Senator Jeff Merkley Understands Concerns about the Surge

I got this e-mail from Senator Merkley's office this evening about Obama's plan for the surge of American troops in Afghanistan. Jeff Merkley gets it. Read on:

“I appreciate that President Obama has taken the time to fully examine this issue and consider the available options. However, I’m not convinced the case has been made to add more than 30,000 new troops. Significant questions remain about our strategic goals in Afghanistan and the human and financial costs involved in achieving them.

He continues:

“I have a number of questions about whether the Administration’s goal in Afghanistan is realistic, and how that goal advances our national security. How will our strategy overcome Afghanistan’s history of decentralized power exercised by regional warlords, its systemic corruption, the insurgents’ ability to use the presence of a foreign force as a rallying point, the geography and topography of the country, and the Taliban’s easy access to explosives and funding? Does this strategy reduce or increase the number of extremists motivated to strike at our nation? What will prevent al Qaeda from finding other safe havens in other places from which to plot attacks against the U.S.? Are there other approaches that can meet our national security objectives?

And to ensure he will be asking for accountability:

“I look forward to discussing these questions with the Administration and learning not only the full details of their plan, but also reviewing how the sacrifice in lives and resources serves our national interest.”

Senate Merkley rocks. To repeat: he gets it.

All of the JRE supporters are likely to agree with Senator Merkley on this issue. I can't find one e-mail in which a JRE supporter can be supportive of the President unless he addresses the issues Jeff Merkley and Bernie Sanders raise in the Senate, or Dennis Kuchnich raises in the House.

Diversions from a public option for health care and the insipidness of insurance,

I don't like it. I bet those progressives don't either. And I think Obama is unwise to think to get Rethugs on this issue will buy him votes (or delays from fillibustering) on health care. I hope I am wrong, but so far, I've not been. Obama's inexperience in the Senate makes him appear naive.

And the Rethugs count on it.

Looks like Law & Order SUV Tonight on TV

Tonight, our POTUS is announcing a surge in troop levels in Afghanistan. He sent more troops in the spring and summer, and now he wants 30K more. He won't fight for health care, but he is sending more of our men and women in uniform to get in the middle of a budding civil war.

This is not likely a war we can win or "to finish the job."

If you want to read some interesting opinions, look at the following:

David Mizner's diary at DK
TomP's diary at the DK
Digby
The Widderskins (h/tp to Corrente Wire)
And just about anything at the DU

I cannot stomach watching LBJ and Bush all over again.

What Ever Happened to Peace, Love and Understanding?

Another heartbreak in the Middle East. Hamas launches junk rockets into Israel, and does it purposely in civilian areas. Israel always retaliates, often at 5 times the excess force. Now nearly 400 are dead and over a thousand wounded in Gaza.

Israel could listen to the UN by complying with a call for a cease-fire. Lorilei Kelly at the Huffington Post went further with an plea of peace and goodwill:

In less than two decades, the measures of national security have gone from being rational, linear and technological, to random, chaotic and very human. Those who want to survive need to modernize their toolkit accordingly: More persuasion, less coercion. More prevention, less reaction. More participation, less exclusion. More people, less machines, More life strategies, less death strategies.

But Israel is turning a deaf ear to such pleas. It believes war is the only alternative. That's like saying that the death penalty deters crime in the US, when we know that hasn't been the case either.

What ever happened to peace, love and understanding? That goes for the Palestinians (and those who are calling for war against Israel) as well as the Israelis.

As usual, our President is siding with the Israelis without much opinion. Taylor Marsh nailed it about George Bush:

But don't expect George W. Bush to ask this [for Israel to cease fire] of our friend. He hasn't been a leader of peace in eight years. He's not going to start now.

Obama, Biden, and Clinton have their hands full of more messes to clean up after Bush is gone.

I'm with Elvis Costello on this one.



(h/t to Taylor Marsh)

Update: for further analysis, read Glenn Greenwald and Juan Cole.

Second update: Zbigniew Brezinski schools Morning Joe Scarborough in promoting how to help with the peace process.