So what exactly has "Changed"?

6 thoughts on “So what exactly has “Changed”?”

1. Your points are well-taken, for sure. I don’t know if youur questions are rhetorical, or if you really want to know, but you sound open to dialogue. Here is my attempt at answering your questions, although please know I am not justifying the answers. These are merely my guesses.

   Many Democrats (myself included) trust President Obama. I trust he has my best interests at heart. If he does something I don’t agree with, I cut him more slack than I would a Republican. Why? Because he shares my values.

   For example, in regard to the Patriot Act, to my understanding, only three provisions were maintained. I think it is at least as likely right-wing domestic terrorists will be spied upon under Barack Obama, as liberals were under GWB. Do I know that for a fact? No. But I trust him enough to think it is possible. Under GWB/Cheney, I was concerned I was under the microscope as a progressive activist, although I have never done anything illegal or un-American. Just being left of center was reason enough, it seemed, to be afraid of them.

   The Wars – I was vehemently against the Iraq war since Day one. I want the troops out ASAP. Although I do not know for sure that this is true, I trust President Obama will take as many troops out of harms way as he can, as soon as he can, without causing more unrest. In regard to Afghanistan, he made it very clear during his campaign he was going to step up troops there. We knew he would when we elected him; we should not be surprised now.

   I cannot speak for anyone but myself, but my guess is, others may feel as I do. I appreciate your questions — they are prompting me to question what I should do now.

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   1. And you do confirm part of what I have believed for some time, that much of the protests weren’t against the war, they were against the previous administration.  What got me to post the diary was VP Biden making his hypocritical statement about Iraq being one of the great accomplishments of the current administration, and the Daily Kos posting I linked to above.

      I do believe that President Obama is honestly doing his best on the overseas part of the war, and he is doing that by keeping on the team from the previous administration, from the SecDef on down.

      Domestically, I don’t trust him any further than I could throw him.  And maybe you can understand that many on the right feel the same way about the Patriot Act as you do.

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2. has got to be on of the most offensive pieces I have read of late. Sadly, I’ve read that author for quite some time, when I used to blog there, which makes it only more disappointing. Her last paragraph was just flat out offensive:

   And let’s make it very clear to President Karzai that if he wants US and NATO assistance he had better face up to reality.  It’s time for him to educate his own people that they have a choice.  They can deal with the random violence in schools, and markets, and mosques handed out by the Taliban, or they can suck it up and realize that in war PEOPLE ARE GOING TO DIE.

   Yeah, because you know, it’s not like the Afghans don’t have a clear understanding of what it is like to be occupied by a foreign country, losing family members and civil rights over and over again for the last 35 years.

   You’re right–most people have gotten awfully quiet about both of the wars since Obama took office–then again, most people I knew were specifically protesting the war in Iraq. Maybe they see the draw down in Iraq and realize that he is keeping his word and that we are finally on our way out of a war we never should have started in the first place.

   For what it’s worth, we still have a group, the same group, that protests the war every Wednesday where I live. They may have voted for Obama but they don’t give him a free pass, by any means.

   Good diary, Geek. Good food for thought.

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   1. .
      
      Seeing a drawdown in Iraq would take more than just clear vision; it would require clairvoyance.  No such drawdown has happened yet.  
      
      As I understand it, about 15,000 uniformed personnel have been withdrawn in the last year, replaced by more than that number of contractor personnel.  More than 110,000 uniformed personnel remain, and maybe 175,000 contractors.  

      Maybe there will be a drawdown after the 7 March elections, the ones that the Iraqi Constitution required to be conducted in December 2009.  Maybe.

      .

      And who should get credit for the success in Iraq ?  Obama ?  Bush ?  Well, I think it would help to recap what has been accomplished:
      
      ***  Prez Bush signed a de facto surrender agreement with Nouri al-Maliki, promising to cease combat operations and withdraw all “combat” troops by this Summer, and all troops by December 2011.  
      
      ***  Prez Obama has been backed down from his promises by Generals Petraeus and Odierno, of whom Obama is afraid, very afraid.  No combat troops have been withdrawn; they’ve simply been rebranded as “trainers.”  
      
      ***  VP Joe is bragging that his  team will pull 90,000 troops out.  But in the last 6 months there have been new contracts for an additional 30 – 40,000 Mercenaries and countless support contractors awarded.  It isn’t so much a drawdown as it is a relief in place.  
      
      ***  Mahmoud Ahmad-din-Nejad and Ayatullah Khameni now set policy in Baghdad.  

      Any kudos for stabilizing Iraq need to go to Sayyid Moqtada al-Sadr and Iran.  Our brave troops are being played by the Iranians, due to poor leadership by the overly political careerist Generals.  

      We could have incubated an Iraqi government independent of Iranian influence, but that would have tarnished the phony Bush legacy of success.  By January 2009 that was no longer an option.  
      
      .

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3. I think you make some great points.  The sad fact is that very few people are principled.  The folks on the left have had the luxury (not sure thats the right word) of having a clear enemy in the White House.  It becomes so much harder to criticize when you voted for the man living there now.  

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4. into enemies and friends. Reality is far more complex. There are as many categories as there are people.

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