April 28, 2004

Iraqi as Vietnam part 2

Acording to the CBS/NYTimes poll as many people think that Iraq is a mistake now - 48% as did in 1968 that Vietnam was a mistake. Also Bush job aproval lowest in his term for that poll and Kerry-Bush match-up at 46-44
Dark Victory

Salon has up a book excerpt from a new title called "Dark Victory." It lays out a very good case that Iraq is a massive fuck-up (my words, not his, his are better) It sounds like it is by far the best case against the war, not in a winning Michael Moore, blood for oil, can't we a just give the world a hug way. It is a I've been a defense analysis for thirty years, I teach at the WAR COLLEGE, trust when I say that Iraq is a strategic blunder on an epic scale, way. If I had one of those Amazon ad things I'd put Dark Victory on it. If I had 20 bucks I would buy it myself.

April 27, 2004

Body Counts

One of things that the army has been very reluctant to do in recent years is keep a count of enemy body counts. There are several good reasons for this. One of the lessons of Vietnam and later Somalia is that the US can rack up a massive kill ratio and still end up in a bloody defeat. So I have to think that the recent move to include body counts in the stories that the military puts out can't be good.

April 24, 2004

Wal-Mart Sucks

Snug in the heart of City Planning acedemia there is no truth more certain than Wal-Mart is the root of all evil. Here are some good numbers via CCB and counterpunch. The long and the short of it is you cannot live on what Wal-Mart pays. I think the real telling stat is how much the Government has to fork over just to keep Wal-Mart employees and their families alive with food, housing and energy subsities. I think this produces a whole new catagory of corporate welfare. Most times corporate welfare takes the form of tax breaks or other direct subsities. What Wal-Mart is doing is using social safety net programs to pay their employees even less. Wal-Mart Sucks.

April 20, 2004

Secret Oil Deal

Oh sure the crazy guy on my bus who talks about secret oil deals and vast conspiracies between Bush and the Saudis for months gets ignored but here comes Johnny-come-lately Bob "Robert Redford played me in the movie" Woodward with the same story and it gets all kinds of attention.
Frankly I own crazy guy on the bus an apology. Talking Points has the press gaggle.

April 18, 2004

Historic Metaphor
I love to deploy historic metaphor in political debate. I really think a big part of the campaign this year will be Kerry trying to be Kennedy and Bush trying to be Churchill, While their opponents try and make them Dukkasis and Herbert Hoover respectively. The next battle of historic metaphor is

Iraqi as Vietnam

Yes it is.
No it is not.

April 17, 2004

Must...Write...Something

Just crapy crapy news from Iraq, What to do what to say?

April 3, 2004

Kerry ain't so great. You read Slate don't you Craig?


Also, I know its been awhile, but before the NCAA tournament is completed, I just wanted to say how utterly disappointed I am in Stanford's absolutely atrocious showing. How can they loose to a team that dropped 12 games in the regular season? I'll tell you why: A cupcake schedule that didn't prepare them for intense tourney play, a lack of toughness, no sense of urgency and a soft, ineffective defense . Alabama was hungry, they wanted it. Stanford has got to be the most overrated "number 1 ranked team" in the last 10 years. PAC 10 has got to play a tougher pre-league schedule.