We've all seen the most recent thrust for the mind, soul & more importantly, the wallet, of conservatives here in America called The Pledge.
Basically, it states that signatories of said Pledge will withhold moral, physical and monetary support from politicians that do not support President Bush's recent "surge" in troops for Iraq.
I would like you all to consider reading Joshua Trevino's newest post titled The Wrong Pledge. In it, you can see why a progressive like myself, has so much in common with a conservative like Joshua.
Part of what we progressives object to in the most recent political dynamic is one of the fundamental premises that it is sold as by "conservative America". Namely, that withdrawl from Iraq equals defeat for America in Iraq, the Middle East, and "the War on Terror" in general. We don't hold that to be true. It is our position that by pulling back from the urban area's in Iraq, that we will no longer be the uniting factor of the varied groups that are using violence to force their way in Iraq right now. We think we can continue to support Iraq from the outside. We think that Iraq will be a much better place when American GI's are no longer a target. Why? Because Iraqi's will then have to come to terms with themselves. It is our position that when that occurs, they will boot the troublemakers, both foreign and domestic, and actually carry out a government that is stable and reasonably equitable. Why do we think this? Because it's in every factions self interest, and as we all have seen, repeatedly throughout history, self interest trumps just about everything in human dynamics.
We understand why the right is selling this new farce. It panders to the very same media campaign they love so much. It calls their local political opposition traitors. It pins the blame on "losing" the current effort in Iraq on the anti-war crowd, without ever mentioning that they themselves are the cause of the whole thing. It whips up the tried and true notions of moral superiority and fans the flames of frustration, anger and indignation of our lack of success in Iraq and better yet, it blames the other guy. They did the same thing in Vietnam. They're doing it again.
So who'se self interest got us into this swamp in Iraq in the first place? Follow the money. Who is making bank on the whole thing now? I'll tell you who: our President and Vice President's friends in the Private Security Industry (Blackwater), the major Oil Corporations, who hope to OWN Iraq's oil by locking up long term leases that give the Iraqi people a royalty on THEIR oil rather than the other way around, the Military Industrial suppliers (good ole Halliburton). And it all wraps up nicely with our Vice Presidents preferences to make the Executive branch modern day Kings in America, stripping the Judiciary, and the Representative House and Senate from their co-equal role in American political life.
So, please read Josh's post. Tell me what you think.
(cross posted in Swords Crossed.