Posted on 06/03/2004 10:40:27 AM PDT by NorCoGOP
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Because of the tortures and murders at the Abu Ghraib prison, Donald Rumsfeld must resign. He must leave his position as U.S. Secretary of Defense for the good of his boss, his war, his department and his country. And if he does not, Bush must fire him, which would be a rare demonstration for this administration of the rule that officials are responsible for their wrong actions. Mr. President: there comes a time when blind loyalty, however pigheaded, comes to a fault. That time is now.
Sticking by your dad's friends is high virtue, but when this individual (A) deserves the boot, and (B) damages the administration and nation's credibility while in office, walking papers are required. Like crazy Old Yeller, who was loyal and faithful but eventually dangerous, Donald Rumsfeld needs to be put down by his master.
But what for? Rumsfeld didn't order the war crimes at Abu Ghraib; he didn't condone them like Rush Limbaugh; rather, he publicly denounced them. And let us assume that it was sheer oversight on his part that Abu Ghraib -- a place of absolute evil and symbol for the Hussein regime in Iraq -- was not only not demolished but used to house Iraqi prisoners. Let us forget his dodging of the Geneva Convention, his shocking disregard for handling the unpleasant realities of the job. Perhaps Rumsfeld is a victim of the entire affair -- also tortured, but by the media. No matter. Rumsfeld must resign for two very simple reasons: It will show the world the right side of American character, and it is in line with our society's concept of personal responsibility. For the sake of not only preserving our values but also actively practicing them in front of the world, when we badly need proof that we're not self-righteous hypocrites: the secretary has to leave.
Iraqis and other Middle Easterners have grown up under brutal governments where the rulers did whatever evil they pleased and were not held responsible; they got away with more daily injustice than Donald Trump's toupee consultant. And now here come the Americans, saying things are different.
But boy, it sure doesn't look that way, does it? So much for winning over Iraqi hearts and minds. Rumsfeld, by staying right where he is, sends a message that our preaching of individual responsibility is a sham, that Bush's cronies are as above the law as Saddam was.
America celebrates the individual like no other nation. But the price of personal freedom is responsibility. We live in a country where editors of both The New York Times and USA Today resigned, not for any personal crime, but because lies had been told under their watch. That's all. I read those same papers and I see stories of CEOs and captains of industry who surrender administration, not because they had overlooked murder, rapes, and beatings, but because their underlings stole vast sums of money. If we apply this high standard to the rest of our country, why wouldn't we put it to the man right below the president? Rumsfeld is not directly responsible, but he helped to create the culture in which Abu Ghraib flourished. And he has told us there is worse to come. Given that he has known of it since he woke up at the wheel in January, I take him at his word. He knows this, yet shamelessly, he remains.
Rumsfeld has already damned himself, and now he's damning the rest of us and every American soldier who has to walk a street in Baghdad or Tikrit at night. Mr. Rumsfeld, it's time for you to go.
i have noticed that in your postings you never make any reference to iran, the people behind the insurgents in iraq
why is that so?
I don't believe the Iranians to be as big a threat as the Saudis and the Pakis.
And are the Iranians funding the insurgency? My money is on AQ via Saudi.
And I believve the Iranian people are far more proAmerican than the others and we should be helpiing them overthrow the mullahs.
They aren't' Arabs, are heirs to a preislamic civilization and we'd be better off using soft force to change the authority of the mullahs.
Rumsfeld must resign for two very simple reasons: It will show the world the (LEFT,CRIMINAL,LIBERAL,WEAKGUTTED) side of American character, and it is in line with our (LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC LED) society's concept for any personal responsibility. For the sake of not only (DESTROYING ALL MORAL) values but also (OUTLAWING) them in front of the world, when we (SO OPENLY AND GLIBLY) prove that we're self-righteous hypocrites: the secretary has to leave.
correction:
(LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC LED) society's concept for avoiding any personal responsibility
Source, pimpleface?
We heard the same predictions when Lott resigned.
Didn't happen.
The only people who will continue to call for Rumsfeld, Rice and all to resign are those lefties like Gore who have been doing so all along.
Besides, I heard that some really heavy stuff was about to come down on Tenet soon, and that it was much better for Bush that he step down now, rather than later.
This is reprehensible! Rummy did not cause anything that happened there, he is not a fault, and first and foremost, they were NOT flipping Tortured!!!!
So are you an Aggie or a Longhorn?
Trent Lott should not have resigned his leadership position. Period. George Tenet should not have resigned as DCIA. Period. Aside from that fact, these are two different situations and two different sets of circumstances. This is a time for unity in the ranks of both the GOP and the Bush administration. I also don't believe the President is a liar. Bush's statement today was honest and real. He should have demanded Tenet stay on until after the election. I don't believe in giving the Librats and their cohorts in the media, any more ammunition. They have enough already.
Sorry to disagree, but he's the top man (or person) in the chain-of-command short of the president himself. All he has to do each day is run the war, etc. As the boss, he is fully responsible for the prison atrocities,as all bosses in all organizations are, and particularly because he heads an organization where accountability goes right up the chain of command. He chose to be SecDef, so he gets both the prerogatives and the penalties. He is also a well-educated man who perfectly well knew the ways of the world--and certainly knew about the many prisoner and obedience to authority studies that every university graduate learns about in psychology 101. The president knows them too, but he has had other obligations during this time frame. Rummie only has to run the DoD. Sorry, but Rummie has to go. IMHO it would be better if Cheney went as well. Why should a good president go down at a critical time just to indulge a couple of exceedingly wealthy old farts who have failed to cut the mustard lately, though in the long run, and broadly speaking, they have previously been as good or better than we usually get in the offices they currently hold. Still, when you gotta go, you gotta go--and oughta go without invitation. George Tenet shows the way. The line between being an asset and baggage is a difficult one to identify, but one would hope that Rumsfield and Cheney will figure out that they have become baggage. If Bush loses, they go, anyway. But why should Bush go because of them? Rumsfield and Cheney would be easily replaced and their successors would almost certainly be able and exciting, with ability, and without the baggage that Rumsfield and Cheney have had almost from the start.
On the other hand, at this point the only replacement for Bush has to be Kerry or Nader. Who wants that as the alternative to Bush (Rumsfield and Cheney?)
Longhorn, although I can't say much since my family is almost evenly divided between Raiders, Aggies, and Longhorns.
I have nothing really against Tech, but I do wonder how/why folks stay in Lubbock. I remember when I was young, visiting relatives out in that area and there was a smell that seemed to permeate everything. That and the high winds plus the dirt that felt like somebody was rubbing you with sandpaper.
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