Posted on 12/27/2006 6:26:37 PM PST by RetiredArmy
George Bush Is a Hero
By: Edward I. Koch
Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2006
President George W. Bush, vilified by many, supported by some, is a hero to me.
Why do I say that? It's not because I agree with the president's domestic agenda. It's not because I think he's done a perfect job in the White House.
George Bush is a hero to me because he has courage.
The president does what he believes to be in the best interest of the United States. He sticks with his beliefs, no matter how intense the criticism and invective that are directed against him every day.
The enormous defeat President Bush suffered with the loss of both Houses of Congress has not caused him to retreat from his position that the U.S. alone now stands between a radical Islamic takeover of many of the world's governments in the next 30 or more years. If that takeover occurs, we will suffer an enslavement that will threaten our personal freedoms and take much of the world back into the Dark Ages.
Our major ally in this war against the forces of darkness, Great Britain, is still being led by an outstanding prime minister, Tony Blair. However, Blair will soon be set out to pasture, which means Great Britain will leave our side and join France, Germany, Spain, and other countries that foolishly believe they can tame the wolf at the door and convert it into a domestic pet that will live in peace with them.
These dreamers naively believe that if we feed the wolves what they demand, they will go away. But that won't happen.
Appeasement never works. The wolves always come back for more and more, and when we have nothing left to give, they come for us.
Radical Islamists are very much aware that we have shown fear. For example, we have allowed the people of Darfur — dark skinned Africans — to be terrorized, killed, raped, and taken as slaves by the supporters of the Sudanese government, radical Islamists.
The countries surrounding Iraq — Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan — made up of Sunni Arabs, know that for them, the wolves who are the radical Shia are already at their door. The New York Times reported on Dec. 13, 2006, "Saudi Arabia has told the Bush administration that it might provide financial backing to Iraqi Sunnis in any war against Iraq's Shiites if the United States pulls its troops out of Iraq, according to American and Arab diplomats . . .
"The Saudis have argued strenuously against an American pullout from Iraq, citing fears that Iraq's minority Sunni Arab population would be massacred . . . The Bush administration is also working on a way to form a coalition of Sunni Arab nations and a moderate Shiite government in Iraq, along with the United States and Europe, to stand against ‘Iran, Syria and the terrorists."
This Saudi response will take place notwithstanding that until now, according to the Times, "The Saudis have been wary of supporting Sunnis in Iraq because their insurgency there has been led by extremists of al-Qaida, who are opposed to the kingdom's monarchy. But if Iraq's sectarian war worsened, the Saudis would line up with Sunni tribal leaders."
The Times article went on to state the opinion of an Arab expert, Nawaf Obaid, who was recently fired by the Saudi foreign minister after Obaid wrote an op ed in The Washington Post asserting that the Saudis were prepared in the event of an American pullout to engage in a "massive intervention to stop Iranian-backed Shiite militias from butchering Iraqi Sunnis."
Obaid went on "suggest[ing] that Saudi Arabia could cut world oil prices in half…a move that would be devastating to Iran."
The Times reported, "Arab diplomats . . . said that Mr. Obaid's column reflected the view of the Saudi government." When writing about affairs of state in distant places, unless you are on the scene talking to knowledgeable participants, the most reliable sources to support conjecture with "facts" are the superb reporters of the great international newspapers like The New York Times.
Surely this turn of events in Saudi Arabia undoubtedly replicated in other Sunni-dominated countries — Sunnis are 80 percent of the world's Muslim population. This will give support to my proposal, advanced nearly a year ago, that we tell our allies, regional and NATO, that we are getting out of Iraq unless they come in.
That may well work, and they will come in, in large part and share the casualties of combat and the financial costs of war.
Doing what I suggest is far better than simply pulling out, which is the direction in which we are headed, notwithstanding the president's opposition. I think at the moment simply getting out and not making an attempt to bring our allies in is supported by a majority of Americans and would be supported by a majority of Democrats in the Congress.
For me, staying is clearly preferable, provided we are not alone and are joined by our regional and NATO allies, aggressively taking on the difficult but necessary task of destroying radical Islam and its terrorist agenda if we don't want to see radical Islam destroy the Western world and moderate Arab states over the next generation, or as long as it takes for them to succeed.
Two other requirements are needed to bring the war in Iraq to a successful conclusion: First, require the Iraqi government to allow greater autonomy for the three regions — Kurd, Sunni, and Shia. The second requirement is that the national Iraqi government enact legislation that will divide all oil and natural gas revenues in a way similar to that of our own state of Alaska.
The Alaskan state government takes from those revenues all it will need to finance government and provide services and the balance is divided among the population of Alaska, in a profit sharing program. That would settle the major Sunni problem which has been being cut out of oil revenues because the country's oil is located only in Kurdish and Shiite areas.
If the Iraqi government refuses our demands, our reply should be "Goodbye. You're on your own." This proposal was suggested to me by Mike Sheppard in Chapel Hill, N.C.
It won't be easy to implement this proposal. But President Bush has courage.
Now is the time to use it.
"No, he's a politician. Nothing more, nothing less."
A politician with courage. Adams also was one, but he was one on many from that era. Bush is one of few from this era which makes him that much more courageous.
Bush is scum for trying to force amnesty on the American people. Bush cares more about illegal aliens than he does about Americans.
You are scum for posting that comment on this thread.
I am waiting for the 'perfectionists' to recognize their part in the take over of the hard left on November 7th. THIS is what they asked for..........no, begged for.
Teach the mealy mouthed Republicans a lesson, they said. Get rid of the RINO's they said.
Well, America did. And now Marxists are in charge. Just what any 'good' conservative wants......right?
The ONLY political hope we have is that the Republicans, in their 'time off' wake up and find a nominee with some guts. As a Christian, I am praying that a real leader rises up out of the unknown. Right now I don't see anyone out there who has the courage of our present Commander in Chief. But God is faithful, and I'm trusting Him.
Fortunately, he is banned or suspended scum.......
So I guess you think he should check the polls before he does anything like Clitoon did?
I do think George W. Bush will go down in history, provided the revisionists do NOT have their way, as one of our greatest, most honorable presidents. I also think Ronald Reagan was a great and good man and a terrific leader as our President! Were he alive and at the helm today, Iran would be toast!!!
Nancee
Thankfully th moderators are on their toes!
I believe you and I are kindred spirits!!
Nancee
Clever little leftists in hiding...........except that they lose their cool and call the Commander in Chief 'scum' and get themselves zotted. :)
I think we are, Nancee. :)
I agree. Bush has shown an immense amount of courage. Wasn't alive at the time of Truman, but I'm guessing Bush's courage is the same for the opposition is probably as intense.
And how much courage do Dems show/have? Never standing firm on any issue and ALWAYS following the wind and bending with the public approval ratings. That's real spine-NOT! Actually, they're just immature little children in grown-up bodies...
NONE!!! The lot of them are snakes!!! With the exception of Zell Miller and David Schippers, there is no such thing as an honorable Democrat!
bump
I know! Isn't it all so pathetic? Our government was NEVER set up with any intention to have such a spineless bunch of windblowers at the helm. And yet, there's so many people who actually believe the dems want to help them. The dems of today, are ABSOLUTELY nothing like what an opposition party was intended to be. Thomas Jefferson would absolutely whip those who claimed to be a man within an inch of their life...
Man what a headline.
Yes indeed George Bush is a hero,
He's a good man,
he's been voted President by more votes than anyone in the nations history,
and I do stand proudly, voting for him twice.
For all of his faults (all presidents have noticeable flaws), I am and always will be grateful that George W. Bush is our President. His good character and his work ethic are to be admired and will be missed when he leaves the White House. He's taking a lot of flack these days, but people will miss him in the not-too-distant future years after he has departed the White House.
... and who says all Northeast Jews are self-loathing, Woody Allen-like nebbishes? While I disagree with many of the positions of this triumvirate, when it comes to the WOT and other things in the Middle East, they have the chutzpah to tell their cheese-eating surrender-monkey fellow Demon-Rats where to take their ideas!
It is hard to imagine where we would be if Clinton or Gore would have been in the Whitehouse on 9\11.
We will critique another day...
Herein is the problem!! This country was formed by rugged individualists who worked hard and took care of their own!!!
Bur ever since Roosevelt started his massive drive toward complete government handouts, people really don't believe they are independently capable of taking care of themseves. I have come to detest BIG GOVERNMENT!! And BIG GOVERNENT = DEMOCRATS!!!
Nancee
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