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US Combat Troops Leaving Iraq

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First said:
What's funny is that no one will give Obama credit for doing exactly what he said he'd do.
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I also heard he wasnt going to have closed door negotiations for the healtcare bill and I also heard he was going to shut down Guantanamo
 
Infohawk said:
50,000 advisors? Are they really just "advisors"?
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Kennedy also had only advisors in Vietnam.

We can see what happened then when the advisors needed help.

You station enough personel to support the embassy. Anything else becomes a force that will be involved in some type of combat.
 
Rainsford said:
Seriously though, the media just sucks. Iraq is boring (they think), LEAVING it is even more boring. Bring on Lindsay Lohan, idiotic "Ground Zero Mosque" debates and talk shows pretending to be news.
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Yep - there was a short news segment on it this morning before they returned to the Mosque debate. Like Genx87 I had no idea we had that few combat troops there and I watch the news every morning (Mainly for the news ticker)
 
In this case Obama did the right thing. A great thing. Ending any war is a good thing.
Just let this sink in with American's over the next months.
You know Bush would have come up with several reasons not to end or draw down this (his) war if he were still in.

And something else Obama never gets credit for. Remember during the Bush era how gas prices went crazy? So much so that congress threatened to look into gas prices?
And since Obama has been in office, we have had stable gas prices and none of the nonsense we went thru weekly during the Bush years. Anyone else realize this???

That alone are two justified reasons to re elect Obama in 2012.
Yet many will refuse to ever give Obama any credit for bringing sanity
back to the country.
When things are wrong, we notice every day.
When things are right, we take it for granted.
It takes someone like a GW Bush to make us realize
"normal" is not a given we can count on. We should never take "normal" for granted.
Remember "that" when republicans try to regain power in 2010 and 2012.
The damage they can, again, cause is beyond our imagination.
 
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Hopefully we learned our lesson from Somalia and that as long as we maintain a "stability force" in Iraq that we will also maintain stability tanks and stability apaches.

However, we should just get out.
 
Such bullshit. They are going to almost double the mercenaries.

So instead of paying low wages to GIs, we are going to pay mercs 6 figures to do our dirty work.
 
sportage said:
In this case Obama did the right thing. A great thing. Ending any war is a good thing.
Just let this sink in with American's over the next months.
You know Bush would have come up with several reasons not to end or draw down this (his) war if he were still in.

And something else Obama never gets credit for. Remember during the Bush era how gas prices went crazy? So much so that congress threatened to look into gas prices?
And since Obama has been in office, we have had stable gas prices and none of the nonsense we went thru weekly during the Bush years. Anyone else realize this???

That alone are two justified reasons to re elect Obama in 2012.
Yet many will refuse to ever give Obama any credit for bringing sanity
back to the country.
When things are wrong, we notice every day.
When things are right, we take it for granted.
It takes someone like a GW Bush to make us realize
"normal" is not a given we can count on. We should never take "normal" for granted.
Remember "that" when republicans try to regain power in 2010 and 2012.
The damage they can, again, cause is beyond our imagination.
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Nothing has ended. What are you even talking about?
 
OCGuy said:
Such bullshit. They are going to almost double the mercenaries.

So instead of paying low wages to GIs, we are going to pay mercs 6 figures to do our dirty work.
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With no "rules of engagement" I bet we get more for our dollar and the only US people dying will be doing so by their own choice. Sounds like a double win.
 
First said:
Right, but we knew this already, he campaigned on brigades leaving not the contingency personnel.
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In that case I'm definitely not that impressed. Basically your saying he campaigned not to reduce the number of Americans in Iraq to anything near a pre-war figure.
 
Infohawk said:
50,000 advisors? Are they really just "advisors"?
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Of course. Just advisors with air power, tanks, and mortars. Combat operations are over. Let me repeat, no more combat.

BTW I'm not sure how even a million US troops would fix Iraq. It seems doomed to fail like a person who's had a half dozen divorces is just doomed to suck at marriage. Some things cannot be fixed.

This entire thing sounds an awful lot like Bush and his Mission Accomplished to me.
“We are ending the war ... but we are not ending our work in Iraq,” he said. “We have a long-term commitment to Iraq.”
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Great job! Let's just pretend that a bomber didn't kill 60 Iraqis a couple of days ago lining up. The war is over, after all. Done. Obama finished it, great job!
"We are done with operations...And today it’s over"
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Who is he kidding?
 
OCGuy said:
Such bullshit. They are going to almost double the mercenaries.

So instead of paying low wages to GIs, we are going to pay mercs 6 figures to do our dirty work.
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Is there a link on that? This private contracter shit has got to stop.

Edit: I would like to add to that...I could care less if the private contractors are emloyed by the Iraq government...just not by the US government. I'm sure at the moment the Iraq government is completely financed by the US...but it has more to do with who is asking whom to do what.
 
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PeshakJang said:
I think the majority of Americans are no longer fooled by his ineptitude.
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I think inept is a strong word, look what he has to work with:

1. Zero real world long term experience in any meaningful job, so as to have gained experience that would now be second nature. Instead, it's clear from his voice inflections he does not have this. If you work with people over the phone all day, and deal in voice nuances and mannerisms, it's clear. Which is why during the election it was such a joke watching the US/World eat up the Used Car Salesman candy he was spewing. Certainly not ineptness though.

2. Republicans who are not going to help the Democrats (and since he's a Dem, that means help him) in any way, as from their view point there is no way they're going to allow the Democrats to screw up the country worse than it already is. And they'd be very right in many instances of that thinking.

3. Democrats who couldn't manage to blow out a candle standing outside in a hurricane. I mean, truly, how do you lead a country when the party who is clearly in charge, and one you cannot fire and replace, and one you're allied with, is so inept? If you want to use the word inept, the Democrats are a pure and certain example.

4. Economy in the sh1tter, which, was a long long long time coming. It's just unfortunate that the WoT was managed so badly (which is mostly all of Bush&Co's fault) as if it wasn't, it's likely we wouldn't have to ignore the options that would truly help Iraq and Afghanistan today, as they're just too expensive and therefore politically unpalpatable.

Not a fan of O'Bummer at all....but I don't think he's inept.

Chuck
 
Orignal Earl said:
Bomber Strikes Iraqi Army Recruits, Killing at Least 61- Aug 17
Four Iran pilgrims among five killed in Iraq bomb - 2 days ago
Several killed in separate attacks in Iraq - 2 hours ago
Al Qaeda in Iraq targets Baghdad’s developing police force - Aug 12
Police: 2 guards killed in Iraq court bombing - Aug 18

Iraq war has forced millions from homes - Aug 18

and the list goes on and on and on


RETREAT !!!
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LOL, at the budding militant Muslim. Are you cherring on the Jihadists or just not sure what side your on. You seem to be one of those guys who wants to have their cake and eat it too.

We left Vietnam for pretty much the same reasons we are leaving Iraq. We couldn't tell who was friend or foe there either, yet it seems to have done very nicely for itself despite it being in much worse shape then Iraq is.
 
According to the neocons the Iraq war was only going to cost 40 to 50 billion tops.

And as the US pulls out Iraqi could now easily go into a civil war.

Hopefully we learned our lesson this time.

After our defeat in Vietnam we were not so froggie for awhile, but only for awhile.
 
Skoorb said:
Of course. Just advisors with air power, tanks, and mortars. Combat operations are over. Let me repeat, no more combat.

BTW I'm not sure how even a million US troops would fix Iraq. It seems doomed to fail like a person who's had a half dozen divorces is just doomed to suck at marriage. Some things cannot be fixed.

This entire thing sounds an awful lot like Bush and his Mission Accomplished to me.Great job! Let's just pretend that a bomber didn't kill 60 Iraqis a couple of days ago lining up. The war is over, after all. Done. Obama finished it, great job!Who is he kidding?
Click to expand...

LOL!! They had to leave enough of a force to fight their way out!!
 
Lemon law said:
According to the neocons the Iraq war was only going to cost 40 to 50 billion tops.

And as the US pulls out Iraqi could now easily go into a civil war.

Hopefully we learned our lesson this time.

After our defeat in Vietnam we were not so froggie for awhile, but only for awhile.
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Not sure what we learned. Meanwhile in Afghanistan...
Afghanistan.gif
 
Just so we all understand there remain 7 combat brigades in Iraq plus NG troops:

3rd Infantry Division has four brigades still in Iraq, 1st Armored Division has two, and 4th Infantry Division has one. There are also two National Guard Brigades
 
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