But today was a longer drive than I thought it would be. And we are both tired.

Someone in the passenger seat was REALLY tired, for most of the trip up:

When I looked over and saw that face, I just could not resist snapping a pix. Gomen ne?

Consider this an open post. Captions welcome.

In Lenoir Tennessee that is. Long story-very complicated and has me mad enough to ……………

Late start due to S.O. getting the cat taken care of and other things, but we did not hit the road till about 3:30. That was not the plan when I woke up this AM.  Decided not to try to go all the way tonight-especially when we got on I-75. man its a lot more crowded than I remember it at the ripe old age of 9!

My daughter is coming next week. That’s good. How it transpired with my sister setting up the arrangements ;meddling where she was not asked………is not good. However these are weeks that bring out the best and worse in people and I have to remind myself of that. HOWEVER, down the road-she and I are going to have a “discussion”. Now is just not the time.

We did luck out and get a hotel room, right next to a Mexican restaurant. Margaritas were in order. I had probably about 2 too many. But it was a short walk back to the hotel. I needed one. The S.O. told me a great story that I had never heard before-not knowing my Mom very well she did not realize that my Mom was kidding-but never really knew how to convey that well. She told me that at the airport, during the weekend when she first met the S.O., when I was off in the restroom or whatever-she told the S.O. that she had better take good care of me.

Or my Mom would kill her, she said. And then pointed her finger at her like a gun. Not being used to that type of dark, only half humorous, humor-she was more than a little taken aback.

But Mom was right-with my family, taking care of me is the only prudent course of action for her. God bless you Mom! I need all the help I can get.

All packed-out the door tomorrow. I decided to not to fly to RDU but to drive up. That way if my kids come down for the funeral I can set that up for them.  So, that means the S.O. and I will embark on our first ever long car trip together . We’ve taken train trips-plane trips-even gone by bus together. However we have not spent a protracted period of time driving America’s highways. This ought to be interesting! Glad I got the satellite radio with the car………….

I take that back-we did drive once from Reno to San Francisco after a weekend of skiing. That was only 4 and 1/2 hours. This drive will be over 10. (551 miles door to door from Shopping Mall to RDU).

Before I go, I am idly sitting here, trying to do some blog maintenance. Damn guys at Word Press came up with a new version and I got tired of the “download now” sign every time I went to the dash board. So its back up, load up, and try to fix my links. When I screw that up, at least it will give something to do on my laptop late at night when I am staying in that room.

Went to work today so as to set things in order before heading off for about 9 days. People offered their condolences and while I know they meant well-I just wanted to get on with work.  This is a private burden to be borne-and I would just prefer -for this day at least-with the mudane details of work and that special project I mentioned earlier. You remember, the “chance to excel”. Which is why I am not sure if work is a good distraction or just more stress at a time I need none. However, I did have to  make sure those bases were covered.

Now its packing time and I realize that I do not have a black suit. The closest is a dark  blue one. I never liked to wear black and do not especially think it looks well. The S.O. helped me pick out a combination that is dark, reserved and reverent.

My father decided on a simple graveside service. It is just as well-except it really means that it will just be family present. Most of my mother’s close friends are already on the journey themselves, or not in the shape to make any type of a ceremony. The neighborhood my folks live in is a rather spread out one. Where our family plots are though,  is located on the slope of a mountain, overlooking the valley and the mountains. My father grew up in that little town-where his dad worked for Natahala Power and Light company. My sister reminded me that my grandfather is also buried there. I never got to meet my grandfather as he died shortly after my mother and father were married.  My Dad once told me the story of  how my Mom had to go up with him on the train to see him when they had moved him by train to a hospital in the Northeast. (My father’s father had cancer and died in his 40′s).  Dad said they loaded his bed through a window on the train-as he was too sick to walk aboard. My Mom got to be witness to all that as a bride of all of two months.

Blogging will be intermittent me-thinks. Or perhaps non-existent if I screw up the WP upgrade. Wish me luck!

Once again, thank you for all the kind wishes.

Sittiing in the gate area at Tucson airport. Still a while till boarding and I got to do something-might as well blog.

First, to all who sent their kind wishes-Thank You. I do appreciate it.

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I keep feeling like I should be crying. Except the truth is- I just cannot. Which makes me feel more guilty than you will ever know. I jsut don’t know how I feel-or even how I am supposed to. Even though my sister had warned me that we all needed to gird our selves up for this-now that it is actually here-it is still a something of a shock. Talking with my father is especially hard. There is nothing I can say to him. I am truly sorry and he knows it-but how do you console the man? He’s the one I’m really worried about now-for the last few years, looking out for my Mom had been his “career” of sorts. Now I’m worried he will fall apart himself. He’s in much better shape health wise than my mother-but spiritually he’s tapped out.

Yet I still cannot cry. I thought I might when I heard the news at first-then it just settled down into sort of a resigned acceptance of that which I have dreaded for years, was finally upon me. I feel sad, but I also feel as if things are better in a perverted sort of way. I hated seeing my mother in the nursing home-and my sister says she would never have wanted that. So perhaps she waited until she saw us all, then moved on. Probably a flight of fancy, but still I want to believe it.

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My Mom got gypped by us kids. None of us turned out to be the famous, history making, people she wanted us to be. I know she was proud of my Navy career-I never had the heart to tell her that as successful careers go-my was deeply slotted among the ranks of the mediocrity. Still it made her proud-she always thought I was going to be an admiral. Just the opposite, each of us screwed up our individual lives in various ways. My parents are really the only anchor my family has. Now one of the points is chipped off. What happens to the rest of the anchor-and the ship it holds in place?

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I hope I get to come back here to Tucson, despite the heat it was different than I expected it to be. I had really wanted to get up to Davis Monthan AFB and see the “boneyard”. I had actually arranged my schedule so I could go do that tomorrow morning before going to the airport. If one loves airplanes its a must see-to pay respects. Plus it was nice to see desert mountains again. When I was living in Nevada-one of the highlights of my morning each day was to walk out of my house and look up at the mountains off in the distance. Plus flying over this type of country was simply glorious. Go ask Lex, I’m sure he would agree with me.

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While I was packing up my stuff, the TV showed the latest Jib-Jab video. Its probably innappropriate to say so, but I don’t care what your politics are-its funny. Only smile I’ve had in a couple of days.

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I got the nicest e-mail, clear out of the blue from my daughter. I’ve not heard from her in a while. It was a sweet note, if somewhat strained, and I was thankful for it. She said she wants to maybe come to the funeral. I don’t think she is going to be able to make it, but I told her if she chose to, I would pay for it. However it was entirely her choice. Said the same to my son, who I have talked to several times today. He’s got too many demands on his time now to come-but he did give a warm welcome to my sister last month when she visited.

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Now it will be time for the recriminations to begin. How I should have been able to visit more often. How I should have subverted my own desires and lived closer to my parents. How I should have been back in North Carolina last month-before she went into the hospital, new job or not. I think though that deep down, my Mom knew I was happy in Asia, but she did not understand why. I wish I had been able to share some of that with both Mom and Dad. Now its too late.

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Time to board the plane. Useless prose I know-but I felt better having something to do to occupy the time. Thank you for listening.

Rest in peace, and may God grant you life eternally.

MY MOTHER

January 15,1918-July 15, 2008

No Love like a Mother’s Love

There is no love, like a mother’s love,
no stronger bond on earth…
like the precious bond that comes from God,
to a mother, when she gives birth.

A mother’s love is forever strong,
never changing for all time…
and when her children need her most,
a mother’s love will shine.

God bless these special mothers,
God bless them every one…
for all the tears and heartache,
and for the special work they’ve done.

When her days on earth are over,
a mother’s love lives on…
through many generations,
with God’s blessings on each one.

Be thankful for our mothers,
for they love with a higher love…
from the power God has given,
and the strength from up above.

I’m typing this from a hotel room in Richmond. Why am I here?

I’m asking myself the same question.

Airplane takes off out of RDU flies to our nations capitol. Decent is bumpy, due to storms closing on the city. Pilots take a go-around due to winds at Reagan and then after a second try divert to Richmond. Now I’m OK with them having opted not to go for the “varsity play for the runway”-having ridden through more than a couple of those.

BUT……

When you strand me in another city, with no hope of making my connection, and I need to be on a plane for Tucson tomorrow- How in the hell can you have the balls to tell me you will not pay for a hotel room?!?! I went through a similar situation with Cathay once and they put me up in an nice hotel. Used to be US carriers did the same.

Its like everything else about airlines in America these days-they just don’t get it. Gas prices are high-fine, raise ticket prices. But don’t drop the level of service. Reduce routes if need be-but don’t drop service. Anything else insults our intelligence.

Choice 1 was to go to DC and have to stay overnight-at over 200 dollars a night. Choice two was to be here-at 60. I chose the latter. The S.O. is packing me a suitcase to meet me at the airport tomorrow with business clothes. That’s going to cost me in emotional points later.

Thanks guys! THANKS A LOT!

Reason 233 why I am ready to go back to Asia…………….

To talk about the war with neocon supporters. Andrew Sullivan rightly castigates Uncle Jimbo, Bill Kristol, and all the other actors in the theater of the absurd:

“perhaps you could provide some convincing evidence that the U.S. can invade a country, topple its regime, leave immediately – and expect a lasting, positive outcome.”

Leave immediately? Does Max know what year it is? But maybe he could ask Bill Kristol the same question. Kristol and Kaplan argued for the war thus:

As other countries’ forces arrive, and as Iraq rebuilds its economy and political system, that [75,000] force could probably be drawn down to several thousand soldiers after a year or two.

Several thousand after a year or two. We are now in year six with 150,000 still there. You’d think that people who had made such confident predictions might show a little humility at this point. But let me remind Boot that there was no mention before the war that we were there to secure oil supplies as he now argues.

In fact, that very idea was regarded as a left-wing smear. Nor were we told that we would invade and occupy a country indefinitely in order to “protect our interests” in the region. We were told there was a terrible threat to our security; and this was untrue. And then we were told that leaving would be a terrible threat to our security. And now we are told that a commitment to leaving by 2011 would be a threat to our security. It is not unreasonable for people to ask when the neocons will ever feel it is safe to leave – or if leaving was ever their intention in the first place.

Look: the good news is that for reasons I didn’t see, Iraq is now in a much better place than almost anyone foresaw a year ago. The better news is that even those of us who have argued about this for years can now agree that we have a better chance of getting out now without catastrophe than we did at any time in the past five years. No one wants to foment chaos there. And extricating will be tricky and require pragmatism. But I do not think I’m being unreasonable or reckless in hoping that we can finally bring closure to this debacle after eight years at a cost of up to $3 trillion, hundreds of thousands of innocent deaths, and approaching 5,000 dead Americans and tens of thousands of Americans severely injured for life. If that is “leaving immediately”, or a “precipitous withdrawal”, then heaven knows what Max Boot thinks is empire.

This is where I just cannot follow the worshippers of Gen Petreaus down this particular rathole. First , based on current numbers year to date-Iraq is still a very unsafe place. Its a place where on average, 30 Americans and over 550 Iraqis die each month. So yea its improved over the previous year, but that still sucks by any definition of the word sucks. However, if in fact, the Iraqis are starting to function as an autonomous power looking out for their own interests, which are not aligned with US ones by the way, then why should we oppose that? Does the word client state come to mind?

Except there has not been a client state in the middle east for a long time. Even Israel does not dance to our tune all the time.

Sullivan is right. It makes you wonder if the neocon’s ever had any idea of leaving in the first place. Which means Scot McClellan may have been right-they just said any old thing to sell the war. “We will not stay there one day longer than we have to” was just pap for the masses?

Enquiring minds want to know.

I was jarred when I opened up my computer this morning to see that Tony Snow had passed away. I’ll skip any discussion of his politics except to note what former President Bush said of him:

“In this case it isn’t a press secretary. It isn’t a speech writer. It was a dear, valued friend that went on to heaven. … He won the respect of even those who violently disagree with the president’s proposals and policies. For that I think he’ll be remembered. He brought a certain civility to this very contentious job.”

What jars me is the blatant unfairness of it. The man was only 53. That’s two years older than me. He had a family, and so much more to give.

The words will come out about a divine plan-I’ve never really understood those. Three score and ten should be 30 score and ten in my humble opinion.

Now mind you part of my frustration here is colored by seeing my mother this weekend and also the very real and jarring reality of going to the nursing home. Which is full. Full of people who are not doing so well on this, perhaps final, leg of the their respective journeys.

That too is not fair to me-no matter what their age.

I always have a hard time dealing with it-and I wonder what the visitors think when they come to visit as we did. Perhaps they thought, as I did, that someday it may be my turn. God I hope not-I want to stay at the least mentally vigorous.

Which no one could accuse Tony Snow of not being. So its just doubly frustrating to see his family robbed this way.

No moral or conclusion here, it is what it is. Its life. And things like these are a vexation. And I don’t deal well with vexations. I want people to have joy and fun-not sorrow.

No matter what. Its just not fair.

I don’t think this is a commercial from anywhere in the US.

Check out the look on otosan’s picture!

Not me, but that is what it seems the US is doing when it comes to oil.

Actually, as a I think about it, current US energy policy is similar to the crusade of angry mothers, who want to rid the world of the members of DAMM. ( Drunks against mad mothers). Their efforts to change the DUI laws have been long and fierce-but interestingly enough the DUI rate remains about the same-or in some places it has gone up.

The reason? Well, besides the fact that the BAC limit is too low( .10 is the only correct number-but that is for another post) the main reason that all these tough DUI laws don’t work too well is simple:

There is no other way to get your car back from the bar.

E.G. When it comes to transportation, there is no good alternative way to get to the places you want to go.

Now the same is true for energy and drilling for oil. The powers that be can whine all they want about drilling offshore and in ANWAR and it still does not disguise the great fact that the US simply uses too much gasoline. Or as the S.O. says the US is a car society. And like our wayward friend tap dancing in front of the State Trooper, the reason is the same:

We don’t have any other way to get back from the bar.

Please, spare me the lines about taxis and designated drivers-those are all good ideas. But they sure don’t help the guy out there prowling for a pick up by himself. And for taxis to be a real alternative they need to be more plentiful and cheaper. They are not. Trust me, I know. As dedicated member of DAMM, I take a lot of taxis-I don’t want to dance in front of the road nazis. I’m still going to go to the bar.

Because I love bars. And in Tokyo I could go to a lot of bars-and never run afoul of the police. This in a country where the DUI limit is .03. They can do that with a clear conscience because they have decent public transportation.

Taxis are still expensive though. But the busses run on time.

And without viable public transportation alternatives, the US will keep paying higher prices for gasoline. Because the population is still going to go the bar. Or to work, or to school or wherever.

On the way up here to my parents house I marvelled at an e-mail I got from American urging me to sign a petition to urge Congress to go after speculators. Saying they are the problem with gasoline. I think I will pass. If I had the money, I would be a speculator too. Why do commodities traders drive up the price of oil?

Because they can.

It still comes down to a couple of hard truths. Demand is higher because of all those Indians and Chinese who are burning gas they don’t deserve to have. And they want even more.

And second, the war(s) in the Middle East make investors nervous. They make drivers nervous. They make countries nervous. So they stock up. Which further drives up demand.

So I’ve got an idea. Instead of taking all that money for drilling-and for the wars that make everyone nervous, and build some good trains.

And while we are at it, subsidize the taxi services too. So fares are low.

Then the mothers could be really angry-with good reason.

We could get to the bar without breaking the bank.

And probably not for a while this weekend-going to my parents to check up on them.

As I was leaving work yesterday-got one of those phone calls that:

a) means I have to work a lot harder.

b) and means my carefully planned escape attempts this summer are going to get all screwed up.

“But its a great opportunity!”

Stupid joke, heard at our usually less than useful morning meeting:

“Obama is rumored to be able to sweep Alabama this year”.

“Oh really? How do you think that?”

“They are going to stamp a G in front of his name and then it will read-Gobama. Of course every one will vote for that.”

” Maybe half of them will-the stupid half.” (Speaker is a notorious Auburn fan).

Which highlights a dilemna, I don’t like either team. I’ve been told that , “None of the above” is not an option when it comes to religion football here in Shopping Mall USA. You are supposed to choose one or the other and if you are not careful you can end up with a house like this one:

Are the Vols an option?
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One of the sure signs you are getting old?

When you are selecting channel 77 on the satellite radio-Broadway’s Greatest Hits. No lie, I’ve been listening to that lately while driving to and from work.

However-I do listen to Maxim radio from time to time-just to “keep my hand in”.

Busy day today. So I’ll close this quick post with a cute story I found over at Japan Probe-the story of the “mail cat”. See below:

 
Translation:

Tama the cat was born at one house and lived there for a while.

One day, Tama disappeared.

Two years later, Tama returned to its original owner’s house. Tama was in good health, so the original owner suspected someone else must have cared for and fed the cat.

The original owner attached a letter to Tama’s collar seeking the person who had been caring for him.
Tama’s second owners, who named him Azukichi, sent a reply in the same manner.

It turns out that Tama’s second home was only 200 meters away from his first home. His two homes now exchange letters via cat post on a regular basis.

According to the news report, it usually takes about an hour or two for the cat to deliver the letter. However, there are some occasions where he can take as long as half a day to make a delivery.

That’s what usually happens to me when I read buffoonery masquerading as patriotism and rational thought.

Which is why I should not, usually do not, go over and read Blackfive and the  gang of high brow intelligentsia they have over there.

This post by Deebow should merit a simple shake of my head in astonishment, a cheery “everyone is entitled to their opinion” and then a second breath of astonishment when the usual crowd of sycophants commenters comes out to attack the lone person who might disagree with him. Problem is, a lot of people agree with him. So it is worth discussing further-if for no other reason it helps me work through my astonishment.

Was the editorial writer over at the Philadelpia Enquirer way over the top in saying that Americans should not celebrate the 4th of July? Yes he was.  Of course there are great reasons to celebrate the 4th of July. The Declaration is a great document and the country has a great story to tell and to celebrate. The freedom he has to write a controversial column that leads to death threats from Rush Limbaugh fans may be one of them-glory of the free press and all that.  Great story to tell indeed.

Its just that Guantanmo, or the ever continuing series of rationalizations, about how we don’t owe rights of the acccused to confront his accuser to persons because of their lack of citizenship -is not the nation’s proudest hour.

And Deebow should know better and the crowd at Blackfive should know better-not the least for the reasons that he states in his post:

Our founders were great men, who knew the value of life and what it meant to spend it in the pursuit of the goal that all men should be free. They also knew what evil lay in the hearts of men and that laws were no good unless backed by some force of good to administer them. They knew what would happen when they signed the Declaration of Independence. They also knew how hard they would have to fight in order to achieve what they sought.

The notion of “rights” was important to them and they understood that the recognition of rights involved cooperation in the social contract and mutual cooperation and recognition of one another and that each was equal.

There are many of us today that know that as well. The foreign fighter I capture in a walled compound in Stogana is not the inheritor of those rights we hold so dear, because he would not grant us the same quarter. His notion of rights is that of an animal. He would enslave you and I Chris. Without so much as a thought about it.

The last part is probably true-it is also not the point.

Personally, I believe the founding fathers would be appalled at what their beloved country is doing these days when it comes to jurisprudence. They would point out-quite correctly too-that when the government makes rationalizations about the law overseas, its only a matter of time until they find a way to do it at home.  Which is why I believe, if they could be asked, they would applaud the Supreme Court for making the decision it did.

Because if one closely examines the decisions of the justice department in the past five years-a fan of Constitutional liberty should be afraid, very afraid. And the founding fathers would have said-”see, I told you so! When you fail to respect the rights of any man-you fail to respect the rights of all men. And then over time-you become the evil you sought to confront“.

Now I will say it again, ” Let me preface what follows by stating categorically that I have absolutely ZERO sympathy for the occupants of Gtmo prison camp. None, nada, zilch. These people are scum and I could care less if their “precious” Koran is pissed on, torn apart, thrown at them or other wise desecrated. The Koran is desecrated every time one of these Islamic scumbags opens one. And I don’t care if they get deprived of sleep, are made to sweat, or locked in cages by themselves. Could not have happened to a nicer bunch of guys. These jerks chose to make league with Osama and his band of criminals so they deserve to be in a real gulag. Too bad “old Uncle Joe” is not around to play “lets make a deal” with.”

However, the longer we maintain the camp in Guantanamo the more tenuous the legal and moral position of the United States becomes. I submit to you, (again) that if anyone in DOD could do so, they would admit, that back when the idea came to put Afghan prisoners in Guantanamo if someone had told them that some 6 years later they would still be there, they would look at you like you were crazy. In other words, the U.S. government never intended it to go like this. Truth be told, they probably expected there to be workable Afghan government by now so that custody could be transferred for all but the most hardened criminals.

Plus it does not answer the question namely, why after over 6 years in captivity-where “aggressive interrogation tactics have yielded great volumes of information” -you are telling me the US does not have the evidence to put these guys on the gallows? I’m not buying it. And if you accept the premise that these folks have no rights whatsoever-why did you not just shoot them when you captured them? Would have saved a lot of money-and by the Deebow line of thinking would have been perfectly legal.

Except its not, and it is advisable only if the US is willing to turn its back on accepted international law. Now we can do that, but in the end there comes a cost. So in summary, be careful what you wish for, or you may surely get it. We wanted the Islamists out of circulation. “Now we have to reconcile ourselves to the fact that we are just like every other major power involved in a war of occupation”.

What is that you say? America is a special nation, who is above the petty trifles of other powers. This is good vs evil and we are the good guys.

Ok. Then I think you should remember that the good guys hold themselves to a higher standard. Or at least they used to.  Don’t agree with me?-ask my Canadian counterpart then.

What bothers me is that waterboarding could be a “gateway” method. The measures that were legally passed after 9/11, most specifically the USA PATRIOT ACT, are stealthily creeping their way into American life. There was a time that an American citizen could be assured that the government couldn’t eavesdrop on their conversations without a judicial warrant until President Bush decided that it was inconvenient. If you can waterboard terrorists, why not drug traffickers? How about drug dealers? Once practices like that become acceptable, they are ripe for abuse. 

The rest of the world watched the United States have a collective nervous breakdown because Private Jessica Lynch may or may not have been sodomized in Iraq, But the US expects the rest of us to say nothing as her government is actually drowning  people in its custody. As much as I love America, you can’t pretend to be a beacon of freedom or a “shining city on a hill” when you do that. 

If you look at the history of waterboarding, you learn that it was used during the Spanish Inquisition, and by Imperial Japan, Nazi Germany and the Khmer Rouge. President Bush declared in September 2001 that “you’re withus or you’re with the terrorists.” It seems only fair that President Bush be asked a similiar question by the rest of civilized world, “Are you with us, or are you with the Spanish inquisitors, the rapists of Nanking, the Gestapo and the Khmer Rouge?” 

Some things are better stopped before they go too far.

Sums it up pretty well-as he usually does. Which is why I read him a lot -and BF very little.

John Adams would tell you the same thing too. Maybe not that sneaky little bastard Aaron Burr-but he was never President either. Adams was-and kept the nation out of a disastrous war. Wise man that he was.

Now the verbal beatings will probably begin.

“Aren’t you worried about the extreme right wing milbloggers?”

” They’ll know where to find me-I left a note for them on my blog!”
 

And welcome to it.

A real conversation that occurred last week:

S.O.-”There is something wrong with my car. I put it in drive but it’s hard to get it to move. I stopped when I heard this ggggg noise.”

Me- (thinking to myself-”Oh s**t” , a 1000 dollar repair bill is all I need!”) “Let me go look at it.”

About 10 minutes later I come back.

Me-”It works fine. Once I released the parking brake. You do know you had it on don’t you?”

S.O.- “How I am supposed to know that?”

Me-” Oh I don’t know. Like maybe because the handle was in the up position. And surely you must have noticed that big red light in the middle of dashboard, didn’t you? You know-the one that says “BRAKE ON!”

S.O.- ” I never look at those lights-How I am supposed to see that?”

Resist urge to smack said S.O. Proceed to refrigerator, open beer, finish 1/3 in one gulp. Thank God above she did not leave the parking space. Finish beer and go back to check tension on the brake cable.

True story.

To think for themselves. The Iraqis that is.

I admit, that I marveled at this little tidbit in the news:

Maliki said he was concerned about military pressure aimed at Iran regarding the country’s nuclear activities, adding he would not permit U.S. forces to use Iraqi land, airspace and waterways as a means for attacking states in the region.

He said the Mideast is in a “fragile” state and “fomenting tension in the region and pushing for military action against Tehran could wreak havoc on the entire region, including Iraq.”

Maliki said diplomacy would be the most effective way to resolve conflict surrounding Iran’s nuclear activities.

 
Good for him! If the government of Iraq can make a stand and keep its word-it will be real progress and more importantly, it will signal what I have known all along: there is no such thing as a pro-American, beacon of light, Arab nation known as Iraq. There is just another dysfunctional Arab nation known as Iraq.

Of course it begs the question, again, if things are going so well in Iraq as William Krystol frothed at the mouth about as commentators continue to say, and the Iraq army and government are in fact stepping up, why is it that the US has to continue to stay there for years and years?

That is the question that no one has an answer to. Unless-you factor in the need for a staging base against Iran and / or a deterrent presence against the country. Which means , to be effective, you have to show the ability to use the deterrent.

If Malaki can actually make good on a desire not to have Iraq be a US staging base-then that is the best favor he could do himself……and the United States.

Now tell us you can take it from here and we can leave. It would be the best thing you could do for your country, Mr. Malaki. (And it would give you free hand to promote Shiite intersests….).