Disqus - Friends of invadesoda

Re: How Does This Matter?

ChrisWWW — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 11:15:23 -0000

The war in Iraq is over, so they have to talk about something right? How disgusting...

Re: Design change

ChrisWWW — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 16:26:03 -0000

It looks good but I think you should seriously think about cleaning up the left sidebar. It's insanely long. Your blogroll deserves it's own page...

Re: Will Bill Clinton Blow It For Hillary?

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:00:26 -0000

I do think that Bill should tone it down. A lot. But McCain as a serious alternative? After all your posts about the Iraq war, I don't know how you can possibly consider him as a viable president.

Re: Israel’s Best Friends

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:02:15 -0000

It is an excellent point, and I'm sure you'll both be charged with anti-Semitism for having the gall to write it.

Re: Palestinians Pour Across Egypt Border As Border Breached

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:06:05 -0000

This even harsher blockade is a very good example of collective punishment. Where is our government on opposition to this?

Re: Palestinians Pour Across Egypt Border As Border Breached

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 16:31:05 -0000

So everyone in Gaza deserves to starve and live without electrically powered medical facilities, because some crazy guys are shooting rockets into Israel. Where is the sense of proportionality?

Re: Will Bill Clinton Blow It For Hillary?

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 16:57:58 -0000

I'm not saying you should have to agree with any candidate 100% of the time, but issues do matter. And I'm not talking about wedge issues like gay marriage and abortion. I'm curious to know what your top 3 or so issues are, and whether or not McCain or Clinton is closer to your view on those issues.

Re: Will Bill Clinton Blow It For Hillary?

ChrisWWW — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 17:00:38 -0000

That last comment was directed at Shaun

Re: Poll: Guiliani Coming In Distant Third In Florida

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 00:08:39 -0000

Is it too early to thank the gods? Giuliani was truly a frightening candidate.

Re: Will Bill Clinton Blow It For Hillary?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 11:43:59 -0000

I'm not trying to bait you into anything. I just don't see how these nebulous character concerns outweigh what each candidate plans on doing with their time in office. What would be the positive effect of McCain's supposedly superior leadership abilities? Is that effect more important than a drawn down in Iraq or a push for universal health care?

Re: John McCain & The Dinosaur Vote

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 11:54:08 -0000

Short of pandering, which is something that has not come naturally to McCain over a long political career and five and a half years as a POW in the Hanoi Hilton, the answer is a big fat “no.”

McCain's problem is that he has pandered but no one believed it. He's firmly attached his lips to the behinds of Pat Robertson and George W. Bush in an attempt to appeal to the conservative base that didn't support him in 2000. And what was he doing when he caved to Bush on the issue of torture? McCain's maverick image may have been true at some point, but it's nothing but an illusion in 2008.

Re: John McCain & The Dinosaur Vote

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:01:25 -0000

co,
Stool is the right word for it :-)

Re: Florida -- And Rudy -- Still In Play

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:16:05 -0000

Anything can happen of course, but it's not a good sign that Giuliani is behind in the polls in a state where he focused so much attention.

It's definitely do or die, and I won't be shedding any tears if his campaign does die. His foreign policy stance is just odious compared to the other Republicans in the field. Rudy's is just too belligerent.

Re: Israel: We Wash Our Hands Of Gaza

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:20:14 -0000

If Israel is to cede responsibility for Gaza, then they should end their blockade by sea.

Re: That's One Way To Start A Distributorship!

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:28:43 -0000

"Oil at $100 a barrel and Venezuela has food shortages. That is all you need to know about socialism."

How does the price of oil change the food situation in Venezuela without giving that oil revenue to the people? Is that considered socialism too?

Re: That's One Way To Start A Distributorship!

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:13:03 -0000

Well that's my point really. Oil money is money being made from production so much as just money from being able to drill it. $100 oil doesn't mean there is food unless that money is somehow making it's way to people that are making and/or buying food.

More or less, this is the same problem Saudi Arabia has. Oil "production" can occur without really helping the rest of the economy. These countries need to graduate to more complex goods and services that will benefit large numbers of employees.

Re: Florida -- And Rudy -- Still In Play

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 16:18:08 -0000

His lead foreign policy advisor "hopes and prays" we bomb Iran. And all Rudy talks about is staying on "offense." That sounds like more war which ='s belligerence.

As for my political leanings, I'm definitely on the left, but I appreciate the ideals of fiscal conservatism among other conservative values. But my concern over the Republican campaigns in particular is that I want the party to nominate the best candidate for America. If we're destined to be stuck in the god-awful two-party system, we should at least ensure that the two parties are giving us good choices.

Re: Obama’s Campaign Uses Bill Clinton Campaigning For Funds Appeal

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 16:38:28 -0000

The Clinton tactics are pretty disgusting. Obama tried to dabble in it during the last debate when he mentioned Hillary's time with Wal-Mart, but it didn't really work out for him. His message just doesn't work alongside a bunch of negative swipes.

It's too bad, really, that this style of campaigning will likely be successful again. It's depressing actually.

Re: Florida -- And Rudy -- Still In Play

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 16:59:54 -0000

A few points against our current two party system:
a) limits choice to roughly two ideological viewpoints. In some cases, like war, it limits it to one choice

b) it doesn't encourage cooperation when the two parties have nearly equal power over the legislature. Republicans will just oppose something because a Democrat introduced it and vice versa.

c) a lot of "cruft" has formed around the 2 parties that we currently have. The debate process, for instance, is rigged to keep out 3rd parties. No wonder, since it's run by a joint Republican+Democratic group

As for your major point, I respect your point of view on peace, but I don't ascribe to the basic assumptions that underly it. We certainly haven't "waged peace" in Iraq if you take into account all the dead and displaced people. I'm going to assume that Giuliani is referring to Iraq when talking about offense.

A good example of a positive U.S. military influence would be South Korea. Our troops keep the S. Koreans safer merely by being stationed there, but that does nothing for the oppressed North Koreans.

Re: Back To The Mothership?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 17:32:56 -0000

Kucinich may be unrealistically dove-ish, but at least he's an honest man. We could use more unapologetic honesty from politicians.

Re: Have Iraqi Forces Grown A Tail?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 17:37:08 -0000

"If the Iraqis succeed in transitioning to the lead role, it will represent a significant victory in the war on terror"

Only in so much that we've turned Iraq into a hotbed of terrorism by invading in 2003.

Re: Have Iraqi Forces Grown A Tail?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:14:58 -0000

"Because it wasn't any danger before"
Iraq was a manageable danger. The situation with Iraq wasn't ideal pre-2003 but our solution has been a negative overall in my estimation.

"How can it be a "hotbed of terrorism" when you Leftists claim that there are no terrorists in Iraq?"
There were little or no terrorists in Iraq pre-2003, that's what I was talking about. As for now, there are terrorists, but most of the violence is not being perpetrated by groups like AQI. It's coming from more of the general insurgent pool.

Re: Florida -- And Rudy -- Still In Play

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:23:21 -0000

"Precisely the same goes for Iraq, which actually has far fewer displaced people now, thank you very much."
Far fewer displaced people than when?

"As for the death toll, it is lower now than in Saddam's day."
I'd welcome some numbers on that one. From what I've read, our occupation has led to the death of roughly as many people in 5 years as Saddam killed in decades of rule.

"tyrants who derived much of their will to persist based on the outcry from the US of sentiments such as yours."
Oh come now.

"The irony is that the name liberal has transited over to those who most certainly do not prize liberty. "Liberals" fear that freedom brings avarice, prejudice and inequality."
I can't speak for all "liberals," but I fear the efficacy of destroying a country and killing 100s of thousands of people to bring "freedom."

The real irony is that "conservatives" align themselves with a foreign policy that's radical on its' face.

Re: Have Iraqi Forces Grown A Tail?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:06:44 -0000

Don't get all in a tizzy, I said little to none. The 9/11 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia remember? The 9/11 commission said there were no operational links between Iraq and Al Qaeda, remember?

If you'd like to argue that there are less terrorists in Iraq now than there were pre-2003, please, go for it, because that would actually be addressing my original point.

Re: Have Iraqi Forces Grown A Tail?

ChrisWWW — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:15:36 -0000

High estimates put the percentage of foreign fighters between 2-10%

http://www.cato.org/pub_dis...
http://www.csmonitor.com/20...
http://www.associatedconten...