In Case There's Any Doubt Where I Stand...

Late last week and through the weekend we heard more of the same self contradicting war rhetoric from the administration, the Pentagon, and the usual gang of echo chamberlains.

The constitution is vital to success in Iraq, but if it isn't ratified that might be okay, because that might make the insurgency even worse. If it doesn't pass and things do get worse, that's okay too because we anticipated it.

Only Iraqis can defeat the insurgency. As occupiers, our presence actually contributes to the strength of the insurgency.

Iraqi forces are making progress toward being able to handle the insurgency themselves, even though they've gone from having three ready battalions to only having one.

Until Iraqi forces are ready to handle the insurgency, we can't make plans to draw down our presence in the country, even though our presence in the country contributes to the strength of the insurgency.

And the pro-war pundits! They refuse to compare Iraq to Vietnam, but they're happy to equate it with the American Revolution, our Civil War, and World War II whenever the mood strikes them.

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We're stuck in a generational quagmire, and all our "leaders" have to offer us by way of explanation is the standard menu of memes, catch phrases, and double talking points. Lamentably, old military beat hands in the mainstream media can't call the Pentagon's bull manure what it is because they're "reporter," not columnists. And the mainstream columnists are either in the administration's pocket or they're afraid to take on the Pentagon because they're completely out of their depth when it comes to military matters.

Our political and military leaders are stringing us along. The Iraq excursion has been a dishonest, immoral, and incompetently run fiasco from the outset. This has to change, and it's high time to debunk the right wing mantra that "real" Americans support their president and the military in time of war.

"Real" Americans are not loyal subjects. They are citizens. The president is not America's commander in chief. He is commander in chief of America's military. And America does not exist to support its military. The military exists to support America.

By committing our military to a bad war in pursuit his neocon cronies' agenda, Mister Bush has mis-served our country and the troops we have placed under his command.

By continuing to support Mister Bush, our generals are not only placing political loyalty above their oath to uphold the constitution, they are betraying the trust of the troops who serve under them.

They should resign.

And real Americans should demand an accounting from Mister Bush and his minions/puppet masters.