Monday, January 07, 2008

patriotism [donne-moi le drapeau, s'il vous plait?]

from buzzflash.com:
Mark Karlin, Editor and Publisher, BuzzFlash.com
January 7, 2008


In March of 2007, BuzzFlash ran a
commentary about how not one member of the extended Bush family of fit and firm youth was serving or had served in Iraq, Afghanistan or combat anywhere, yet Bush remains an enthusiast for sacrificing the lives of other people's children -- mostly poor and rural.
Here's the photo we ran, along with the
commentary "Not ONE Member of the Bush Extended Family Has Served in Iraq! Not One! Take a Look":


After the Saturday night debates in New Hampshire, we don't need to concern ourselves with the families of the Democratic candidates, because not one of them supports the war in Iraq.
But we will offer family photos of two leading GOP presidential aspirants. First off are the strapping five Romney boys, who received infamous publicity early on when their father, the Mittster, declared that they were serving their country campaigning for him, implying that traveling around Iowa in a Winnebago was equivalent to putting your life on the line in Baghdad. (Later, he partially apologized for the comment, but none of his sons has joined the service yet.)
Romney is a steadfast supporter of Bush and the war in Iraq, but the closest his five army ready boys have come to armed conflict are fraternity food fights:



Here is Mitt Romney's position on the Iraq War from the Pew (Charitable Trusts) Forum on Religion and Politics:
Romney supports President Bush's policy in Iraq, including his January 2007 decision to increase the number of troops in Iraq. He has criticized the planning and management of the Iraq conflict, but says keeping the U.S. in Iraq is the best option for minimizing casualties, securing the country and maintaining a democratic government there.
Of course, there is the unflappable, smooth-as-a-lambskin-Bible-cover Mike Huckabee. He has two military ready sons, John Mark and David, neither of whom has served in the armed forces.
David, seen below, has become notorious for hanging a dog while
serving as a Boy Scout counselor in 1998:


Of more interest to his combat readiness, David was arrested in April of 2007 for trying to board a plane in Little Rock with a loaded Glock pistol in his carry on bag. So we know that the boy can shoot. Why isn't he on the front lines of the war his father so ardently supports in the name of Christ?
(By the way, the reaction of Dad Huckabee to David's gun arrest is notable. "It's one of those stupid things," Mike Huckabee said. "He knows better." Ah, yes, nothing like a forgiving preacher. Do you feel safer now knowing that a gun toting animal abuser's father might be president? Clear the squirrels from the White House lawn now.)
Here, by the way, is Mike Huckabee's position on the Iraq War according to the
Pew (Charitable Trusts) Forum on Religion and Politics:
Huckabee says the war in Iraq is part of a "World War III' against Islamic fascism, which he describes as 'a perversion of Islam.' He said that President Bush's 2007 plan to increase troop levels in Iraq should be given a chance to work, adding, '"I'm going to have to trust the people over there sucking that sand into their lungs and putting their boots on the ground every day." Huckabee favors gradually transferring power to the Iraqi government, though not on a timetable.
Which brings us to the inevitable coup de grace of this visual journey through the heartland of Iraq war hypocrisy that runs like a cancer through the Republican Party aspirants for the presidency.
Yes, you guessed it, neither Mitt Romney nor Mike Huckabee ever served in the military. They could have followed their convictions and volunteered for service, but they were too busy espousing war to fight in any of them.

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