America wakes to dying dreams, dead soldiers

This is a tragic, tragic mess, and the man, who, at least in large part, is responsible for it, still sits in the White House.

He is as determined as ever that he was and is right and that the rest of us have been and are wrong. He will not admit any mistakes. He will not really reach out for help from people who know far more than he does about, well, everything.

He is so obstinate and absurd that, if given options, all bad, he is bound to choose the worst one; namely sending more troops, (30,000 is the largest number I've heard) into that hellish quagmire called Iraq.

He would rather see thousands more of our kids blown to pieces in a civil war that is none of our business, but was, nevertheless, predicted by many, many people to whom Bush and Cheney would not listen, before they launched the biggest war crime since Hitler tried taking over Europe and did so against the will of the U.N. and millions of people around the world, including millions of Americans.

His and his administration's lies did not make for a liberating force going into Iraq but, rather, for a force seeking vengeance for crimes the Iraqis knew nothing about, while the man our government says is responsible for these crimes, the crimes of 9/11, is still free.

It was just as predictable what this man, this failed CEO, would do as CEO of America Inc. ....and he has done it.

Power, like money, unearned and undeserved is often squandered and misused.

My sincere hope is that the younger generations of Americans, whose lives will not be the same as our were, will someday forgive us for allowing an unelected man to sit in the White House, but more importantly that they never forget the lessons of election 2000.

Roberts: America wakes to dying dreams, dead soldiers:

Yes, he fired Donald Rumsfeld. And yes, he will announce next year 'a new way forward.' But listen carefully. It's clear the president is not really interested in a 'new way' at all. He still firmly believes that his old way is right, that the war was justified, that 'victory' is the only way to keep Stokesdale safe.

His own words reflect no doubt or regret: 'Iraq is a central component of defeating the extremists who want to establish a safe haven in the Middle East, extremists who would use their safe haven from which to attack the United States. This is really the calling of our time, that is, to defeat the extremists and radicals.'

But the president has not only lost the 'battle for hearts and minds' across the Arab world, he's lost it across the United States. The people of Bapchule and Oxford no longer believe his words or trust his judgment. Virtually everything he ever said to them about the war — from 'Mission Accomplished' to 'absolutely, we're winning' — has been wrong.

Once, Americans might have shared his vision of a free, self-governing Iraq, but not any more. He has squandered their trust and betrayed their patriotism. The parents of Thibodaux and Cheektowaga no longer want to sacrifice their children to a lost cause.