Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

In the Seattle Times' March 21 "Letters to the Editor" a Seattle resident told the vital facts about the Iraq War that you'll never hear from George Bush or his Republican sycophants.  The caption for this enlightening letter pinpointed the crux question of the Iraq War debacle:  "To Save the People has it Become Necessary to Destroy the People?"

The letter writer quoted a Seattle Times March 19 article that revealed, "Solid Figures Missing on Total Death Toll".  It revealed that the Lancer Medical Journal estimated that 98,000 civilian deaths have resulted from the Iraq War.

But here is a figure for the so-called Christians backing Bush and his destructive campaign to ponder.  It should be shouted from the rooftops.  Read carefully the remainder of this informative letter:  

"(The Lancer article's) most significant finding was the vast majority (79%) of violent deaths were caused by `coalition' forces using `helicopters, gun ships, rockets or other forms of aerial weaponry' and that almost half (48%) of these were children, with a median age of 8.  Four out of every five civilian deaths in Iraq were caused by aerial weaponry.  Insurgents do not have aerial weaponry."  This harkens back to the "Children's Crusade" death statistics.  

Where is the money from Iraq oil for rebuilding?  Another fantasy by the Bush Administration is that Iraq's oil would pay for rebuilding what we dramatically destroyed.

A front-page headline in the March 20 Seattle Times read:  "U.S. Bases in Iraq Built with an Air of Permanence".  The article goes on to tell about one giant base in Iraq's western desert where 17,000 troops and workers come and go just like a busy U.S. city.  There's a Pizza Hut, a Burger King and a car dealership.  

At Balad Air Force Base in Iraq there is a mile long slab of concrete, and this is now home to 120 U.S. helicopters and a helicopter park as well designed as any in the U.S.  There is a third hub in Tallil, where a mess hall is planned to seat 6,000 airmen and soldiers for meals.

When Bush was asked about an Iraq exit strategy, he replied that future presidents would make that decision.  Like it or not, it appears we are in for the long haul wherein the Bush Administration planners are concerned.  Meanwhile the Iraq War quagmire has fueled terrorism in the Middle East.

Big oil companies might like what they see.  Servicemen know who pays their salaries and pensions.  Some impute lack of patriotism to anyone telling the truth about what the Iraq War has done.

It isn't the media that has slanted public opinion against Bush.  One picture of Iraq's death and destruction is worth more than a thousand twisted words of Bush propaganda.