licentious radio

Saturday, March 29, 2003
[11:20:49 PM]

"When I come back from Palestine, I probably will have nightmares and constantly feel guilty for not being here, but I can channel that into more work. coming here is one of the better things I've ever done. So when I sound crazy, or if the Israeli military should break with their racist tendency not to injure white people, please pin the reason squarely on the fact that I am in the midst of a genocide which I am also indirectly supporting, and for which my government is largely responsible." -- Rachel Corrie

Sadly, Rachel was murdered in cold blood by an Israeli who went "above and beyond the call of duty" to snuff the pesky white chick who was messing where she shouldn't have been messing.

[10:55:54 PM]
smh.com.au: "The Israeli Army sent its own representative to Ms Corrie's memorial service a week after her death. A tank pulled up beside the mourners and sprayed them with tear gas. A bizarre game of cat-and-mouse began as the peace activists chased the tank around to throw flowers on it, and the Israeli soldiers inside threatened, in return, to run them down.

"The game ended when the Israeli bulldozers came out, accompanied by more APCs, firing guns and percussion bombs. The insult was as clear as the danger of the situation and the people went home, the service halted."

[10:06:19 PM]
licentious radio prediction: Robin Cook will be Prime Minister of England within six months.

The consensus here is that this is a more-likely prediction than Rumsfeld's (f-ed) idea that one infantry division would be enough to conquer Iraq.

We think Blair has gone mental. The leader of England isn't likely to wind up in a straight-jacket, but that's only because the English are so polite.

In an undisclosed location, Cheney is laughing at Blair for Blair's stupidity at playing with the Bush cartel. Saddam, for example, thought he was on the team.

[6:40:22 PM]
How exactly is a suicide car-bomb attack more despicable than a 2,000 pound bomb dropped from a bomber?

[4:31:50 PM]
Agence France Presse: "At one camp, the buses stopped and women passed out food to the troops, who have had to ration their army-issue packets of ready-to-eat meals due to disruptions to supply lines by fierce fighting further south."

That's incredible. Iraqi refugees feeding hungry American soldiers.

I mean, it's sweet when people share food. But it doesn't seem like a winning strategy for an army.

And if Iraq is using suicide bombers, why wouldn't they be willing to give marines poisoned food?

[2:14:17 PM]
Amazing aspects of the war....

The Americans really have been good about avoiding civilian casualties. I don't mean that even one civilian death is acceptable. I mean that they *could* have killed hundreds of times as many civilians as they have. The Roman Empire didn't have to worry about how many civilians they killed. After the conquest, they could just crucify anyone who complained.

The assymetry of combat fatalities is stunning. Training and superior firepower seem to make a huge difference. The Iraqis are selling their bodies for time.

The inability of US forces to clear out cities. Najaf and Nasiriya are not good signs. Avoiding US casualties is nice, and so is avoiding civilian casualties. But if it takes a week to clear out these cities, it gives the Iraqi military hope that it can stall out the war -- and hold out in Baghdad.

[1:58:25 PM]
Americans should not grow complacent.

If the attacks on supply convoys suddenly became effective -- using RPGs to blow up the supplies instead of rifles -- that would be bad news.

The first suicide bombing is bad news, of course. Are our soldiers supposed to blow up every taxi they see?

There is still the possibility Saddam could flood large areas. Looks to me like the marines are at risk, and the 3rd infantry supply lines would be at risk if they advance much farther.

And we still haven't heard from Saddam's air force. Iraqi jets are no match for US jets, but I'd still worry about one massed attack, like the charge of the Light Brigade, only with Exocet missiles. Even damaging one US/British ship would be a propaganda coup.

Please be careful.

[12:52:50 PM]
Seems like all reporting of casualties has gone away. There are hints here and there, but the names aren't released anymore.

[12:28:37 PM]
We shouldn't believe much that generals tell us about specific plans. If they told *us* exactly what they're about to do, they'd be telling the Iraqis, too. We don't want that. And they're smart enough.

So if last night we hear that there will be a four to six day delay, and this morning we hear that there *won't* be a delay, consider the source.

The first question is whether the tanks have enough fuel, and whether they are even still working after the sandstorm. Have they used up all their spare parts?

The embedded journalists probably let too much slip. Should we really know that the army is going to stop shipping bottled water to the soldiers at the front(s)? Or maybe our soldiers have plenty of fuel, ammunition, food, and water -- it's a plot to make Saddam think he's winning. Sigh.

The second question is whether it makes sense to attack before the reinforcements show up. If they have the supplies for it, maybe they *have* to attack Kerbala, just because it's likely to take *weeks* to fight our way through it. But that's an absolutely no-win situation, too.

[12:17:43 PM]
During the sandstorm, the US reported 1,000 armored vehicles were moving south. I saw an article that claimed satellite radar analysis software had interpreted salt in the atmosphere as armored vehicles. There probably *were* some vehicles, using the sandstorm to reach Najaf and/or Nasiriya.

Then there was a story about 100 tanks (etc.) moving out of Basra, and the large battle that ensued. Turns out there were three tanks.

[11:24:29 AM]
Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH): "This war must end now. It was unjust when it started last week, and is still unjust today. The U.S. should get out now and try to save the lives of American troops and Iraqi citizens. Most importantly, ending the war now and resuming weapons inspections could salvage world opinion of the United States, which has been deteriorating since the talk of war began. After all, the greatest threat to the United States at this time is terrorism, which is breeding from this war."

*That* should send Daschle running for an undisclosed location. Hey, Adelman! Move over, don't hog the whole hole!

If only Dennis were a black woman, they could give him a McKinney. As it is, they have to hope it will be enough that his name starts with "kook".

The problem is, there are millions and millions of Americans who believe the same, and nowadays, they're marching in the streets.

Worse, the generals can see the obvious: there's no way we can win. But there's no way Bush can pull out.

Time for some regime change. Maybe Bush can pretend he was too dumb to understand what Rumsfeld, Rice, and Cheney were pushing him in to. He could fire the three of them, and say everything since February 15 was just a dream sequence, like on Dallas, and have Hansy-Boy Blix start up the inspections again.

[11:12:39 AM]
Assymetrical political warfare:

"Let's assume Bill Clinton had launched the country on a major war on the other side of the globe. Clinton's top military advisors had told him and his Sec Def that he was sending them to war gravely under-gunned, without all they needed to get the job done and protect the lives of American troops. Then let's assume that Clinton and his Sec Def ignored their advice. He and the Sec Def told the generals they didn't understand how modern wars were fought and sent them out anyway. And then let's assume that the generals and admirals warnings were rapidly confirmed on the battlefield with a bogged down offensive and an escalating number of American casualties. Do you think Clinton and his Sec Def might be in some hot water? Yeah, me too."

From talkingpointsmemo.com.

[11:04:16 AM]
Madness in Iraq....

An Iraqi soldier drove a suicide-bomb car up to a US checkpoint, killing four US soldiers and himself. We are *so* fucked.

The British have gone mad -- they launched an attack in Basra with the *explicit* purpose of destroying two *statues*. Um. Umm. Do you think maybe that could make some people *angry*, and maybe even *more* supportive of the fight against the former colonial mass-murderers?

But the main news of the Basra event is that they were fighting soldiers in tanks. We were supposed to believe that only 1,000 Fedayeen zealots were defending the city of 1.5 million from the 25,000 British soldiers. Apparently, that was only a propaganda lie.

The US killed the Baghdad phone system. Instead of staying home in relative safety, people now drive all over the city in order to communicate with friends and family. Civilians are even more at risk than before. Good idea, Generals!

Every time an Iraqi missile doesn't land, the army claims the Orwellian-named Patriot missiles shot it down. When missiles hit the ground, there are no press releases that the Patriot missile system failed again. More likely, a lot of Iraqi missiles just fall apart, like the Scuds did during Poppy's Gulf War. I mean, are you really saying that after twelve years of sanctions the Iraqi missiles are *more* reliable than before? They also kind of chuckle when an Iraqi missile lands in the desert.

The US cruise missiles fired at Iraqi targets have landed in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, not just the desert of Iraq. For some reason, the Turks and Saudis complained. Now we don't shoot our Tomahawks from the Med or Red no more.

We kept shooting during the Muslim holy day. Why should we stop bombing Baghdad, just so heathens can pray in peace? The good news is that when one of our Tomahawks blasted a Kuwait shopping center, all the Kuwaitis had gone off to pray. (Ha ha. What makes you so sure that was an Iraqi missile?)

Back at the Carlysle Group there are ominous rumblings: "this decision won't stand!" At $600,000 per shot, the profits Poppy Bush is losing out on are deemed unconscionable -- I mean, *losing* those profits is inconceivable. Expect the extra missiles to be fired at Syria, or quickly relocated to the Persian Gulf.

Michael Moore is planning a film to be called "Farenheit 911", about the Bush-Bin Laden connection and Bush's manipulation of the tragedy for domestic political gain. Michael: stay the hell away from small airplanes.

Cuteness gone mad: our soldiers named two of their bases "Shell" and "Exxon". That's funny, yes, but it's the kind of thing some grown-up has to veto. "Helicopters from Camp Exxon today spent twelve hours firing rockets and machine guns at buildings and possible enemy positions in Nassiriya. Camp Shell's helicopters were similarly engaged in Najaf. The Iraqi Homeland Defence Ministry credits Camp Shell and Camp Exxon with a total of 150 dead civilians, hundreds more wounded, and thousands made homeless." No, no, no.

Everybody at the INS should be fired [oregonlive.com].

If Perle has a conflict of interest with the military advisory board position, why should he resign as chair, if he stays on the board? Makes no sense.

Seven Italian journalists who tried to sneak into Basra were taken to Baghdad. *That's* how impressive the British so-called siege of Basra is.

[9:38:46 AM]
Tony Blair said the executions of some British captives was "an act of cruelty beyond all human comprehension".

First, it appears that the "executions" is another propaganda lie.

Second, the rhetoric is humiliating. Alas, executing a prisoner is all too easy to comprehend: a hundred of your buddies have just been killed by helicopters and artillery, but you capture *two* enemy soldiers who directed the fire. You have to practically be a saint not to kill them on the spot. That's *exactly* why we have the Geneva Convention, war crimes trials, and professional soldiers.

No, the "act of cruelty beyond all human comprehension" is bombing a city when you *know* that some of the bombs are going to miss the target (and/or be mis-targeted).

Some husband/father rushes over to find the bloody remains of his wife and children. This man never threatened to kill George Bush's daddy. He doesn't want Saddam as a leader any more than we would. And yet, there he is, with the blood of his wife and children wet on his clothes and hands and face. It's beyond all human comprehension.