Chomsky and Bennis Want Policy Changes

Update: See also AP: Obama's Islam Success Depends On Israel and Arno J. Mayer's The Future of Israel and the Decline of the American Empire.

As President Obama moves on the Middle East these last few weeks, reactions are mixed.

The rightwing is predictably disingenuous. See National Review's Michael Rubin caught writing about Obama without listening to, or reading the speech and Charles Krauthammer.

Words matters, but action counts more.

Noam Chomsky and Phyllis Bennis remind us how far we have to go to inject some humanism in our foreign policy in that region.

Noam Chomsky:

A CNN headline, reporting Obama's plans for his June 4 Cairo address, reads 'Obama looks to reach the soul of the Muslim world.' Perhaps that captures his intent, but more significant is the content hidden in the rhetorical stance, or more accurately, omitted.

Phyllis Bennis:

The reality of power – that the U.S. is still the financial, military, diplomatic and political superpower patron on which Israel depends – was not reflected in the press conference that followed the meeting.

Raves on Torture Speech, Awaiting Action

Update II: McClatchy: Cheney talk full of well lies

Update: Text of Obama address on national security

No thinking American wants President Obama's performance to merit Charles Krauthammer's making a valid point in his Obama in Bush Clothing column. That would be unusual for Krauthammer.

Progressives are waiting. Reaction can be summed in Glenn Greenwald's piece:

Obama's speech this morning, like most Obama speeches, made pretty points in rhetorically effective ways about the Constitution, our values, transparency, oversight, the state secrets privilege, and the rule of law. But his actions, in many critical cases, have repeatedly run afoul of those words. And while his well-crafted speech can have a positive impact on our debate and contained some welcome and rare arguments from a high-level political leader -- changes in the terms of the debate are prerequisites to changes in policy and the value of rhetoric shouldn't be understated -- they're still just words until his actions become consistent with them.

Krauthammer: Wrong About Iraq as Usual, Worse than a Broken Clock

Update III: U.S. Moves the goalposts in Iraq, again

Update II: ‘Wave Of Violence’ Against Women In Iraq Undercuts White House’s Claims Of Success

Update: Krauthammer has been lying all along (imagine that): 20,000 vets' brain injuries not listed in Pentagon tally.

Charles Krauthammer in this morning's Post brings more happy news from Iraq: Now, really, really, it's going well; our illegal war is working.

The violence in Iraq has been dramatically reduced. Political allegiances have been radically reversed. The revival of ordinary life in many cities is palpable. Something important is happening.

"(P)alpable." Let's take a glance at this morning's news. Juan Cole's blog shows us:

Friday, November 23, 2007
Dozens Killed in Bombings,
Clashes 3 Million Iranian Pilgrims Expected
41% of Jihadis are Saudis

That doesn't sound so good to establish a client oil state for us.

Maybe that day was just an outlier day, let's look at Thursday:

Thursday, November 22, 2007
Abu Abd and Baghdad Security
US Soldier Killed
dozens of Iraqis Killed or Wounded

Here's a second glance:

Reuters reports civil war violence in Iraq for Wednesday. Excerpts:
BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier and an Iraqi interpreter were killed ... Three U.S. soldiers were wounded. ...

DIWANIYA - Police arrested 30 people, accused of assassinations and other attacks against Iraqi security forces ...

RAMADI - At least six people were killed when a car exploded ... with 15 wounded...

BAGHDAD - Three policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their patrol in Mansour district of western Baghdad, police said...

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi army found six decomposed bodies buried...

LONDON - Two British military personnel were killed in Iraq on Tuesday...

Today, is Nov. 23, and only 30 Americans killed so far this month. Wonderful news.

Only a few hundred Iraqis killed this month. Millions dislocated and moved from their homes. Segregated neighborhoods. A country occupied against its will.

Charles Krauthammer, the neocon chickenhawk, is really right this time, he says. How could we have ever doubted him?

You heard the saying: "Even a broken clock is right twice a day"?

The neocons aren't even that good.

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