No, it was to get a pipeline through their country. The whole deal fell through in early 2001. The Afghans knew we were going to attack, bush gave an ultimatum, that gave an option between streets paved with gold or bombs. I guess they decided to get their licks in while they could, that attack is now what we call “911.”

Read “Rebuilding America’s Defenses” by the PNAC to see the real reason we are in Iraq.

Anyway, if the Iraqi parliament doesn’t sign the SOFA, which appears they won’t, it will be illegal for our troops to patrol the streets come Dec 31 2008. They will either have to stay in their bases or leave.

“know you all know why were over in these god forsaken places to kill these basterdes”
*********************

Must be very gratifying to be one of the remaining 19% who still agree with this President. And you are a true believer too, at 100% approval for everything he’s done from Mission Accomplished to Katrina to padding the bank accounts of his fat-cat oil buddies–very impressive indeed (hey as a 100%’er do you get a discount at ExxonMobil?). And how special for you. Let me pay you a compliment. From your comment and diction I must say that you remind me of our President in every way. Hey, are you writing from the White House? Are Laura, Ms. Beazley & Barney there with you? Come on now!

I’m sorry, but was there a sentence in there somewhere?

Or a coherent thought even?

Are we ninnies because we think Iraq was a hairbrained idea?

Or are we ninnies because we addressed the actual topic of this thread..instead of like you, who addressed Iraq on a thread in Afghanistan?

Just checkin…

uuh…ninnie 1 to ninnie 2…

come in ninnie 1…over.

The FoxNews.com story that you link to makes no claim that photographer Rahmatullah Naikzad was “arrested on allegations of having Taliban ties,” as your post states.

He voluntarily went to the authorities; was questioned over a two-day period; and has agreed to return for further discussion.

An AP news story about this matter can be found here:
http://www.ap.org/pages/about/whatsnew/wn_071808d.html

Thank you.

Paul Colford
AP Director of Media Relations

As Candidate’s Visit Nears, Residents Worry on Troop Pullout

Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, July 19, 2008; Page A07

BAGHDAD, July 18 — As Sen. Barack Obama prepares for his first ever visit to Iraq, Iraqis are worried over his plan to withdraw U.S. combat troops in 16 months should he be elected president.

“Iraq will be in hell, and we will find ourselves at the gates of civil war,” said Maied Rashed al-Nuaemi, a provincial council member in Mosul, a city in northern Iraq where Iraqi forces are battling the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq. “The American presence in Iraq is the safety valve to keep this country quiet. If they withdraw, that will lead to calamity.”

Perhaps more than any country in the world besides the United States, Iraq finds that its future is at stake in the presidential elections this November. And the single most important question Iraqis have for the next president is: How long will U.S. forces remain?

While most Iraqis are against what they see as the continuing U.S. occupation, many also view the U.S. military as a bulwark against militias and extremists, as well as the growing regional influence of Iran.

In polls, a majority of Iraqis say they want U.S. forces to leave, but only a tiny minority say they want the forces to leave immediately.

Some of the more than two dozen Iraqis interviewed for this article said Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, is naive in wanting to withdraw U.S. combat troops by the summer of 2010.

“I think that Obama talks more than what he can accomplish, because reality differs from promises and dreams,” said Um Mohammed, 60, an engineer in Baghdad who declined to give her full name. “I think it is just a camouflage to reach the presidential chair.”

Mohammed Sulaiman, 56, a retired government employee in Baghdad, said: “The proposal of Obama to pull out the troops by summer 2010 is foolish. If the United States withdraws from Iraq, I think its credibility among the international countries would collapse.”

Most Iraqis interviewed appeared wary of setting a specific timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, although Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and senior politicians have said they want such a commitment from the Bush administration.

“We need more training, as well as new and developed weapons and supplies. We also need modern and developed technology. The U.S. forces should withdraw gradually so our Iraqi forces can fill the gaps that the American forces will leave,” said Brig. Gen. Najim Abdullah, spokesman for the Iraqi National Police. “As to a timetable, I don’t think we should specify it now, because it is related to the logistical support and the ability of our Iraqi forces to handle their responsibility.”

Several Iraqi army commanders said the country’s security forces would not be ready to stand on their own for at least several years.

“Now we are only fighting the insurgency in our country, and we still need the support” of U.S.-led coalition forces, said Maj. Gen. Habeeb al-Husaini, commander of the Iraqi army’s 14th Division, whose forces control the cities of Amarah, Samawah and Nasiriyah in southern Iraq. “So how about if we want to defend the country from the external threats?”