[Vision2020] PNAC: Rebuilding America's Defenses

[david sarff]

Ted, I am reminded of something in this discussion. You have likely read 
this old yet still relevant work but Sunil ( and some others) might enjoy 
Buckminster Fullers descriptions of “ Great Pirates”.
http://reactor-core.org:80/operating-manual-for-spaceship-earth.html

>Sunil et. al.
>
>As to Baker and Cheney and their agreements or not on tactics, etc. I'm not
>able to comment...However...
>
>The nation building/democratization of the Middle East talk was/is not just
>"window dressing," for many who supported the Iraq invasion.  Nor for many
>was the support to topple Saddam to eliminate a cruel dictator just a
>cynical pose to establish military bases in the Middle East.  Nor was/is 
>the
>desire to further Christianity in the Middle East insincere on the part of
>many passionate Christians.  Nor the belief of many that if we introduced
>more western styled free market business and technology we would be doing
>the Middle East a favor.  Many also wished to protect Israel from hostile
>regimes in the region.  And of course many sincerely believed that Saddam
>had ties to Al Quada and the 9/11 attacks, though it was rather well known
>that Saddam and Bin Laden were enemies, that Bin Laden thought Saddam was 
>an
>Islamic heretic, of sorts.  So the main issue that was utilized to motivate
>the public to accept the invasion, Iraq sponsored terrorism and WMD, was
>sincerely believed to be a significant threat to the US by many.  Even 
>Colin
>Powell, I think, sincerely believed the evidence he presented, as US
>Secretary of State, to the UN in February 2003, regarding Iraq's WMDs,
>though later when Powell discovered the manufactured nature of this
>"evidence" he felt his UN presentation to be one of the lowest points of 
>his
>political career.
>
>Regardless of how sincere and noble were many of the reasons believed for
>the Iraq war, the very questionable nature of the Iraq WMD
>evidence presented as the primary threat that demanded a pre-emptive war
>(or we may face a "mushroom cloud over America," as both President Bush and
>Condi Rice warned apocalyptically in the months before the invasion) is 
>hard
>to explain except by deliberate cynical manipulation and deception of the
>public and the US Congress; a form of deception that, given it's goal of
>motivating the nation to accept war, is unconscionable. Till this deception
>is fully investigated, and those responsible held accountable, our
>democracy remains undermined, given that this sort of deception can happen
>again under the assumption it can be gotten away with.
>
>Though I think protecting US access to the Middle East's huge fossil fuel
>reserves, in the context of the inevitable depletion of this non-renewable
>and absolutely critical resource during the next century, was the raison
>d'etre for the Iraq invasion, for the small group of the most powerful,
>savvy, and realistic military and business/corporate strategists doing long
>term planning, I think most people who supported the war had noble goals of
>other sorts.
>
>As the truism goes "the road to hell is paved with good intentions."
>
>Ted Moffett
>
>
>On 12/27/06, Sunil Ramalingam <sunilramalingam at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>Ted,
>>
>>Is the 'Nation Building' talk from the neocons just window dressing?  I
>>tend
>>to think there was a combination of realists (Cheney/Rumsfeld) and the
>>dreamers (Kristol/Frum) that pushed the war forward, though I think
>>realists
>>were in the driver's seat.  The neocons certainly gave them cover.
>>
>>Baker is usually described as a realist.  Do he and Cheney really
>>disagree?
>>Maybe on tactics?
>>
>>Sunil
>>
>>
>> >From: "Ted Moffett" <starbliss at gmail.com>
>> >To: "Sunil Ramalingam" <sunilramalingam at hotmail.com>
>> >CC: vision2020 at moscow.com
>> >Subject: Re: [Vision2020] PNAC: Rebuilding America's Defenses
>> >Date: Thu, 28 Dec 2006 00:24:39 +0000
>> >
>> >Sunil et. al.
>> >
>> >Thank you.
>> >
>> >I should add that I read through Juan Cole's"Top Ten Myths About Iraq"
>>and
>> >found this a well reasoned and factually based piece.
>> >
>> >I would love for everyone subscribed to Vision2020 to read "Rebuilding
>> >America's Defenses" from the PNAC site, a serious work of academic
>>military
>> >planning, completed before the 9/11 attacks, to understand that dramatic
>> >increases in US military forces in the Middle East was in the works
>>before
>> >9/11.
>> >
>> >The billions being spent on the Iraq war, and the death and suffering
>> >inflicted, is worth it, to some of the cynical realists who control
>>foreign
>> >policy, given this simple equation:
>> >
>> >112 billion barrels of oil (Iraq's minimum estimated reserves) X $60 a
>> >barrel equals 6,720,000,000,000 dollars, enough to pay for at least 13
>> >Afghanistan/Iraq wars given the costs so far, though of course this
>> >estimate
>> >of revenue generated from this oil is not all profit.
>> >
>> >Assuming oil goes over 100 dollars a barrel, which many experts assume 
>>is
>> >only a matter of time, and do the math again.
>> >
>> >And of course our military presence in Iraq can help to secure far more
>> >than
>> >just Iraq's oil reserves, but Saudi Arabia's as well.  We can do the 
>>math
>> >again with the figure of Saudi Arabia's estimates of 260 billion barrels
>>of
>> >oil reserves...enough to pay for at least another 30 Afghanistan/Iraq
>>wars,
>> >at $60 a barrel
>> >
>> >When considering the financial stake in protecting oil resources, the
>>Iraq
>> >war is a bargain.
>> >
>> >Ted Moffett
>> >
>> >
>> >On 12/27/06, Sunil Ramalingam <sunilramalingam at hotmail.com> wrote:
>> >>
>> >>Ted,
>> >>
>> >>I certainly think your post spells out the real reason for the Iraq 
>>War,
>> >>and
>> >>the reason we are building permanent bases.  The ISG did not disagree
>>with
>> >>this long-term goal in its report.
>> >>
>> >>Sunil
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> >From: "Ted Moffett" <starbliss at gmail.com>
>> >> >To: "Sunil Ramalingam" <sunilramalingam at hotmail.com>
>> >> >CC: vision2020 at moscow.com
>> >> >Subject: PNAC: Rebuilding America's Defenses
>> >> >Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 11:58:17 -0800
>> >> >
>> >> >Sunil et. al.
>> >> >
>> >> >Consider this escalation of the Iraq war (I'm not going to use the
>> >> >euphemism
>> >> >"surge") in the broader context of the Pentagon's goals to increase
>>the
>> >> >size
>> >> >of the US military for a variety of global operations, a goal that
>>once
>> >> >achieved may become the semi-permanent size of US forces, Iraq war or
>> >>not.
>> >> >A good justification is to "win" the war in Iraq via committing more
>> >> >troops.
>> >> >
>> >> >But one way or the other, I believe our military bases will remain in
>> >>Iraq
>> >> >for decades.  Iraq has the third largest reserves of petroleum, 
>>behind
>> >> >Saudi
>> >> >Arabia and Canada, and the Middle East overall has the most oil of 
>>any
>> >> >area.  The US cannot take the long term risk of Middle East oil under
>> >>the
>> >> >control of regimes unfriendly to the US, and regime change in Iran,
>>the
>> >> >dominant threat from a potential anti-US/anti-Israeli Islamic super
>> >> >power, has been the main goal of US Middle East policy, with Iraq a
>>mere
>> >> >stepping stone, as the Project For A New American Century spelled out
>>in
>> >> >the
>> >> >late 1990s, in the academic study "Rebuilding America's Defenses"
>> >>presented
>> >> >on the PNAC web site:
>> >> >
>> >> >http://www.newamericancentury.org/RebuildingAmericasDefenses.pdf
>> >> >
>> >> >-------------
>> >> >The national security and economy of the US in fifty years, or
>>whenever
>> >> >petroleum depletion signals the fossil fuel golden age is ending, 
>>will
>> >> >demand that we can guarantee access to those resources.  Whoever has
>> >>access
>> >> >to the remaining fossil fuel reserves, by force if necessary, when 
>>not
>> >> >enough remains to distribute these resources as though all nations on
>> >>Earth
>> >> >have a right to access, will be in control of the global
>> >>economy.  Unless,
>> >> >of course, there are alternative energy sources available to most all
>> >>major
>> >> >nations on Earth, that are practical and affordable, that can replace
>> >> >fossil
>> >> >fuels on the grand scale of energy consumption we now take for 
>>granted
>> >>from
>> >> >fossil fuels.
>> >> >
>> >> >Ted Moffett
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >On 12/27/06, Sunil Ramalingam <sunilramalingam at hotmail.com> wrote:
>> >> >>
>> >> >>http://www.juancole.com/2006/12/top-ten-myths-about-iraq-2006-1.html
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >>It appears that the decision for a 'troop surge' has been made, and
>>now
>> >>a
>> >> >>rationale has to be created to justify that decision.  To what end?
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Sunil
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >>=======================================================
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>> >> >>
>> >>
>> >>
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>>
>>
>>=======================================================
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>>=======================================================
>>


>=======================================================
>  List services made available by First Step Internet,
>  serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
>                http://www.fsr.net
>           mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
>=======================================================

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