GAO Rips the War
This is off-topic, but I can't believe what I'm reading in yesterday's Washington Times. As far as I can tell, no other major American news outlet is carrying this story.
I don't know, it just doesn't sound like ... it's just not what you expect to open the newspaper and see. Especially The Times.
I wonder how long till Mr. Walker decides to "spend more time with his family."
This appears to be the official report HERE. It could be titled, "How Not to Win a War."
Inside the beltway (remember, TTF is made up of people in suburban DC, many of whom work for the government), the GAO is a big deal, along with OPM and OMB and a few others that manage the way the entire government does its business.
A Government Accountability Office report released yesterday asserts that the Bush administration's Iraq strategy is inadequate and was poorly planned, backing up some politicians' charges that a prolonged stay in the country is only fueling sectarian violence.
David M. Walker, the U.S. comptroller general, told lawmakers that President Bush did not give proper consideration to conditions on the ground and said the administration is not demanding accountability for the $1.5 billion per week that the United States spends in Iraq.
Details from the report, which included descriptions of a bloated Iraqi bureaucracy and widespread mismanagement of reconstruction funding, were revealed at a House subcommittee hearing called by Rep. Christopher Shays, Connecticut Republican. GAO report faults Bush Iraq strategy
I don't know, it just doesn't sound like ... it's just not what you expect to open the newspaper and see. Especially The Times.
Mr. Walker told the House Government Reform subcommittee on national security, emerging threats and international relations that the Bush administration plan lacks transparency, including details of which agencies are responsible for the various efforts in Iraq and how the U.S. role will evolve as more Iraqi forces become prepared.
Most striking was the charge that the administration has not given Congress enough information on the estimated costs and funding sources, making a price tag for reconstruction impossible to calculate because the length of time U.S. forces will remain is not clear.
"We still don't know how long we're going to be there," Mr. Walker said.
I wonder how long till Mr. Walker decides to "spend more time with his family."
This appears to be the official report HERE. It could be titled, "How Not to Win a War."
Inside the beltway (remember, TTF is made up of people in suburban DC, many of whom work for the government), the GAO is a big deal, along with OPM and OMB and a few others that manage the way the entire government does its business.
posted by JimK at 11:22 AM
13 Comments:
"Inside the beltway (remember, TTF is made up of people in suburban DC, many of whom work for the government), the GAO is a big deal, along with OPM and OMB and a few others that manage the way the entire government does its business."
I live inside the beltway, don't work for the government and consider this report to be NO big deal.
"making a price tag for reconstruction impossible to calculate because the length of time U.S. forces will remain is not clear."
Unknowns exist. Is the government only supposed to operate when there are no unknowns? Idiotic statement. In December 1941, there was no way to tell how it would cost to defeat the Axis powers. Should we have waited?
... consider this report to be NO big deal.
Yes, I understand your reaction, Anon. What else could you do?
JimK
Inside the beltway (remember, TTF is made up of people in suburban DC, many of whom work for the government), the GAO is a big deal, along with OPM and OMB and a few others that manage the way the entire government does its business."
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
you have to be kidding.
Everyone who lives inside the beltway knows that it is all about politics. Burcracies are controlled by people hired for there politics by politicians often as a reward for campaign support. Of course Oversight must be maintained, but this reeks of a hack politically motivated attack, not an independent unbiased assessment of the situation. Name a government agency that is not chuck full of mismanagement, waist, fraud, pork, corruption, and political motives. Government is the problem, but it’s not like you can get rid of the Government. Any more than you can get rid of politics. In a Republic.
Now to something that has to do with the Sex- education of are kids.
ILGA had passed a resolution in 1985 which stated that "young people have the right to sexual and social self-determination and that age of consent laws often operate to oppress and not to protect."
Can you provide a citation for your assertion that "major gay rights associations" urged eliminatio of age of consent laws prior to 1995? Not just the names of such organizations, but the text of such alleged statements?
David
"Just like I know that boys are born boys and girls are born girls"?
How about reading the blog COMPLETELY?
Anne
I did I just don't believe that she is not a girl. Can you prove she is not a girl? Biologically she is a girl. Has anyone looked into her upbringing from birth to kindergarten to see if there might be some clues as to what caused her to behave or think otherwise? I saw nothing in the article.
So why don't you "How about reading the blog COMPLETELY?" Anne
National Coalition of Gay Organizations, and drafted and passed a "Gay Rights Platform" which called for the "repeal of all laws governing the age of sexual consent." The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Rights Coalition, also known as the National Gay Rights Coalition (NGRC), supported eliminating age-of-consent laws, as did Gay Alliance Toward Equality (GATE).
NAMBLA describes itself as a "support group for intergenerational relationships," and uses the slogan "sexual freedom for all." According to the group's web site, its aim is to "support the rights of youth as well as adults to choose the partners with whom they wish to share and enjoy their bodies." [3]
All were Major gay rights associations prior to 1995.
The case of International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) illustrates this opposition. In 1993, ILGA, of which NAMBLA had been a member for a decade, achieved United Nations consultative status. NAMBLA's association with ILGA drew heavy criticism, and many gay organizations called for the ILGA to dissolve ties with NAMBLA. Republican Senator Jesse Helms proposed a bill to withhold $119 million in U.N. contributions until U. S. President Bill Clinton could certify that "no UN agency grants any official status, accreditation, or recognition to any organization which promotes, condones, or seeks the legalization of pedophilia, that is, the sexual abuse of children". The bill was unanimously approved by Congress and signed into law by Clinton in April 1994.
Republicans. Poverty is not a family value was the theme.
Democrat’s goal is to abort the poor. Kill them a birth then there is no problem. Democrat’s stance is killing the poor in the womb will end poverty.
"Yes, I understand your reaction, Anon. What else could you do?"
Well, I could pretend it's a big deal and then go, line by line, and show how idiotic and ambiguous the assertions are.
It's kind of like that old trick where psychologists would get a group of people together and ask them to each draw a picture and sign their name and turn them in. Then the psychologists would prepare a confidential individual personality analysis for each participant. After they read the analysis, the psychologist would ask how accurate everyone thought their personal analysis was. When most people said it was very accurate, the psychologists would reveal that all the analyses were identical.
Similar concept here.
"The Barnum effect."
Has nothing to do with this, but ... keep yourself amused however you can, man.
JimK
OK, man.
Excellent first-person description of life in Baghdad today. Riverbend. Read the whole thing.
"backing up politicians' charges that a prolonged stay in the country is only fueling sectarian violence."
Topic not addressed so it does not back it up.
"David M. Walker, the U.S. comptroller general, told lawmakers that President Bush did not give proper consideration to conditions on the ground"
He's a military strategist? Or did he just read this on the internet?
"and said the administration is not demanding accountability for the $1.5 billion per week that the United States spends in Iraq."
That's hard to believe. It would be unlike any governmental bureacracy I've ever heard of.
"Details from the report, which included descriptions of a bloated Iraqi bureaucracy and widespread mismanagement of reconstruction funding,"
Astonishing! Who knew?
"GAO report faults Bush Iraq strategy"
Yeah, what do those idiots in the Pentagon and State Dept know compared to this paper-pusher?
"Mr. Walker told the House Government Reform subcommittee on national security, emerging threats and international relations that the Bush administration plan lacks transparency,"
Yeah, when you're at war, let's publish all our moves in Al-jazeera, just to give the enemy a fair fighting chance.
"including details of which agencies are responsible for the various efforts in Iraq"
Sounds like this guy's mad that he's not in the loop. Sound familiar.
"and how the U.S. role will evolve as more Iraqi forces become prepared."
OK, well let's settle all that right now to give Al-quaeda a chance to some long-range planning.
"Most striking was the charge that the administration has not given Congress enough information on the estimated costs and funding sources, making a price tag for reconstruction impossible to calculate because the length of time U.S. forces will remain is not clear."
That's not right. Tell you what, Osama, we'll commit to two more months and $50 billion. I probably shouldn't tell you this, but your best move would be to stay in your cave and play X-box until then.
""We still don't know how long we're going to be there," Mr. Walker said."
Pretty much describes the human condition.
Anon said, "Oversight must be maintained"
You might think so, but the Administration and Congress you so blindly yet faithfully support disagree. The head honcho has done all he can to prevent oversight of the entire Executive Branch. Congress is just about as worthless.
From today's Washington Post:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/12/AR2006071201801.html
"For nearly two hours, Gingrich, Foley and their bespectacled hosts spoke with one voice about the lowly state Congress now finds itself in -- and the lack of easy solutions.
The men had no trouble identifying the symptoms: a collapse of committee deliberations, the demise of oversight of the executive branch, the loss of the "regular order" of rules for debate and legislation, a runaway spending process, and a shrinking legislative calendar. The causes were also not difficult to find: gerrymandered districts, travel and fundraising needs keeping lawmakers away from Washington, the loss of centrists in both parties, quickening news cycles and the reliance on lobbyist-raised cash."
And this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/11/AR2006071101459.html
"The Army is discontinuing a controversial multibillion-dollar deal with oil services giant Halliburton Co. to provide logistical support to U.S. troops worldwide, a decision that could cut deeply into the firm's dominance of government contracting in Iraq.
The choice comes after several years of attacks from critics who saw the contract as a symbol of politically connected corporations profiteering on the war.
Under the deal, Halliburton had exclusive rights to provide the military with a wide range of work that included keeping soldiers around the world fed, sheltered and in communication with friends and family back home. Government audits turned up more than $1 billion in questionable costs. Whistle-blowers told how the company charged $45 per case of soda, double-billed on meals and allowed troops to bathe in contaminated water."
Bush can't govern because he's too busy campaigning, raising funds in gerrymandered districts to elect his extremist yes men. And he's too busy rewarding these yes men with tricks like smoke and mirrors like the more than 8,000 sites in Indiana deemed "at risk" and in need of homeland security protection by the HSA. Chertoff claims Indiana needs more homeland security protection than New York and Washington DC with a straight face!
This absolutely unnecessary war was brought to the world by the absolute power of the absolutely corrupt Republican Party. It's supposed to bring peace to the middle east. Peace like this?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/12/AR2006071200262.html
"The Lebanese Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah infiltrated the Israeli border Wednesday in a brazen raid, capturing two Israeli soldiers, killing three others and prompting Israeli attacks on the airport in Beirut and bridges, roads, power stations and military positions across the hillsides of southern Lebanon. Five more Israeli soldiers were killed after the army entered Lebanon in pursuit, one of the military's highest one-day death tolls in more than four years.
The capture of the soldiers and the fighting effectively opened a second front for Israel, whose troops entered the Gaza Strip last month in search of a soldier seized June 25. Within hours, reverberations rolled across an already tense region. The United States blamed Syria and Iran for the abduction, and Israeli tanks and troops moved toward the Lebanese border throughout the day. In Lebanon and elsewhere, the attack emboldened Hezbollah's supporters, who greeted the news by handing out sweets and setting off fireworks."
Why are we now discussing the Palestinian movement? Is this is now just a general news blog?
So who thinks that whenever we leave- tomorrow or in generations(God forbid) as some right winger said- that sectarian violence won't continue. We aren't stopping it now- we will never stop it.
seriously, Andrea, the Palestinian-Israeli thing is in a whole different category than Shiite-Sunni
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