The Out-of-Touch Administration

A mile-long list could be made of topics, issues and instances where the Bush administration has been out-of-touch with reality, with Congress, with the will of the people, with Repubs, with Democrats, with facts, with ethics, with the Constitution, with the rule of law, with democratic principles and with normal human behavior in general. But, I have to say, to use Alberto Gonzales as an example of a loyal Bushie who is out-of-touch (as one Repub “official” was quoted saying today) would be a misnomer. Gonzales has been and is totally, but TOTALLY in touch with his duties as outlined by his masters. He has followed every order from Karl Rove and Dick Cheney to the letter. However, the most glaring case in point of the Bush administration being out of touch is its latest strategy in Baghdad. The New York Times reported this morning, “American military commanders in Baghdad are trying a radical new strategy to quell the widening sectarian violence by building a 12-foot-high, three-mile-long wall separating a historic Sunni enclave from Shiite neighborhoods.” The Berlin Wall divided East Berlin from West Berlin for 28 years. We have had to put up with Ur-Republican President Ronald Reagan being held up as a saint for saying “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” And now, that same self-righteous Republican Party is building a wall in Baghdad to divide Sunnis from Shiites. The American military said in a written statement that “the wall is one of the centerpieces of a new strategy by coalition and Iraqi forces to break the cycle of sectarian violence.” Any first grader (and a not-too-bright first grader at that) could tell the Bush administration that this wall will only make the situation worse between Sunnis and Shiites. The NYT reported that Abu Hassan, a doctor in Adhamiya, said the wall would transform the residents into caged animals. “It’s unbelievable that they treat us in such an inhumane manner,” he (Hassan) said in a telephone interview. “They’re trying to isolate us from other parts of Baghdad. The hatred will be much greater between the two sects.” It’s an unspeakably nasty, mean-spirited, doomed-to-failure and out-of-touch tactic. Unless…. Unless, the Bush administration wants to build up hatred between Sunnis and Shiites. Ah, then, building a wall in Baghdad to foment unrest, chaos, hatred, and fighting that the US cannot quell and does not appear to be responsible for makes perfect sense. What all thinking human beings on this planet have to understand is that the plan for keeping US military forces in Iraq has nothing to do with ending the war or peace or democracy or freedom. The Republicans plan to keep a military presence in Iraq forever. And that plan involves dividing and conquering. That's it.