How Low Can He Go?

I saw a quote from Bush on Huffington Post. He said, "Either we'll win in Iraq or we won't." Even for Bush, it's a new low of awful. How can someone who invested so much time, money - huge amounts of money - and lives more or less shrug off the results? As if he's saying: Oh, well, I failed again, no biggie.

I don't get him, or anyone who still thinks he's functional. And they exist, they call in to C-Span. As if we just have to give this war a chance. As if 5 years isn't enough time to see something worthwhile. As if.

This gang of thugs put all their energy into taking the election spoils and what's the best spoil of all? The War machine. Big money in wars if you're part of the military industrial complex. Since Viet Nam, defense has suffered the same downsizing as most of America. Except when you control the Pentagon you have more clout than if you're a union guy in Detroit.

Usually the War Machine at least brings some money home. In this case, they took it to Dubai. Yes, I mean Halliburton. Cheney, who orchestrated this war by all accounts, used to head it. His pals. They cranked up the PR machine, doused anyone who questioned the logic and sold it as patriotism. They left no opening for commone sense. If I were a conspirist I might even wonder if they helped the Bin laden group along the way. There are subtle ways to foment rage, especially in young males eager to make a mark.

Or maybe they just found a horse to ride, that it was a plan all along merely waiting for a perfect storm of opportunity. And after 30 years of peace folks forget, a new generation ignores - after all there's no draft, which is what really started the opposition to Viet Nam.

I'm sad for all the opportunity this country has lost and the victims of Katrina who still don't have their lives back because their government has other priorities. Sad for people who think this war was about fighting terrorism and not just a more macho pursuit rather than a softer pursuit of diplomacy. George W. Bush was raised a super rich kid. Daddy had power and money. He was given companies to run, none successfully.

And now he shrugs yet another fiasco off, his presidency. He knows failure, it's followed him all his life, with no repercussions. He seems to no longer care. For George W. Bush, there is no there there.