The Lessons of War: "The United States leaves Iraq having learned nothing."

Thus concludes Andrew Bacevich, professor of history and international relations at Boston University and a graduate of West Point, at the end of his recent New Republic article:

So the Americans are bowing out, having achieved few of the ambitious goals articulated in the heady aftermath of Baghdad’s fall. The surge, now remembered as an epic feat of arms, functions chiefly as a smokescreen, obscuring a vast panorama of recklessness, miscalculation, and waste that politicians, generals, and sundry warmongers are keen to forget. (Emphasis mine.)

Frank Rich points out some of the cost of the war in his op-ed column today:

For this sad record, more than 4,400 Americans and some 100,000 Iraqis (a conservative estimate) paid with their lives. Some 32,000 Americans were wounded, and at least two million Iraqis, representing much of the nation’s most valuable human capital, went into exile. The war’s official cost to U.S. taxpayers is now at $750 billion.

Iraq? No! Really, It Was Never about the Oil!

So, it turns out that Peter W. Galbraith, "an influential former American ambassador," who helped create Iraq's constitution back in 2004, stands to make as much a $100 million in oil revenues as a result of favorable arrangements between a company he is heavily invested in and the Kurds, The New York Times reports.

Galbraith, whose views affected policy advocated by Vice President Biden and former presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, evidently never listened to then President George W. Bush's proclamation that the war was not about oil.

When Darth Vader proclaimed that the war would pay for itself, this was evidently what he had in mind. American taxpayers pay for the war, sending the economy into the toilet, and then a Norwegian oil company—that's right, Norwegian oil company—gets rich off of it.

Let's pause once again, one day after Veteran's Day, to thank our troupes for their sacrifices, while Galbraith and his ilk laugh all the way to the bank.

Where's that 90 percent tax bill?!!

Yes, Sweetie, "terrorism" means oil:

The big oil companies are back in Iraq. Now that the country is safe for big oil to turn a handsome profit "Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP — the original partners in the Iraq Petroleum Company — along with Chevron and a number of smaller oil companies, are in talks with Iraq’s Oil Ministry for no-bid contracts to service Iraq’s largest fields, according to ministry officials, oil company officials and an American diplomat" (Today's New York Times reports).

Now that oil hunkers around $140 per barrel and promises to go even higher, big oil is hungry to gobble up the huge, easy to access oil lying within easy access under Iraqi soil. Prior to "the war on terror" Saddam Hussein had nationalized the Iraqi oil industry. Worse yet, countries like Russia and Venezuela are claiming more of the profits for their own oil. 

The Dude explains it all:  "I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace." — George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., June 18, 2002.

Bush Pushes to Drill Offshore:

Although drilling off shore would do little to alleviate the current oil crisis anytime in the near future, it would provide oil companies with additional sources of revenue as they are currently finding it difficult to come by new reserves. (See The New York Times' stories: "Will $4 Gasoline Trump a 27-Year-Old Ban?" and "Bush Calls for End to Ban on Offshore Oil Drilling.") There is an additional twist to the Bush/McCain call for off shore drilling: there aren't enough of the special ships needed to do it. The best guess is that off shore drilling won't have any effects until 2030, that's 22 more years. 

Treasury Secretary Paulson Plans To Call for More Regulation of Wall Street:

This is a breaking story that is bound to have profound ramifications over the next five years. The Washington Post reports that Treasury Sec. Paulson plans to present his views advocating new regulation during a speech later today.

The Straw:

The Democratic Bactrian camel's back may have been broken with the Obama gaff this week. Sen. Clinton has pounced, suddenly becoming a "two guns in every pot" candidate, after having been an advocate of stronger anti-gun legislation over the years. (See today's New York Times' story.)

At this point it's hard to imagine how either of these candidates could join later this summer to become the Democratic dream team. McCain may have just won the election, and the right to be blamed for what very well could be the coming economic catastrophe.

The truly humorous part of this story is that Senators Clinton and McCain are calling Senator Obama an "elitist." There's a phrase for that—it has to do with a pot and a kettle.

More Corruption in the Bush Administration:

The Washington Post reports on housing Secretary Alphonso Jackson, the man in charge of the Bush administration's policy to increase housing during Bush's tenure. Jackson spent $100,000 of taxpayers' money on oil paintings of himself and four other HUD secretaries. He spent $7 million on an auditorium and cafeteria at HUD headquarters. He ignored warning within his own department about the impending crisis, and he traveled around with his own retinue of body guards and a personal chef. Now he's leaving office under a cloud and investigation.

When the coach doesn't pay attention (or even understand the game), the players are likely to perform poorly at best.

The Republican "Man behind the Throne":

Kate Zernike reports in today's New York Times on Charlie Black, the quintessential power behind the throne guy in the Republican party. Black is the guy who is guiding straight talking, anti-establishment McCain through the quagmire of lobbyist controlled Republican party politics.

You might find it interesting that Charlie Black is one of the best connected lobbyists in Washington, whose firm is owned by Burson-Marsteller, the firm that Mark Penn, until recently Hillary Clinton's chief adviser, works for.

So now maybe you'll stop sneering at the cynics who ask, "If this is a two-party democracy, where's the second party?"

Zernike reports that

Mr. Black has worked for some of the city’s most controversial clients (Jonas Savimbi, Philip Morris, Blackwater) and with the baddest boys of Republican politics (he cut his teeth on Jesse Helms’s campaigns, and was a mentor to Lee Atwater).

A Sign of the Times:

You know the economy is really hurting when you lose your job and you can't find another even after months of searching AND the best connections the country has to offer. Today's New York Times reports that months after leaving office former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, despite his close connections with George W. Bush, including loyalty that seemed to know no bounds, still can't find a job. Maybe President Bush assumes loyalty flows in only one direction. You'd think papa Bush could find something for this Harvard Law School grad. But then if you consider how he handled his last job, would you want this lawyer representing you?

Frank Rich Explains American's Bury Your Head in the Sand Iraqi Stance:

Frank Rich writes in today's New York Times that Americans not only disapprove of our involvement in Iraq, we don't want to even think about it. If you want to guarantee a movie's failure or a TV program's immediate flop, Rich argues, just mention Iraq.

We are so disinterested, that Gen. Petraeus could show up before congress and answer the question about when the war would be over by stating that it would be concluded when America's "national interest" was satisfied.

When I was a kid, on holidays my mother would bake two pies. Which did I want, she would ask, the apple or the cherry. "Yes," I invariably answered. And I always wanted to eat cake.

What the great man said four years ago today: "This has been tough weeks in that country." — George W. Bush, Washinton, D. C., April 13, woo4, primetime press conference regarding Iraq.

China v. Tibet:

Matthew Forney, former bureau chief for Time magazine, comments in today's New York Times' Op-Ed pages about the Chinese people's view on Tibet:

Educated young Chinese are therefore the biggest beneficiaries of policies that have brought China more peace and prosperity than at any time in the past thousand years. They can’t imagine why Tibetans would turn up their noses at rising incomes and the promise of a more prosperous future. The loss of a homeland just doesn’t compute as a valid concern.

Some years ago, a Chinese-American friend of mine explained that the average person in China viewed Tibetans in a fashion similar to the way white Americans viewed African-Americans and Hispanics. I won't use the language he used. Let's just say it was considerably less than flattering.

Americans are prone to think of Chinese as one homogeneous lump of people, sharing beliefs language and racial characteristics (if there is such a thing). But the truth is that China is made up of many peoples, and they are as prone to racial bigotry and other forms of bias as the rest of us.

Forney concludes his piece by warning that those who attend the Olympic games this summer and expect to find sympathy for Tibetans among the young are likely in for a shock. In all probability, young educated Chinese city dewellers view the West's support of the Dali Lama as little more than a wedge in service of western jealousy over the rapid rise of the Chinese economy. For well over a century, until 1948, the west exploited China mercilessly, in the Chinese view, lacking opium to exploit the country with, is simply now trying to exploit a moral high ground which the Chinese believe does not exist. After all, as Forney reports and the Chinese are quick to point out, they are treating the Tibetans better than white Europeans ever treated Native Americans and black Africans. Or for that matter, even the Irish.

The Cost of Education:

Myth: America is a place where anyone can become anything he or she might want to be.
Fact: America is a place where anyone with the price of a lottery ticket might become rich, but the odds are better in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

Since the end of World War II, the ticket to success came stamped with "education" written across it. The GI Bill offered millions of young people a way out of the cotton fields, factories and mills, and the chance to become professionals or at least low level managers in the places where their fathers had toiled in manual labor.

As late as the early 1970s, the price of education was primarily the loss of wages one might have earned in the work place during the years one spent in the classroom. And then the colleges and universities discovered they had a money making machine. Banks and other lending institutions were quick to jump on the bandwagon.

"Last year," according to The New York Times, "students and their parents borrowed nearly $60 billion in federally guaranteed loans, a figure that has grown more than 6 percent annually over the last five years after taking into account inflation." In other words, the cost of higher education is far outstripping the rise in inflation.

College presidents are quick to point out that the rising cost of education is fueled by the increasing cost of medical insurance for faculty and staff and the need to compete for students by turning college campuses into "club meds."

Once upon a time, a college education included a Spartan lifestyle, a sacrifice made for knowledge, but today's college campuses more closely resemble resorts than centers of learning. In the good old days, the library was the center of campus life, now more often than not the football stadium and the sports bar form the heart of the campus experience.

In the past, students lived in attic rooms, warding of pneumonia; today they live in rooms that more closely resemble good hotel rooms with all the amenities, and their biggest health concern is STDs.

On a side note: One of the interesting things about stories like today's Times' story is that an example is always provided of a parent with a modest income who wants desperately to send his or her child to a private college, rather than a community college or state university. I am always somewhat befuddled by parents and students who seem to believe that all doors be opened to them simply because they exist. Personally, I'd love to win the lottery, but I realize that as long as I refuse to buy a ticket my chances are even more remote than extreme.

If neither you nor your kid is smart enough to figure this out, just how well do you think your kid is going to do in school? It's bad enough to graduate from college owing $31,000; imagine leaving school early with no diploma in hand and still owing the money.

Peace in the Middle-East:

According to Bush administration officials, the leading threat to Iraq is Iran. The real problem, however, is that in the six thousand years of recorded history the only times that the Middle-East has ever known peace has been when some power, whether external (i.e. Rome) or internal (i.e. Turkey), dominated the region. Even then peace was relative and short term. Peace, regardless of its appeal, has been seldom achieved anywhere in the world and usually at the cost of considerable personal and political freedom.

There should be little doubt that forces exist within Iran that choose to exploit the situation in Iraq. But what isn't clear is whether those forces come directly from the Iranian government and whether the Iranian desire to exploit the situation isn't in fact being exploited by forces within Iraq. In other words, are the Iranians pushing guns and ammunition onto Iraqis who would rather lead peaceful and quiet lives, or are the Iraqis seeking guns and ammunition from whatever supplier they can and the Iranians are simply willing sellers?

Without an understanding of the dynamics that exist within the region, we are left with one conclusion: only a police state can insure peace. This was the conclusion in the 1950s when Saddams' party was placed in power with the assistance of the U. S. Why should we believe the current situation is any different?

What George said four years ago: "They could still be hidden, like the 50 tons of mustard gas on a turkey farm." — George W. Bush, Washinton, D. C., April 2004, speaking about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

Obama Speaks Truth and Clinton Attacks:

Sen. Obama, perhaps speaking unwisely if he hopes to garner votes, spoke the truth about small town America recently, citing small minded people's love of guns and a superstitious relationship with religion, in addition to fear of "the other." The press, playing gotcha, ran with it, and Sen. Clinton saw an opening, hoping to open the gap at the poles between her and Obama's numbers.

This is just another example of the risks in running for political office. If you are going to run and speak the truth, you have got to be extremely careful. Of course if Obama had spoken the full truth, he would have included cities and suburbs in his analysis as well. America is filled with small minded, even closed minded folks, who cling to their guns and their Bibles and fear whatever is different or new. That's just the nature of the beast, and it's hardly unique to America.

Strange Bedfellows:

Bill Gates once declared that Rupert Murdoch was the man he feared most in the world, commenting on something about the latter's principles and ruthless business tactics. The latest news is that Murdoch's News Corporation might join with Gates and company in a hostile takeover of Yahoo, which has been resisting Microsoft's bid for the company.

As The New York Times puts it such a joint venture "would create a behemoth that would upend the Internet landscape." Precisely in what direction the landscape would tilt, however, isn't exactly clear. Microsoft, in large part, has become monolithic by buying out competition. When it couldn't buy out competition, it created imitations and built them into its operating systems, which is decidedly different from giving software away. (Note: When software is built into the operating system and you have to buy the operating system, the software is not given away; you pay for it along with the operating system.)

Microsoft itself, like the rest of the western world's economy, is in a dangerous place. It's newest operating system has had mixed results. Revenue from sales has generally been good, but adaptation by business and government has been sluggish, with most sales coming from new computer sales. In the meantime, it appears that Microsoft will rush to put out its latest operating system (currently called "Windows 7"). Google has placed enormous pressure on Microsoft, along with the advent of "social networking."

So is Microsoft betting the ranch?

Bush Reduces Length of Duty:

The White House announced tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan will be reduced from 15 months to 12 months, corresponding more or less to the amount of time Bush has left in office. However, the White House also stated that there would be no reductions in the number of troupes in those two regions.

What the great man had to say six years ago: "And so, in my State of the—my State of the Union—or state—my speech to the nation, whatever you want to call it, speech to the nation—I asked Americans to give 4,000 years—4,000 hours over the next—the rest of your life—of service to America. That's what I asked—4,000 hours." — George W. Bush, Bridgeport, Connnecticut, April 2002. (Will we learn that this man, like Reagan, has Alzheimer's, after he leaves office?)

American Death Toll in Iraq Reaches 4,000:

According to the Associated Press, the death count for American's in Iraq has reached 4,000 now that we are in the sixth year of the war. No one knows precisely how many Iraqis have died, but best estimates range between 82,000 and 90,000.

The Bush administration usually dismisses the figures, stating that Saddam Hussein killed more of his own people in the 1980s. It should be noted that the Reagan administration continually increased its support for Saddam during this time, dramatically increasing aid following the chemical attacks.

As everyone should know by now, the weapons of mass destruction that Saddam possessed during this time were purchased from American suppliers with American government aid.

The War's a Bore:

According to the Project for Excellence in Journalism, as reported by today's New York Times, the media's coverage of the war in Iraq by 80 percent over the past year. Public interest in the war, according to the Pew Research Center, parallels Bush's popularity, "running below 30 percent since last fall."

G. W.'s joke — "Those weapons of mass destruction have got to be here somewhere." — George W. Bush at the Radio & Television Correspondent's dinner, showing a photo of himself looking under his desk, March 24, 2004 — was on us and the Iraqi people.

This day in history: On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez struck a reef in Alaska, spilling eleven million gallons of crude oil. Battles over the clean up are still going on. Exxon Mobil is now the wealthiest company in the world, even as American's are going bankrupt while paying record high prices for gasoline, diesel fuel, and heating oil.

Pure Commentary:

Have you noticed that while the Republicans hate government regulation when it comes to the banks they own they nevertheless promote it thoroughly when it comes to the way you lead your personal lives?

They also hate government financial aid to working class people (unemployment benefits, government funded retraining programs) and assistance to the poor (welfare), but they demand that their financial empires be bailed out by the taxpayers after they do stupid and harmful things with their banks and other speculating entities.

To Boldly Go … and Find Stuff:

Science has now determined that there are 277 planets in the known universe, with the number growing at a regular pace. (No, that doesn't mean new ones are being created, just discovered.) If we don't destroy ourselves first through global warming and war, this period of history is likely to change our perspective of who we are in a way comparable to the realization that the earth actually orbits the sun, rather than vise versa. (See The Washington Post story.)

Five Years In:

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the American invasion of Iraq and this morning's news is filled with Iraq stories. David Herzehnorn addresses the dollar costs of the war. Before it began, the Bush administration claimed the cost to be a mere $50 billion, which would be reimbursed by oil revenues. Current estimates of the actual cost, however, range as high as $4 trillion, although the Pentagon, under estimates the cost at less than a trillion. Regardless of whose version you believe, the cost certainly is much higher than the neo-cons preached.

Marc Santora reports on the violence in Iraq, bookending his description with the reports of two hangings, that of Saddam Huessein and of a ten-year-old girl, who was lynched by Saddam supporters early in the invasion in order to terrorize Iraqi citizens.

Stephen Farrell reports on the day that Baghdad fell, with a telling statement: "The Shias are looting Saddam City." This was the message brought to the Shiite handlers of the press, and a sign of things to come, as Farrell points out.

Karen DeYoung begins her article on the war, in The Washington Post with " For a majority of Americans, today marks the fifth anniversary of the start of an Iraq war that was not worth fighting," and addresses the disparity in the view of the war between the average citizen and the Bush administration.

One result of the war, however, is absolutely certain: Exxon Mobil is now the wealthiest company in the world.