The Time of the Season
Published November 01, 2004
....Neither Bush nor Kerry advocates a sharp buildup or an immediate drawdown of U.S. military forces as the key to a solution in Iraq, because neither course is deemed viable. With nine of the U.S. Army's 10 combat divisions either having been deployed to Iraq or preparing to go, military analysts said, American force levels are stretched too thin to contemplate significantly higher numbers.
Conversely, a sudden withdrawal of forces could undermine the struggling U.S.-backed interim Iraqi government, plunge the country into a civil war and destabilize the Middle East.
....Geoffrey Kemp, a Middle East specialist at the Nixon Center, an independent Washington-based think tank, also believes foreign governments could be more receptive to a Kerry request for help because he wasn't the leader who took the United States into the war.
"That's his edge, but whether he can exploit it is another question," Kemp said.
Bush administration officials noted a recent agreement by NATO to assist in training Iraqi military forces and the deployment of almost 3,000 South Korean troops to northern Iraq. They argue that there is little more Kerry could do to share the burden.
"When you talk about an international coalition and you cross out the Germans and French, there's not a whole lot left," said a senior Bush administration official who declined to be identified.
Both men are politicians, both promise more than they can deliver, even if those promises are made with sincere intention. The reality on the ground and forces beyond their control have much more influence than either is willing to admit.
As the candidates fight the good fight over the waning hours before their fellow citizens decide their fate, remember that we are never more "e pluribus unum" than when we are voting, exercising our most fundamental civic responsibility and right. Now is a time to suppress cynicism: be proud, do your part, the candidates have.
- The Time of the Season
- Published: November 01, 2004
- Type:
- Section: Politics
- Writer: Eric Olsen
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Comments
so what do you consider pres. bush's lies?
fib-lettes?
truth-tickles?
man, this country scares me some times.
Paul, I would have to call that perspective hyperbolic, and I am supporting Bush
This fight is between good and evil
Yes, it is, and by hanging out with prostitutes and wanting to help the downtrodden, it's clear Jesus was a tolerant liberal, let's not forget lest the dark side corrupt us to their diabolical ways. (since we're bringing up good and evil folks, do we REALLY want to go there?)
Osama bin Laden did an excellent job of tweaking the nose of the Supreme Court appointed American president who has failed to capture him for three years. To characterize his masterful maneuver the way Eric Olsen has reveals an utter inability to observe bin Laden objectively. The terrorist leader is a very capable man.
I can't join Eric Olsen in celebrating his Americanism. That is because I am reminded of being considered a second-class citizen too often. This weekend, for example. I did catch-up posting of entries to Blogcritics. For all three of those days, I was followed around and hounded by a thuggish white man Olsen invited to participate in the site, Andy Marsh. In just about every entry I made or commented on, Marsh posted obscenities and slurs. He has called me a 'bitch,' 'racist,' and 'ass,' among other things. Not all that long enough, Olsen set up rules saying such behavior was grounds for banning the perpetrator. However, he rarely stands up to the Andy Marshes of the site. Though Olsen has been aware of Marsh's activities, he has done nothing to stop them. So, as the election approaches I am reminded of the hypocrisy of some Americans. Olsen slings vitriol at Osama bin Laden because of the Saudi's willingness to act on his bigotry against Americans. Meanwhile, he approves the bigotry of a white American against women and people of color. Shame on him.
If I understand the above comment properly, it contains praise for Osama bin Laden, it equates disputes in the comment section of a website with second-class citizenship, it criticizes me for criticizing the single largest mass murderer of Americans in history.
I would describe myself as astonished
Good shit, Eric. Most honest thing I've read, anywhere, all day. Thanks.
Too bad everyone who has left a comment before me had to go and mess the bed like they did. Can't you people ever give it a fuckin' rest?
thanks Yo, very much appreciated!
I would describe myself as astonished.
And, I would describe that as nonsense. I informed of you what Andy Marsh was doing several times over several days, Eric Olsen, including copies of some of his comments. Now, you claim to be surprised that I was not happy to have a knuckle dragger deface any entry I wrote or comment I made for a week? Perhaps you are laboring under the stereotype that people of color and women don't mind being abused. Well, you've been corrected.
There is no difference between what motivates a bin Laden and an Andy Marsh -- hatred of people unlike themselves. Yet, you condemn one and embrace the other. Seems you're being selectively blind again. Furthermore, there is something you can do to stop of them from terrorizing people and you have chosen not to.
I said that bin Laden is an intelligent man who gets things done. The nature of those things may be horrible, but that does not mean he is stupid or inept. If he were white or Christian, you would not be having so much trouble realizing that.
Eric, that was really a great summation. A co-worker of mine (a Bush supporter) and I have been sharing jabs at each other over the last few weeks - but today - perhaps both of us teetering on election fatique conceded with the other that while we strongly support our respective candidates, that it is now (hopefully) in God's hands and what will be will be.
I just have to believe that we will go on, prosper, thrive and be safe no matter who wins, as it really is out of our individual hands at this point, for tomorrow we come together as a nation and make this decision.
Nice job Eric!
thanks Dawn, your Kerry sign can remain in the yard until tomorrow
Mac, your skew would be more comprehensible if I had not edited every single one of the comments of which you complained - kind of takes the steam out of it
The rules did not say the person would be edited, they said he would be banned. Yet, despite a pattern of abuse that has been his signature behavior for his entire tenure, the perpetrator is still here. In fact, in some of those abusive posts he referred to your support of him, Eric Olsen, mocking the notion you would even consider enforcing the rules against a Right Wing white male like yourself. As it stands now, though I find Osama bin Laden's actions loathsome and believe he deserves to die, I believe you could learn a thing of two about integrity from him. The things he promises may be horrid, but he keeps his word.
Diva: "Knuckle dragger"? That's quite a slur.
I really enjoy that you can complain about being slurred with slurs of your own. I'm betting you really mean it to be taken not as comedy, too.
there ARE NO rules about banning, we don't ban, we edit
Not true. Banning was to be the penalty for repeated use of obscenities to other members. And, one person was temporarily banned.
Andy Marsh is a crude, brutal, frightening looking individual. But, I, a petite female, am not afraid of him. Yet, Eric Olsen, a large, burly man is. I guess he is afraid that if he enforces his own rules he will get beaten up. Again, shame on him.
I don't recall Andy threatening anyone, least of all me. I have asked all members to eschew personal insults, and will do so again (and again) - it remains to be seen who will win the "ignore Eric" contest. I would never never underestimate your abilities in this regard.
Good grief. Extraordinary line of comments. Talk about tenacious. Seems like someone has your trouser leg, Eric, and won't let go. Is Andy Marsh now a minor celebrity on blogcritics...? Is it just like reality TV...the nefarious win out in the end...? Methinks no one can see straight with this election....











"As the candidates fight the good fight over the waning hours before their fellow citizens decide their fate" ...
Oh dear, someone has not been paying attention when John Kerry, in collusion with the NYT and CBS News collaborated to steal this election.
Good Fight is what you call a political race run by competitors both of whom love America more than they love treachery. GWB is one of these. Rep Gephardt and Sen Lieberman are two of these.
John Kerry is not one of these. John Kerry is a traitor and a liar and a man who will say anything and do anything to allow him to continue to wallow in the public trough.
Please. Good Fight? The Good Fight is between two honorable opponents. This fight is between good and evil, and naive emotionalism will not make it into a Good Fight.