I still have very limited use of my left hand (heavily bandaged because of the damage done to the palm of my hand, and my thumb and pinky fingers are also bandaged), which makes typing somewhat difficult (reduced to pecking with my left hand).
I have a doctors appointment tomorrow (first since my second ACL reconstruction back in 1997) for a once-over after my accident (as I refused transport to the hospital), so hopefully I’ll be back to regular writing in the next few days.
Some quick hits before I resume my recuperation:
Harriet Meirs withdraws from nomination — I’m thankful. She never should have been nominated. This was cronyism at its worst. I hope the next nominee (and President Bush) is prepared to answer the “How’s it feel to be the second choice?” questions that will be inevitable.
The death of the 2000th soldier — it’s a damn shame that the anti-war crowd has found cause for celebration at the death of another soldier. Soldiers die in war. We are at war. Each of those soldiers is as heroic as the next. And the 2001 soldier will be no less heroic.
Some things are worth fighting for. A free Iraq is worth fighting for. A free Middle East is worth fighting for. A world free of terrorism is worth fighting for.
My friends believed that, too.
The people that are against a free Iraq are people that don’t believe that anything is worth fighting for.
Which is why they are miserable creatures.
Oil-for-food kickbacks — More than 4,500 companies took part in the United Nations oil-for-food program. And it looks like more than half of them paid illegal surcharges and kickbacks to Saddam Hussein.
Just one more reason why the US needs to completely and immediately abandon the corrupt and ineffective UN.
This latest report lends even more credence to the Den Beste Theory that France was opposed to invasion in part for fear that once Saddam was toppled we’d discover how much they’d been violating sanctions.
Yep. Freakin’ Cheese-eating surrender monkeys.
France was opposed to invasion in part for fear that once Saddam was toppled we’d discover how much they’d been violating sanctions. But the main reason that France opposed the invasion was the loss of its cozy deals with Saddam. Remember, with the French it’s always money over morals. If the French are not embarrassed by these revelations, then it isn’t possible for them to be embarrassed by their own behavior no matter what they do.
Heal quickly, Robbie.
Let us hope that the Office of the Vice-President was fully cooperative with the Volcker enquiry. The recollections of the former CEO of Halliburton, about how Iraq paid for its substantial dealings with that company during the 1990s, would perhaps be useful.
The Counterproliferation Division at the CIA might well have useful information, in view of their close attention to trade with Iraq.
Extract from interview of November 24, 2004
Paul Volcker: Look, we have problems with the American government.
Charlie Rose: Really?
Paul Volcker: Yeah. At times. I think all that is going to be solved, but I can’t say that the American government has been eager, or officials of the American government have been particularly eager in some cases. So.
Charlie Rose: Like what part of the government? The executive branch?
Paul Volcker: I’m talking about the executive branch.
Charlie Rose: OK, and you’re talking about the Energy Department or are you talking about the White House? Are you talking about the Defense Department?
Paul Volcker: Well, frankly more than one department — more than one department has not been eager to.