PICS: Bush visits injured vets

RidinHighSpeeds · 11-10-2007, 01:30 PM

I couldn't imagine what is going through George Bush's mind right now, but he must be feeling a bit sick to his stomach knowing that this War has killed/injured so many. Granted I was in support of this War shortly after 9/11, but I think it is long overdue and we should have declared victory once we dismantled Saddam's regime (first couple months of bombings).

We could have then moved onto bigger issues and just left Iraq to clean up itself (if they choose to do so..) I know it may not seem moral, but how long should we stay dedicated to freeing the Iraqi people??

More pictures from Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/news/pictures...lectionId=1272

Katczinsky · 11-10-2007, 01:38 PM

When a war is thrust upon a people, and a good leader rises to inspire and lead in a time of crisis, pictures like these would make sense.

However,

Pictures like these are sickening because we know the Iraq war was unnecessary, was initiated by Bush, and Bush doesn't seem to have the slightest hint of guilt associated with any of his past decisions.

fxashun · 11-10-2007, 03:09 PM

I supported the war in ignorance. I do believe that Saddam's regime was corrupt and inhumane, but I also think he did what he had to do to remain in power. Whenever a Middle East government shows any weakness, it seems there is someone waiting to fill in the void. Bush and his clan either didn't care, or they didn't strategically plan this war correctly.
Saddam defied the inspections to save face, if he had simply allowed the inspections without any resistance, I'm convinced he would have been perceived as weak and would have been overthrown. There will be no "clean" resolve to the mess we have created.

garysher · 11-10-2007, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RidinHighSpeeds

We could have then moved onto bigger issues and just left Iraq to clean up itself (if they choose to do so..) I know it may not seem moral, but how long should we stay dedicated to freeing the Iraqi people??

With perfect hindsight it would have been far better to go into Iraq with overwhelming force, 500,000+ men, and state from the outset that there would be no elections for 5 years.

During that time Iraq would be run as a US/UN protectorate, the country would be rebuilt and terrorists would be routed out and dealt with mercilessly.

The surge has proven that, with enough force, terrorist activity can be contained.

The US/Britain made the mistake of trying to be nice guys, rushing to hand control back to the Iraqis, draft a Constitution, hold elections, etc.

We also made the mistake of thinking they care enough about their own freedom and democracy to fight for it.

pensacola_niceman · 11-11-2007, 06:36 AM

I ate lunch in one of Sadaam's palaces on Friday. Part of the palace has been turned into a mess hall. I have to wonder how cheesed-off Sadaam would be if he knew a bunch of Americans were chowing down in one of his old digs.

pensacola_niceman · 11-11-2007, 06:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by garysher

With perfect hindsight it would have been far better to go into Iraq with overwhelming force, 500,000+ men, and state from the outset that there would be no elections for 5 years.

During that time Iraq would be run as a US/UN protectorate, the country would be rebuilt and terrorists would be routed out and dealt with mercilessly.

The surge has proven that, with enough force, terrorist activity can be contained.

The US/Britain made the mistake of trying to be nice guys, rushing to hand control back to the Iraqis, draft a Constitution, hold elections, etc.

We also made the mistake of thinking they care enough about their own freedom and democracy to fight for it.

I basically agree with you here; however, I'm not so sure about your last paragraph. I haven't really discussed the war with any of the Iraqis who work in our compound, but I have to believe the average Iraqi wants freedom and democracy. They certainly love our US dollars.

indago · 11-11-2007, 02:14 PM

CNN — THE SITUATION ROOM — Aired November 8, 2007 - 18:00 ET

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go to Jack Cafferty. He's got "The Cafferty File" in New York — Jack.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, let's keep that war going.

With that in mind, here's something that our country should truly be ashamed of. Veterans make up more than 25 percent of the homeless people in this country, even though they only account for 11 percent of the general adult population; 25 percent of the homeless people in this country are veterans. They are only 11 percent of the adult population.

A new report by an organization called the National Alliance to End Homelessness found that on any given night in the United States, 196,000 veterans sleep in the street, in a shelter, or in transitional housing. The states with the highest numbers of homeless vets, Louisiana, California, Missouri. Washington, D.C., also has a high rate.

The study found homelessness isn't just a problem among middle-aged or elderly veterans either. Younger vets from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are finding their way into the shelters and the soup kitchens. Experts say it usually takes several years after leaving the military for veterans to wind up on the street. But some say that Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seem to be turning up sooner than Vietnam veterans did.

One official says they expect a tsunami of veterans from the Iraq war because the mental health toll from this war is enormous. In order to reduce the problem, the group suggests building 25,000 housing units over the next five years and increasing by 20,000 the number of housing vouchers targeted for our veterans.

Here's the question. This is just disgusting. How does the U.S. treat its veterans if they comprise more than 25 percent of our nation's homeless population? E-mail us at CaffertyFile@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/caffertyfile — Wolf.

BLITZER: Jack, I got to tell you, this is a national disgrace. It's a national disgrace, what's going on. I don't know what to say.

CAFFERTY: Well, you said it. It's a disgrace. And the veterans have been getting short shrift around here since Vietnam, I suppose. But it's getting worse.

And the long combat tours that these kids are putting in, in Iraq are causing this post-traumatic stress disorder to show up in more severe cases more often. There are more of them coming home. I am embarrassed to be a citizen of a place that treats people like we do.

BLITZER: It is a disgrace.

fxashun · 11-11-2007, 02:23 PM

We discussed that here.
http://www.defendingthetruth.com/cnn...tml#post147856 (Study: Many of homeless are vets)

nuttyjoe · 11-13-2007, 01:59 PM

I'm not sure what you mean. What, exactly, is declaring victory? Would it have guaranteed an immediate stop to the conflict? I also had no qualms about this war after 9/11. I just think that like Vietnam; we had no clearly defined entrance and exit planning. And we will suffer much the same fate: we win on the battlefield; but we lose politically. The only difference is that the Iraqis have something that America cannot live without-OIL! Vietnam had (and still does not) have anything of value for America. We discarded the lives of too many soldiers to no concievable end there.But what was accomplished?
What I meant by entrance and exit planning is that our politicians did not (and maybe never will) decide what was to be America's mission in Iraq to begin with. The lack of this keeps us from knowing if or when) this mission has truly been accomplished or not. So, our brave forces fight on, while our politicians fumble about trying to place blame on each other for our being there in the first place. And the American public pays more and more each time they pull into a gas station.

sgtdmski · 12-29-2007, 12:57 PM

My question is this, how many of those homeless veterans are from the Vietnam era. You remember that my find liberal friends, the one you opposed, the one you protested, the one in which you spit, threw shit and urine on returning soldiers. You called them baby-killers and murderers, and felt so proud when the United States withdrew in defeat.

Now we see the results of your actions, many or my brothers addicted to alcohol and drugs because they could not live with what they had done and when they returned home instead of being welcomed, they were shunned by the enlightened.

dmk