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Iraqi Official Chooses Cartoons Over Congressman

Iraq’s national security adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie enjoys his cartoon

“But this is my favorite television show”

In today’s Washington Post article, Lawmakers Describe ‘Being Slimed in the Green Zone’, writer Jonathan Weisman reports that misleading biographies of visiting Democratic Congressmen are being disseminated in Iraq to “Iraqi officials, U.S. officials and uniformed military of no particular rank.”

Click to read the bio. Hat Tip: ‘Think Progress’

The article also mentions how Iraq’s national security adviser enjoys a good cartoon.

Among the congressional delegation visiting Iraq when the bios were discovered were Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), Rep. Jon Porter (R-Nev.) and Rep. Ellen O. Tauscher (D-Calif.). The bios list nitpicked statements made by the legislators:

For one, the quotations appeared to be selected to divide the visitors into those who are with the war effort and those who are against. For another, they were not exactly accurate. Under “latest Iraq vote,” Tauscher’s bio noted that she had voted in favor of legislation requiring the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq within 120 days of the bill’s enactment.

She did vote that way — in May. On Aug. 2, Tauscher voted in favor of her own bill, which mandates that troops be granted a leave from combat at least as long as their last combat deployment before being shipped back to Iraq. That vote might have been a little too popular with the soldiers she was meeting, Tauscher said.

With tightly controlled visits to the Green Zone even our representatives aren’t getting the full picture. The inclusion of false bios adds to the obscene degree the military under the Bush administration will go to to mislead American citizens and even American military personnel.

With presumably the best intentions, it is still unfathomably sad how in the most serious office in the world, one man could make such child-like decisions about the fate of the Middle-East and America.

What was that ironic piece of wisdom Cheney said a while back?

Oh ya, that’s it.

With a child mentality of his own, Iraq’s national security adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie is said to have preferred his cartoon over discussing Iraqi security forces:

But even such tight control could not always filter out the bizarre world inside the barricades. At one point, the three were trying to discuss the state of Iraqi security forces with Iraq’s national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, but the large, flat-panel television set facing the official proved to be a distraction.

Rubaie was watching children’s cartoons.

When Moran [D-Va.] asked him to turn it off, Rubaie protested with a laugh and said, “But this is my favorite television show,” Moran recalled.

Let’s see how the Republican Jon Porter tries to spin this. You won’t believe this next bit:

Porter confirmed the incident, although he tried to paint the scene in the best light, noting that at least they had electricity.

“I don’t disagree it was an odd moment, but I did take a deep breath and say, ‘Wait a minute, at least they are using the latest technology, and they are monitoring the world”

Yes Congressman Porter, at least the Green Zone has electricity so the Iraqi national security adviser can watch cartoons on a large flat-panel television.

My God.

“Monitoring the world” of the Cartoon Network will not stop the unnecessary killings, rapes, and dismemberments in Iraq.

Even more dumbfounding, “It was the bio sheets that seemed to annoy the members of Congress the most.” Out of all things they saw in the Iraqi war zone, their own personal bio sheets annoyed the legislators the most? Are you serious?

Simply put, the longer large scale U.S. forces are in Iraq, the harder it will be to bring them home. The easiest path for any politician is to point blame and keep our sons, daughters, fathers and mothers there.

The longer we are there in mass, the less it helps the Iraqis. Don’t be fooled.

There is going to be horrible conflict in the region whenever we pull out. There is no good time, there is no good solution. More flat-screen televisions won’t help. The best course now would be to follow the plan proposed by the head of Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Joe Biden, and do our best to keep the bloodshed to a minimum:

A Plan to Hold Iraq Together
Iraq: A Way Forward
Iraq: A Way Forward (updated from his campaign website)

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muwaffaq_al-Rubaie
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