Is there a loop?

Three days ago our Ambassador to Iraq, Khalilzad, said the United States had no intention of keeping permanent bases in Iraq. Today General Abizaid said we probably would want to keep permanent bases in Iraq. Which one of these guys is "out of the loop?" More basically, is there a loop? I have been saying all along that the U.S. has no intention whatsoever of getting our troops (all of them, that is) out of Iraq. The Democrats have been pressuring the White House for months to say we have no intention of maintaining permanent bases in Iraq. Have you ever heard anyone in the Bush/Cheney Administration say we are not going to stay there permanently? Of course not, because they never have. And why have they never said so? Because there has never been any intention of not maintaining permanent bases. We are spending billions to create at least four such bases, all enormous enough to be essentially self-contained American towns (complete with Burger Kings and whatever). So why do people keep talking about bringing the troops home? No one has ever said we are going to bring all the troops home. It seems unlikely to me that even if there is a change in Administrators we would bring all the troops home. Why can't anyone recognize reality and tell the truth?

A Blue Ribbon Committee is being established to "rethink Iraq" and how we might withdraw from there "successfully." I don't know if this means "victoriously" or what. This is a high-powered committee composed of a number of very important people. Apparently this Committee was resisted by the White House but because of intense pressure finally materialized. Want to bet the White House will pay any attention to whatever they suggest? There have been suggestions that Bush might need new advisors as his current staff has been there for all five years of his (absolutely disastrous) Administration. There is no sign that Bush is interested - he apparently likes the abject failures he already has.

Senator Russ Feingold is trying to introduce a motion to censure Bush for breaking the law with respect to unwarrantaed wiretapping. He apparently has failed to find even a single co-sponsor (although I just now heard that Barbara Boxer may be on board). It is not clear at the moment what, if anything, will come of this. I guess there may be a vote on it (want to guess the outcome?).

In three different recent polls Bush's numbers are now 33%, 35%, and 36%. As near as I can tell, aside from reporting this, no one is inclined to take any action. Even Lou Dobbs is outraged. What I want to know is, would his ratings have to go all the way to zero before anyone really cared? And would anyone care even if they did? Don't even bother about Democrats. If Bush/Cheney went to zero they would still be standing around sucking their thumbs.

Has there ever been a culture with such an unbelievable patience for total incompetence? Have Americans become so familiar with incompetence in their daily lives they no longer even recognize it? Try to find a shoe salesman nowadays who knows anything about shoes, or a butcher who knows what a hanger steak is, or how to pull the tendons from a turkey leg. It remind me of a recent incident involving one of my friends. It seems that in the winter he became somewhat bored so he purchased a cheap putter in a Wal Mart. After a few days he returned it, handing it to the sweet young thing behind the counter and telling her, "this just doesn't work."

"Really?" she said, and then let him exchange it. Sigh!