In the continuing political din about when the United States will draw down its military in Iraq, some notable evidence is overlooked about our intentions of ever completing that objective.
In spite of the amorphous phrase, “When the Iraqi forces stand up, ours will stand down,” the Bush administration is in the process of building 14 massive, “enduring” military bases there. The pathetic, incompetent efforts to “stand up”an Iraqi military and police force belie our intentions. And the administration simply will not state outright that we will cease to have a military presence in that country in the future.
So what is the alternative to not having a military presence in Iraq? Well…having a military presence in Iraq. And what has research shown to be the single most potent motivating cause of continuing violence in Iraq? Well…the presence of the U.S. military. This dynamic cannot be an unknown to our leadership and it is simply amazing that we are being asked to ignore the obvious—the Bush administration entered Iraq to establish a U.S. military presence in the heart of the Middle East and has no intention of leaving.
So let us, the people, move in front of the politicians. Let us say…you debate the issue of what specific timetable can be used as you think you must because you have allowed this mess to develop. But we the people ask for you to pass an unambiguous statement of the will of the United States that we pledge ultimately to remove all military personnel from Iraq, permanently. And then we should judge the authenticity of our leadership by the actions that it takes to advance our promise and regain a certain measure of our integrity in the world.
6 Comments:
Hi, I just want to say that I'm glad you decided to advertise your blog on your most current sign. I've always been curious as to who was the voice behind the signs. Also I was interested in getting more information about the author's views.
I'm a resident of Ithaca and pass by your signs daily. They've made me think about current events or research things which I hadn't been familiar with previously. I'm glad there are still people in Ithaca willing to voice their opinions. Keep up the good work.
I live right off by Salem Dr., so in order to get just about anywhere I have to go right by the Warren-Hanshaw intersection. I look forward to seeing your signs up every week, and was amused to find that you even call yourself sine man (my family refers to you as "the sign guy"). I still frequently wear the "wage peace" bracelet I got from one of your signs last summer. Keep up the good work.
Why 'sine' instead of 'sign'? Being that your sign has nothing do with math, and signman.blogspot.com and signman.blogger.com are both still free.
I was also eager to come check out the URL from the latest sign. I live around the corner and pass the signs several times a day. ALways interested to see what's next.
Do you have pictures of all the signs? I frequently wish I'd started taking pictures of each sign -- and then pictures of the damage that gets done by people who are angered by questions. I think that would be a very interesting photo montage.
I've been wondering: what ever happened with the vandalism situation of your signs? They pretty consistently spray painted something every week and then it abruptly stopped. Were you able to catch them and bring them to justice, or did they just give up? Or did they perhaps just leave town when the school year ended? I thought your response of putting up a blank sign for people to express themselves was a great idea. Keep up the good work!
"I'm glad there are still people in Ithaca willing to voice their opinions."
Really? Is Ithaca really that stifling for you? Name another city that's residents voice their opinions more than Ithaca.
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