Gung Ho Chauvinist Rants Raking In The Bucks in Dallas

The proudly self-chosen identification with Darth Vader that Cheney has shown seems to have been upstaged by his junk-yard dog persona last night in Dallas. Threatening Iran with war and Iraq with perpetual war established him once more as the ugly American personified. His appeal is to the lowest element, which he represents inimicably.

It amazes me that there isn't anyone with the acuity to laugh aloud at lines like 'no one will trust America again' if we leave Iraq. As if anyone could trust an America that attacked a country unilaterally on created lies for that purpose.

Dick Cheney spoke to the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth on Friday."Nobody wants to resolve this in any means other than peacefully, if it's at all possible," Mr. Cheney told the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth.

"But in the final analysis, the worst outcome would be a situation in which Iran is sort of let loose, if you will, in that part of the world with an inventory of nuclear weapons prepared to be used against other nations in the region or to
dominate that part of the globe and to threaten not only the United States, but many of our friends and allies out there as well."

In his speech, Mr. Cheney also rejected proposals that have arisen in Congress to defund the war in Iraq or to immediately withdraw or set a timeline for troop removal there.

"We will prevail in the long run by holding up an alternative to the ideologies of hatred and resentment," he said. "A free democratic Iraq will be a strategic partner in the heart of the Middle East, helping us fight and win the war on terror."

The vice president said Iran was trying to topple the government of Lebanon, supporting insurgents inside Iraq and Afghanistan, and enriching uranium, which could be used for a nuclear weapon.

Iran insists that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, and it has denied providing military support for insurgents in Iraq. In Lebanon, Iran has supported the militant Hezbollah movement, which opposes the pro-Western government.

Mr. Cheney said Iranian leaders must be stopped.

"The president's made it clear that we have taken no options off the table," Mr. Cheney said. "It's the only responsible position for him to take."

Mr. Cheney's speech comes a day after Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that Iranian leaders have given assurances that they will try to stop the flow of projectiles and other weapons from Iran to Iraq.
(snip)
"No one can now plead ignorance of the potential consequences of walking away from Iraq, of withdrawing coalition forces before Iraqis can defend themselves or control their sovereign territory," Mr. Cheney said. "Every tyrant in that region and well beyond would take note of our failed resolve, and friend and foe alike would decide that America's word cannot be trusted.

"This would only dissipate much of the effort that's already gone into fighting the global war on terror, and the blows would rain down heavily on those who had had the courage to stand with America in this conflict."

Of course every party needs its clown, and sadly this is what keeps those GoPerv donors digging deep into their pockets. The 'base' still has a taste for blood and guts, and pays well to hear it all rehashed without the gloss of facts. Stopping Iranian leaders sure is the language that makes them pound each other on the back and grunt, while it tells the world we're back in the stone age and they cannot expect intelligent life in the U.S.

When damages are assessed, hopefully the funds earned by locker room tough talk can be diverted to repair the harm his lies are doing and have done. The wounded and all those American families deprived of their wage-earning parents should be near the first in line. And I don't think they'll be pouding those fatcats on the back and telling them they've earned the trust of the world. They may send them pound cakes in prison, without the file inside.