One of the hidden horrors of Bush's war

Parents taking on the burden, emotional, financial, physical, of caring for their child, the wounded Iraqi War vet.

Quoting DistributorcapNY blogging over at Jonestown:

One of the most depressing and insidious sides of this (or any) war has been the role thousands of families must take when their child comes home injured from Iraq. Soldiers - often young and unmarried, have turned to their parents for emotional, financial, medical and logistical support. And for these parents, it has meant delaying retirement, working overtime or extra jobs, moving to another city, putting off any expenses, dealing with the governmental bureaucracy and completely re-arranging their entire lives as they are forced into the role of long-term care takers. It is estimated that over 10,000 Iraq veterans are now dependent on their parents for care. This is heartbreaking to the nth degree. In previous conflicts, many of the injuries sustained in Iraq would have been fatal. Army physician Dr. Ronald Glasser called this “a war of disability, not a war of deaths” in his book Wounded: Vietnam to Iraq.

This war was supposed to be another notch on your manly belt, huh, Georgie? This was the chosen battleground to make you beloved and popular. No wonder you freaked out over Fallujah:

Among the anecdotes in "Wiser in Battle: A Soldier's Story" is an arresting portrait of Bush after four contractors were killed in Fallujah in 2004, triggering a fierce U.S. response that was reportedly egged on by the president.

During a videoconference with his national security team and generals, Sanchez writes, Bush launched into what he described as a "confused" pep talk:

"Kick ass!" he quotes the president as saying. "If somebody tries to stop the march to democracy, we will seek them out and kill them! We must be tougher than hell! This Vietnam stuff, this is not even close. It is a mind-set. We can't send that message. It's an excuse to prepare us for withdrawal."

"There is a series of moments and this is one of them. Our will is being tested, but we are resolute. We have a better way. Stay strong! Stay the course! Kill them! Be confident! Prevail! We are going to wipe them out! We are not blinking!"

No wonder you can't end this war. It would mean defeat, wouldn't it? A blot on your name for the history books.



So make the next president fix your mess. That's how you've lived your life, indifferent to the inevitable consequences of your idiotic gut-driven actions.

"President Bush has always been an instinctive leader more than an intellectual leader," McClellan wrote. "He is not one to delve into all the possible policy options—including sitting around engaging in extended debate about them—before making a choice. Rather, he chooses based on his gut and his most deeply held convictions. Such was the case with Iraq."

In an interview Tuesday, McClellan said he retains great admiration and respect for Bush.

"There were things we did right and things we did wrong," he said. "Unfortunately, much of what went wrong overshadowed the good things we did."

He said the Bush administration fell into the "permanent campaign" mode that has tainted much of Washington.

In the book—subtitled "Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception"—McClellan wrote that Bush's top advisers "played right into his thinking, doing little to question it or cause him to pause long enough to fully consider the consequences before moving forward."

"Contradictory intelligence was largely ignored or simply disregarded," he wrote.

In Iraq, McClellan added, Bush saw "his opportunity to create a legacy of greatness" that is available only to wartime presidents.

Hope the costume party was worth the incoming disgrace and historical ignominy.