Corporation pay back the billion dollars that got "lost" and make them go back to the U.S. where they can steal money intended to reconstruct New Orleans.
Perhaps, Sure, perhaps.
Meanwhile he will make about a dozen more cloned speeches to talk the public into somnolescence, showing his great courage in front of captive audiences, with an immense security force to prevent his feet from getting wet or dirty, or allow any protest, and keep him safe and sound from all harm.
His paid media and fake reporters will give glowing reports of his genius, saintly behavior, and outstanding leadership. And he may accidentally lob several more cruise missiles against the Aljazeera News Network.
But he will never apologize, never admit making any mistakes ever, never fire any incompetent crony, never give up imposing his faith on the nation, never give up creating misinformation, or give up patting himself on the back until his elbows hurt.
This time he did not see fit to hang up his trademark MISSION ACCOMPLISHED sign but modestly put up another huge sign announcing VICTORY. Kinda premature, but Bush never let that get in the way of publicity.