The words of Srdja Trifkovic ring ever more true:

The elite class has every intention of continuing to “fight” the war on terrorism without naming the enemy, without revealing his beliefs, without unmasking his intentions, without offending his accomplices, without expelling his fifth columnists, and without ever daring to win. Their crime can and must be stopped. The founders of the United States overthrew the colonial government for offenses far lighter than those of which the traitor class is guilty. [emphasis added]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,566841,00.html

‘AS SOON AS POSSIBLE’

Iraq Leader Maliki Supports Obama’s Withdrawal Plans
In an interview with SPIEGEL, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Barack Obama’s 16 month timeframe for a withdrawal from Iraq is the right one.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki supports US presidential candidate Barack Obama’s plan to withdraw US troops from Iraq within 16 months. When asked in and interview with SPIEGEL when he thinks US troops should leave Iraq, Maliki responded “as soon as possible, as far as we are concerned.” He then continued: “US presidential candidate Barack Obama talks about 16 months. That, we think, would be the right timeframe for a withdrawal, with the possibility of slight changes.”

Read a book or two before you make astoundingly asinine comments like “Africa/Sicily/Italy for all of 1943 and half of 1944 were a waste of time and resources.” and “it was all about looking busy for Stalin.” Pick up “An Army At Dawn” by Rick Atkinson. Our Army was brave and committed, but hopelessly unready for combat until it had fought through 2 years of OJT in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. The cross channel invasion would have been a disaster without the lessons learned in combined arms tactics, air support and logistics. As brutal as the fight was across Normandy and Europe, there are thousands of graves across the Mediterranean littoral that testify to the price that had to be paid to build an army capable of D Day. Also, the campaigns in North Africa, Sicily and Italy ground down hundreds of thousands of Wehrmacht troops, tanks, vehiles, guns, ships and aircraft that might have tipped the balance at Stalingrad or Kursk. I’m sure the Germans missed them badly when they were gone, as the eastern front was capable of consuming every man Germany had, and the battles there in 1942 and 1943 were very close run affairs.

This campaign is already crystallizing around one question: “Do I really want the next president of the United States to be this fellow Barack Obama?”

Despite his admirable qualities, McCain grows harder to discern on the political radar screen. Fewer people seem to be interested in asking themselves, “What do I see in John McCain that really makes me want him to be president?”
It looks now as though this election may turn on one issue: Obama as Obama.

By subordinating conflicting policy issues, almost to the point of extinction, Obama is leaving himself (whoever that is), his background (wherever that is) and his integrity (such as that may be) as all that matters.
Ironically, Obama as Obama is the issue upon which Obama first introduced himself to voters. Even “change” was a derivative of Obama as Obama.

Obama as Obama recalls his embarrassing support, then disavowal, of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. That reintroduces the collateral issue of flip-flopping — not necessarily specific flips on which Obama has flopped, but the vague impression of flip-floppery as his personal way of political life. That’s a nasty set of sub-issues Obama doesn’t need, for it echoes Obama as Obama.

Each time Barack Obama reaches for another of his policy-issue boomerangs, he would be well advised not to forget to duck.

First of all, allow me to add my thank you for your service. Your commentary shows that your depth of experience and understanding were hard won in the service of your country and humanity and your fellow troops. Thank you.

That said, The frustrations of not appearing to have the support or at the very least the understanding of a seeming distracted nation is rooted in many failures, but it is not a new phenomenon. But the war on the home front while very important, has not been given the priority needed, nor has the information war overseas been given the critical attention it deserves.

It is still a new kind of war, a new kind of enemy and a new kind of warrior is being asked to perform multiple tasks once delegated to diplomats, construction crews and psychologists as well as maintaining mastery of arms and self control. But despite the efforts of our finest, and the finest from a number of countries determined to put an end to the sense-less-ness of Islamist organized terror, just putting a name on the enemy, a name to the fight and defining what victory will look like seems beyond the grasp of many politicians, beyond the capacity of most journalists, and therefore out of the grasp of most of our fellow citizens. For over sixteen years now the wonks in DC have been trying to define what the enemy is, who the enemy is and how they have earned our enmity.

I think the war will be chronicled in history, and accurately named historically, but the lack of identifying tags, rally points, or even measures of right and wrong are a cultural phenomenon, and are hampering if not outright hamstringing the efforts of our military. That such a simple task has not been accomplished is a measure of how difficult it is.

Sadly, the impact of Swingin’ Saddam was greatly muted by the much larger impact of the crackpot Left and the Democrats. Indeed, all the Arab thugs on the planet were quaking in their sheets when we first went into Iraq. Recall how quickly Quadaffi gave it all up. Others might have fallen in line, as well, had not the Left/Democrats made it supremely clear that they were going to have their “It’s Vietnam All Over Again” party, and would oppose, oppose, oppose and smear and smear and lie and lie about our affairs in Iraq.

By the time we got to Saddam, the rest of the Arab Thugocracy knew damn well they had nothing to fear because the Democrats were carrying the ball for them. How much does a strongman have to fear from a country when half the political class is calling its OWN soldiers murderers and criminals?

God, how they must laugh at our folly. Half the Senate ought to be put up against a wall.

My Dad came home from Korea and the local from WWII would tell him “Aww, that was nothin’, kid.” Even worse, Vietnam vets were openly reviled when they got home.

Hail Noble OEF vets – your next President welcomes you home with his judgement of the Iraq War: It … “diminishes our security, our standing in the world, our military, our economy and the resources that we need to confront the challenges of the 21st century.”

He says Iraq was a distraction, not central to our strategic interests. IFF the global economy ran on heroin instead of oil, Afghanistan would rank closely to Iraq among our strategic interests.

When I hear the Obama audience (NYT incl.) cheer this drivel, I can’t help thinking of George Carlin: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”