Truth taking a back seat
Here’s something to keep in mind as General Petraeus tries (likely in vain) to give an accurate picture of events in Iraq:
We’ve reached a grotesque low point when scoring political points means more to our legislators than winning a war.
Sad but true, and also very familiar, which is likely why MoveOn.org felt compelled to take an ad calling the general “General Betray Us?,” and Chuck Schumer feels compelled to credit surge success thusly:
The inability of American soldiers to protect these tribes from Al Qaeda said to these tribes, “We have to fight Al Qaeda ourselves.”
Interestingly enough, Schumer’s characterization of American troops as inept has been removed from his Web site, though we all know what he meant. But hey, don’t question his patriotism.
Petraeus’ testimony is being live-blogged here. And Cindy Sheehan prefers he not be allowed to speak.
Meanwhile, Don Surber is reporting that support for the surge has climbed from 19 percent to 35 percent since July. Related, trust in the military is far higher than it is for pols in D.C. So, you know, maybe now isn’t the best time to be trashing the general or the troops.
Then again, as noted at the beginning of the post, what is right or honest has little to do with anything these days.