[JohnR]

And the media has still been quiet about the situation with our troops on the ground. Regardless of whether going in was foolish or not, the sad fact is the Bush Admin & Rummy made one colossal upgefucht after another over there. But a lot of hard work and good leadership by our troops has made a positive impact and due to the Surge, the corner may have been turned for good. But that does not get mentioned.

Originally Posted by spence

Over there?

You mean how Egypt has slid further away from Democracy?

How Iran is exploiting our weakened global position to persue nukes?

How Saudia Arabia continues to oppress women while we enrich their kingdom?

And this is all worth 4,000+ dead and a trillion dollars siezed from the US Taxpayer in a marketing scheme and borrored from a communist government?

Yes, there have been meaningful advances made in Iraq, but we have to date seen little that indicates the Iraqi's are capable of running a government on their own. The very same sectarian divide that Saddam kept quiet under an iron fist is still there waiting to explode.

Our International standing (read LEVERAGE) is still in the dumper, and even more so with the fall of the US Dollar.

And with all of this, America, the great nation she is is still the best place in the world (unlike some, I don't expect to be speaking Farsii any time soon).

Best case for the Bush legacy is that he's remembered as an incompetent dope who poisoned his administration with other equally incompetent dopes and arrogant, fanatic idiologues. How the pragmatic voices of reason were time and time again tossed aside in favor of those who would tow the line, and use every issue as campaign fodder without regard to impact of the American way of life.

Worst case is that either McCain or Obama makes great strides to rebuild the American brand, which I think either is capable of doing, as this will wipe Bush's folly's with a neon highlighter.

-spence