NY TIMES SURRENDERS TO BUSH: In This War, Numbers and History Are On Our Side.

Iraq Forum

3/2/2005

The war is over.

The New York Times lost.

But they are not alone.

The Democratic Party, the Arab Street, the broadcast networks, National Public Radio, an odd assortment of college professors, and a slew of other pseudo-intellectuals join the motley crew of left wing elites who, by ignoring historical trends, became sad parodies of themselves.

This morning, the New York Times editorial page finally sued for peace in their bitter ideological battle with the Bush Administration. This war, like Reagan's against the Soviets, made the great Gray Lady seem increasingly detached and irrelevant.

But unlike too many other detractors of all things Bush, the Times editors, like Gladstone, had the courage to change their minds when they discovered that they have been wrong.

This morning the winds of change swept through Gail Collins' office. Her editorial page wrote the following:

"This has so far been a year of heartening surprises — each one remarkable in itself, and taken together truly astonishing. The Bush administration is entitled to claim a healthy share of the credit for many of these advances. It boldly proclaimed the cause of Middle East democracy at a time when few in the West thought it had any realistic chance. And for all the negative consequences that flowed from the American invasion of Iraq, there could have been no democratic elections there this January if Saddam Hussein had still been in power."

The Times pointed to recent developments in Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and the coming state of Palestine as evidence that freedom may finally be on the march in the Middle East.

I was surprised the Times noted the spread of democracy in Eastern Europe and Central America in the 1980s, considering the newspaper of record had looked upon Ronald Reagan's liberation efforts in those imprisoned regions with the same contempt they foisted on George W. Bush for his Mideast folly.

But once again, folly has become fact. And once again, war has brought the promise of freedom.

Still, this is no time for gloating.

Too many supporters of Operation Iraqi Freedom took a victory lap after the fall of Baghdad on April 9, 2003, and we have spent the last two years regretting it.

As I have been saying for a year now, too many Americans are dying in Iraq. But we know the experiment with democracy will succeed because, with apologies to Ted Kennedy, only a fool would compare the situation in Iraq to Vietnam.

In this war, numbers and history are on our side.

As I said in a New York Times Arts & Leisure forum in early January, the fact that 60% of the population is Shiites and 20% are Kurds guaranteed success in the Iraqi elections.

The Shia had been told by Grand Ayatollah Sistani that bringing democracy to Iraq was a religious duty. And the Kurds had often fought in front of US soldiers during the early days of the war.

Besides numbers, history has also been a remarkable ally.

I remember a debate in a political science class I took at the University of Alabama in 1985, as students were arguing over the impact of Reagan deploying cruise missiles to Western Europe. Our insightful professor told us that the Soviets were far more concerned with the proliferation of Xerox machines than American missiles.

Professor Barbara Chotiner knew, even in the Age of Aha, that the coming information revolution was the biggest threat to the Soviet Union.

Add the fax machine, the Internet, cell phones, text messaging, video phones, satellite dishes, Blackberries, and a slew of other high tech devices, and suddenly you have an army of reporters projecting words and images from behind enemy lines in Iran, North Korea, China, Cuba, and the remaining closed societies still dotting the earth.

History is not on their side.

Iraq will be free.

Iran will be free.

Cuba will be free.

China will be free.

It is inevitable, and thank God the New York Times finally awoke to that reality this morning.

As for Democratic leaders and editorial writers that still haven't noticed the hurricane force winds knocking down their ideological house of cards, I simply suggest they cast their eyes to Lebanon or Syria or Iraq or Afghanistan or Gaza to see that the world they once knew has already been blown away.

That doesn't mean more American won't die at home and abroad. And that surely doesn't mean the terrorists in Iraq and across the world won't continue trying to kill all those who dare to exercise their political rights.

But it does mean that we have entered a new era in the Middle East and there is no going back.

http://rightvoices.com/images/neverforget.jpg

I remember as a boy dreaming of an Iraqi election, and now it's here. It only cost 1,500 dead troops, thousands wounded, and billions of dollars... so far.

You know, maybe big business should get involved and see if they can't make some money from this 'war'. Oh wait...

-HECK!

The short-sightedness of liberals although certainly not surprising by now, still never ceases to amaze. Or maybe it's just that they'll never admit defeat.

As for Democratic leaders and editorial writers that still haven't noticed the hurricane force winds knocking down their ideological house of cards, I simply suggest they cast their eyes to Lebanon or Syria or Iraq or Afghanistan or Gaza to see that the world they once knew has already been blown away.

Remember this? "Freedom isn't free". It still holds true today.

Freedom doesn't come from man.

What "bible" did you get that falsehood from?

The world according to Curly?
What a warped world you live in.

Funny then, God never said "God helps those who help themselves" nor has it ever been intimated....

This is a man-made saying....check your source.

ps, sorry to interrput the religous debate.

Wolf_eyes
You didn't interrupt anything...the man equates the love of apple pie and baseball with freedom....its ingrained in our American psyches...sometimes it takes a lobotomy...sometimes it takes a beer...sometimes it takes the desire to think outside the norm to shake it all off.

I appreciate your posts.

"It's scary for Democrats, I have to say....[BUT] There's always hope that this might not work."
—Nancy Soderberg, author of The Superpower Myth, on the reform sweeping the Middle East.

Wolf-eyes

I am glad to see your coming back over here. It is good to read some more sound statements.

I was in Houston - Texas a couple of months ago. I was astonished by the legions of down trodden wandering in the streets, searching some food to grab in public dustbins. These people were only outnumbered by the cops patrolling everywhere. There was even a security check point in a post office I got in.
I was pleased nevertheless to meet good people there, but I have to admit that I did not feel at ease because of the atmosphere I felt around me.

Now I am back from an african country where I have been touring everywhere, including very defavorized areas. I met poor but dignified people from whom I learnt some of the humanity we too often loose in our societies.
I could post a photograph of the rear windows of a truck, where you could see pictures of Bin Laden stuck on it. I was somehow astonished and asked for an explanation. Bin Laden, even if his responsibility in the terrorist attempts is not necessarily celebrated, is an icon for lot of people who view him as an avenger punishing us arrogant westerners.
Of course I don't support this point of view, but all of the above made me pondering over about what should be the priorities in our societies.

I don't know who will be judged right by History in the future. I just feel that the degradation of the social inegalities in the US, coupled with a growing anger, resentment, misunderstanding in the third world, is a situation I would not label as promising and sustainable. Just my opinion from statements on the ground.

I am always astonished when I read the kind of comments made by wonder Curley. Of course - he lives in a wonderful country while "europists" are crawling in a land of desperation - sigh ...

http://i.cnn.net/cnn/SPECIALS/2002/oil.spill/images/top.prestige.jpg

In 2002, Fox News surpassed CNN in the ratings and has been the leader ever since.

http://www.nypost.com/business/22209.htm

JY-

I'm glad to be back, for the most part. In fact, I am sorry that I have been away so long...but, onward.

Your post made me smile, made me sad, and gave me an idea. I think Im going to start a new thread-its obvious that Curley Joe isnt really interested in political discourse, at least, not on this level. I am interested, however, in hearing more stories like yours. What we see 'on the ground' is important, and though we must accept that it does not speak for the majority, or the world at large, it does help to inform our personal opinions, and, in the end, the world is made up of personal opinions. So, I'm going to start another thread, somewhere (I'll re-post where here), for just these types of stories, and thier responses. Political discourse spawned from personal experience.

feel free to re-post this last story there.


Wolf

Three Cheers for the Bush Doctrine

TIME article
Issue: March 14, 2005
http://www.inreview.com/showthread....=371#post549640