Another letter to Richard Baker
Representative Baker,
I received your press release in my mailbox today regarding General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker's testimony. I was glad to see that you were listening to what these two gentlemen have to say.
I would like to make a point as regards the last paragraph in your release, specifically your statement that "[t]he consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq would be monumental, not only for the future of that country and region, but for the future of American security." I think it is rather uncontroversial to say that, heretofore, we have failed to stabilize Iraq. While it is possible to point to advances made in the past 8 to 12 weeks on the security front in particular regions, the political and societal inertia in Iraq is of a chaotic, or chaos-inducing character. This has been demonstrated at every step of our journey in that country, and all of our reports, including the testimony you heard today, leads one to the conclusion that chaos will remain the defining characteristic of Iraqi society for the foreseeable future (and this is easily explained by the lack of progress on the political front that you acknowledged in the second paragraph in your press release).
And so my point in essence is that there is no strong distinguishing feature between what Iraq is bound to be by our continuing to remain there for an as-yet-undetermined time and our having left there a year ago: the Iraqis will be left, whenever the Legislative and Executive branches get our withdrawal worked out, to make Iraq what it will be. That process, regardless of the stability we provide while we are there, will likely have the blood of innocents as its fuel. That is how progress takes hold in the Middle East, and indeed in most of the world not mired in a tradition of historical appeals to unification over differentiation (as we enjoy here in this country, when we rise above our most base approach to others).
It is beyond time to recognize the inevitable: we will need an incredible commitment to reinvigorating our military to get it where it was in 2002; we will see headlines of massive Iraqi slaughters for perhaps decades, with ourselves as the root cause for such slaughters; me and my nine-month-old son will be tirelessly working to pay the bill for this war and its associated fallout; and so on. What we should not do, for the sake of our union and in order to honor the principles of honesty tacitly required to operate our form of representative democracy, is turn away from the consequences of the choices we have already made. We must be strong in the face of these challenges, and I hope you weigh these issues with due diligence.
Good luck, and Godspeed.
This was a response to Baker's contortions in his latest press release:
WASHINGTON - Rep. Richard H. Baker, R-Baton Rouge, issued the following statement today in response to the update given by General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker on the military and political situation in Iraq.
“As the top U.S. military officer on the ground, General Petraeus is the most credible and knowledgeable voice on the state of affairs in Iraq . I am encouraged by his assessment of our military’s progress-the number of Iraqi security forces are growing; the overall number of security incidents in Iraq has declined in 8 of the past 12 weeks; and Al-Qaeda strongholds and Iranian and Hezbollah-backed Shia insurgent forces are being weakened. Americans have repeatedly voiced their overwhelming confidence in our military commanders who are on the ground, and I will continue to put my trust in these officers as well.
“I am disappointed in the lack of progress toward political reconciliation by the Iraqi government. Ambassador Crocker’s assessment is a blunt reminder of the challenges the Iraqi people face in building a nation. It is also a vivid description of the conditions under which our troops have performed honorably, admirably and with great success.
“The consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq would be monumental, not only for the future of that country and region, but for the future of American security. Our men and women in uniform have sacrificed and continue to sacrifice much for this cause, and my thoughts and prayers are with them everyday. These brave individuals and their families have shouldered a very heavy burden, and this nation is grateful to them. I pledge my support to our soldiers and their families, and I will work to provide all the resources needed to complete the mission.”
The quibble regards the cited statement, which should read: "The consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq have been and will continue to be monumental, not only for the future existence of that country and region as it has been traditionally understood in Western thought, but for the future of American security." Should probably throw an "also" in that last part after the but; that way the destruction we've reaped upon that country thus far won't be (any further) diminished.
The take home message: don't be a sophist with your verbiage; always assert the strongest claim evidence supports.
I received your press release in my mailbox today regarding General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker's testimony. I was glad to see that you were listening to what these two gentlemen have to say.
I would like to make a point as regards the last paragraph in your release, specifically your statement that "[t]he consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq would be monumental, not only for the future of that country and region, but for the future of American security." I think it is rather uncontroversial to say that, heretofore, we have failed to stabilize Iraq. While it is possible to point to advances made in the past 8 to 12 weeks on the security front in particular regions, the political and societal inertia in Iraq is of a chaotic, or chaos-inducing character. This has been demonstrated at every step of our journey in that country, and all of our reports, including the testimony you heard today, leads one to the conclusion that chaos will remain the defining characteristic of Iraqi society for the foreseeable future (and this is easily explained by the lack of progress on the political front that you acknowledged in the second paragraph in your press release).
And so my point in essence is that there is no strong distinguishing feature between what Iraq is bound to be by our continuing to remain there for an as-yet-undetermined time and our having left there a year ago: the Iraqis will be left, whenever the Legislative and Executive branches get our withdrawal worked out, to make Iraq what it will be. That process, regardless of the stability we provide while we are there, will likely have the blood of innocents as its fuel. That is how progress takes hold in the Middle East, and indeed in most of the world not mired in a tradition of historical appeals to unification over differentiation (as we enjoy here in this country, when we rise above our most base approach to others).
It is beyond time to recognize the inevitable: we will need an incredible commitment to reinvigorating our military to get it where it was in 2002; we will see headlines of massive Iraqi slaughters for perhaps decades, with ourselves as the root cause for such slaughters; me and my nine-month-old son will be tirelessly working to pay the bill for this war and its associated fallout; and so on. What we should not do, for the sake of our union and in order to honor the principles of honesty tacitly required to operate our form of representative democracy, is turn away from the consequences of the choices we have already made. We must be strong in the face of these challenges, and I hope you weigh these issues with due diligence.
Good luck, and Godspeed.
This was a response to Baker's contortions in his latest press release:
WASHINGTON - Rep. Richard H. Baker, R-Baton Rouge, issued the following statement today in response to the update given by General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker on the military and political situation in Iraq.
“As the top U.S. military officer on the ground, General Petraeus is the most credible and knowledgeable voice on the state of affairs in Iraq . I am encouraged by his assessment of our military’s progress-the number of Iraqi security forces are growing; the overall number of security incidents in Iraq has declined in 8 of the past 12 weeks; and Al-Qaeda strongholds and Iranian and Hezbollah-backed Shia insurgent forces are being weakened. Americans have repeatedly voiced their overwhelming confidence in our military commanders who are on the ground, and I will continue to put my trust in these officers as well.
“I am disappointed in the lack of progress toward political reconciliation by the Iraqi government. Ambassador Crocker’s assessment is a blunt reminder of the challenges the Iraqi people face in building a nation. It is also a vivid description of the conditions under which our troops have performed honorably, admirably and with great success.
“The consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq would be monumental, not only for the future of that country and region, but for the future of American security. Our men and women in uniform have sacrificed and continue to sacrifice much for this cause, and my thoughts and prayers are with them everyday. These brave individuals and their families have shouldered a very heavy burden, and this nation is grateful to them. I pledge my support to our soldiers and their families, and I will work to provide all the resources needed to complete the mission.”
The quibble regards the cited statement, which should read: "The consequences of failing to stabilize Iraq have been and will continue to be monumental, not only for the future existence of that country and region as it has been traditionally understood in Western thought, but for the future of American security." Should probably throw an "also" in that last part after the but; that way the destruction we've reaped upon that country thus far won't be (any further) diminished.
The take home message: don't be a sophist with your verbiage; always assert the strongest claim evidence supports.