Dr. Bacevich's Memorial Day

I cannot and will not excuse the behavior of those who were so thoughtless in communicating with a grieving father. And, I am inclined to give him the benefit of his grief, as well as his well-informed opinions on the war. Nevertheless, the close elections were hardly an "unambiguous repudiation" of war policy (cf. Lamont vs. Lieberman), and the war was not created or maintained by the "moneyed" class, in my opinion. My prayer is that Dr. Bacevich and his family receive God's strength and grace as they remember their beloved son.

There are nutjobs everywhere, and it is despicable to intrude on someone's grief like that. I find it remarkable, though, that Bacevich goes for the good ol' wealthy as a scapegoat for continuation of the war. I am not arguing for the war, let me be clear. But Teddy and Kerry don't work for the wealthy, they ARE the wealthy. And the Democrats couldn't ram any legislation through because their leadership is lousy and they don't have the backing of the people. The 2006 elections were NOT a referendum on ending the war now. They were however, a referendum on the Republican leadership and management. Doesn't seem to me that the Democrats have been any sort of improvement.
Bacevich got the brushoff from politicians, and, sorry if this offends, he should have. Trying to trade in on your son's death to gain political advantage is as bad as one using his celebrity for the same reason. Call your senators after the wake, sir.

I'm with Bugg. This is exactly the sort of dialog every citizen needs to listen to (not just hear). Starrs, while neither of us is privileged to be inside Prof. Bacevich's head, his rhetoric stripped of emotional epithets is precisely what those running the war have refused to listen to since its start. I would offer the benefit of the doubt, and see his grief as informing his position, not as a coin to buy agreement. We, collectively, have failed to listen when it has not been infused with passion. Please, consider encouraging our leadership in listening to it despite that passion.

Republicans kid themselves if they think the past election was in large part about anything other than Iraq.
Foleygate, Katrina, public spending, etc. were nothing more than sideshows politically. The war -- along with the person of G.W. Bush -- is a major albatross around the GOP. That won't change until the U.S. is out of Iraq AND G.W. Bush is out of public life.

Noice how he delicately references "Middle East allies?" Hmmmm...who could that be?

I thought I was clever to have come up with the concept of an "emergent conspiracy." But I googled the term and found that others got there first. It's a meme! http://www.correntewire.com/emergent_properties_and_criminal_conspiracies It ignores completely the question of who actually pays. It negates democracy, rendering free speech little more than a means of recording dissent. I don't think this is paranoia. I think Andrew Bacevich is speaking the truth, and Rod has had the guts to recognize it and pass it on, for which I thank him. This is why I believe the Republicans must be punished, even though the Democrats are little better. We cannot shrug and let them get away with it. Not this time.

It's awful what those people have said to Prof. Bacevich. End of story. But that doesn't mean I can't disagree with him. This is exactly the kind of thing you'd expect to find from a writer for American Conservative, and it's to your discredit, Rod, that you've been mentioning AmCon more and more recently, going on about how brilliant they are. Just b/c you're fed up with Bush doesn't mean you have to jump to the crazy uncle end of the conservative spectrum.
"To whom do Kennedy, Kerry and Lynch listen? We know the answer: to the same people who have the ear of George W. Bush and Karl Rove -- namely, wealthy individuals and institutions. Money buys access and influence. Money greases the process that will yield us a new president in 2008. When it comes to Iraq, money ensures that the concerns of big business, big oil, bellicose evangelicals and Middle East allies gain a hearing. By comparison, the lives of U.S. soldiers figure as an afterthought."

Mr Bacevich's point is that the system continues quite well and that it is greased by money. This money isn't too particular about which party it comes from. None of that matters RIGHT NOW. Men and women are fighting and dying in the streets of Iraq, and that is what matters right now. That people would continue to politicize the situation is precisely the problem. No one is thinking or acting clearly. That would undermine their political platform.