Iraq

Good news!  Iraq will be going to China next month, and sending four athletes: a men’s rowing double, a discus thrower and their sprinter, Dana Hussain (their archer may also have the chance to compete, as long as his spot is still available after entries are completed by other countries.)  USA Today reports that the IOC cleared the Iraqi athletes late Tuesday after the government’s promise to uphold their assigned National Olympic Committee.  CNN states that Iraq will be able to hold their own election for a new national committee as late as November, 2008.  Because of the missed deadline last week, a few athletes will not participate, however, all media outlets are reporting that Iraqis are thrilled to be able to compete in China.  “We look forward to seeing the Iraqi flag in Beijing,” said IOC President, Jacques Rogge. 

Bush has agreed to “a general time horizon,” as The New York Times announced last week.  Many believe this is due to the pressure from the Iraqi government regarding a future US military presence in the country.  Unfortunately, we can’t celebrate just yet, as the Bush Administration continues to be vague on the matter.  However, some of this decision will rest on Iraqi military capability, and the White House has stated that further troop reductions could come with increasingly better conditions.  Some officials claim that Iraqis should be taking charge of security by 2009, with a complete independence from the US by 2012.  Senator Obama responded to the news by saying it’s ”a step in the right direction,” but believes the Administration is still being too vague.  Senator McCain continues to back Bush, stating that the timeline is proof of the success of the surge. 

After the bombing and riots in Kirkuk on Monday, which left 51 dead and over 250 injured (The Washington Post), Iraqi lawmakers have called for a special session to discuss disputes over the city, as reported by USA Today.  Kirkuk, an oil-rich and valuable area, has long been fought over by Arabs, Turkomen and Kurds.  The Kurds currently hold most of the power on the provincial council, and current tensions are coming from a new law that would require equal seats for all three groups.  Another aspect of this problem, and one that has been plaguing Iraq for many years now, are the Kurdish claims to Kirkuk as being a part of their semi-autonomous region.  However, Turkomen and Arabs, along with the rest of the Iraqi population, want to keep Kirkuk and its oil fields under central control and contributing to Iraqi finances.  The bombing, which attacked Kurds protesting the bill, set off sectarian violence on Monday as the Kurds then rioted at a Turkoman political site, blaming them for the attack. 

 
John McCain’s Interview on NBC’s The Today Show (YouTube excerpt)

If you’ve had any contact with the media this week, I’m sure you haven’t been able to escape comments made about John McCain’s interview on NBC’s The Today Show. 

As I’m sure you all can tell by now, I have no plan on voting republican in the next election.  But I have to admit that what the media is doing to Senator McCain isn’t fair.  Many people, including those uploading clips to YouTube, are cutting McCain’s comments off to imply that he is simply unconcerned with the troops.  As my father (a military man and a republican) is always saying, McCain understands the plight of the US military more so than most people in this country, given his history as a prisoner of war during Vietnam.  I believe that when he says that the most important effort we should be making in Iraq is to minimize US casualties, he has a very valid point.  Our troops are not coming home tomorrow; therefore our first priority should be keeping them as safe as possible.  As the Senator continues, he states that the US has stationed troops in many countries with very few or no casualties.  And if we remember World War II correctly, nation rebuilding in Germany and Japan was achieved with the help of the Allied military. 

 As a liberal, I have criticisms of McCain.  Obviously, he is forced to back George W’s policies, but does this also mean Bush’s cowboy-style, over-militaristic attitude?  He also brags about advocating for the troop surge before Bush did.  This makes me wonder if he really does understand the military; many troops were not even getting the time off that is mandated by military doctrine prior to the surge. 

Another important criticism I have of McCain is his habit of misspeaking.  Obviously, troop numbers in Iraq should be important, and probably are important to the Senator.  When we listen to the rest of his comments, we begin to understand that he does not truly mean that a withdrawal is not important.  But once again, he phrased his comments the wrong way; the same thing happened with his “100 years in Iraq” comment.  After the past seven years, do we really want another president who constantly sticks his foot in his mouth? 

Click here for the full interview (on more topics than just Iraq).