- Proverbs for Paranoids, 3: If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers.—Gravity’s Rainbow
‘Is it about a bicycle?’ he asked.—The Third Policeman
Tag Archives: Iraq
Smile
One of these men is leaving Iraq in a matter of minutes. Can you tell which one? AP
Clarity
In his review of Cobra II, Andrew Bacevich encapsulates the inherent contradiction of the Iraq invasion as concisely as I’ve seen anywhere: Rumsfeld’s grand plan to transform the US military was at odds with the administration’s grand plans to transform the broader Middle East. Imperial projects don’t prosper with small armies that leave quickly: they [...]
Irony
The US has killed Zarqawi. What does it mean? From the Independent: US forces in Iraq said the killing was a major victory. “We killed him, and it’s always great when you can remove someone that has caused this much harm,” said Maj. Frank Garcia, public affairs officer for the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st [...]
Standstill
Man, you can’t say anything nowadays without people actually remembering it. Take Tom Friedman. New York Times wise man. The go-to guy for pithy analysis of a complex world. The person for whom “six months from now” never arrives: On a recent episode of MSNBC’s Hardball (5/11/06), for example, Friedman boiled down the intricacies of the [...]
Schrödinger
Here in the Basement, we try to avoid two things: Simply pointing to posts at other blogs, no matter how good they are or how much we agree with them; Encouraging the importation and distorted application of complex scientific concepts to life, literature, or even other branches of science. But this post brings quantum mechanics [...]
Really
Recently we were all treated to the spectacle of George W. Bush not answering a question put to him by Helen Thomas: “Why did you really want to go to war [in Iraq]?” Today the Independent reports that the US and UK are establishing “enduring bases” there. I can hear GWB divvying them up: “Two [...]
Remorse
My buddy over at Newsrack Blog has an interesting post on regrets from folks who initially supported the Iraq invasion (including himself). I give them all a lot of credit. It’s not easy to admit a mistake. But what mistake is it? Doing it, or not doing it right? Some of us continue to occupy [...]
Imagineering
I hesitate to use a lovely term (coined, it seems by that great American Hondo Crouch) for an unlovely thing, but it struck me today that the word that best describes the behavior of the Bush Administration is imagineering. The self-proclaimed mayor of the pseudotown of Luckenbach (pop. 3 when he bought it in 1970) in the [...]
Hunters
Amid the guffaws and sarcasm surrounding the Vice President’s hunting mishap (which, in itself, was far from funny), some commentators and comedians have made the obvious connection between Cheney’s reckless hunting style and his approach to foreign policy. Tom Engelhardt has dug a bit deeper into the quail-hunting episode and has found resonance not only [...]
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