Rumsfeld shifts blame

[Dracon II]

Never minding the fact that Euro's can be notorious for Government formation. Recently in Holland it took 8 months to form a Government after the election.

I'm not sure what electoral system the Iraqis used... but if it was proportional representation it's going to take much longer to form government than in a simple first past the post system like the US or UK.

[Imran Siddiqui]

he simply said the process is taking too long.

And that is why he has no clue what is going on. I'm surprised they've made so much progress with all the fighting since the election.

[Drake Tungsten]

And that is why he has no clue what is going on. I'm surprised they've made so much progress with all the fighting since the election.

Oh, so because you are surprised and Rumsfeld doesn't agree with your position, he "has no clue what is going on"? Talk about unjustified arrogance...

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

And that is why he has no clue what is going on. I'm surprised they've made so much progress with all the fighting since the election.

Oh, so because you are surprised and Rumsfeld doesn't agree with your position, he "has no clue what is going on"? Talk about unjustified arrogance...

When he has no clue about what is going on then he has no clue what is going on. Why doesn't he get all pissy that China hasn't become a Western Democracy and what's taking so long? It'd probably do more good.

Oh wow... a country that has ethnicities that are waiting to get at each other's throats are talking a few months to come up with a government... My lord! That's incredible

But of course, Rumsfeld can never be wrong to you. No, no, it isn't that he doesn't understand the situation. He is the only one that understands and the Iraqis are just sitting around doing nothing... riiiiiight .

[Admiral]

The fact is that this is the first election in Iraq, in which there is currently a civil war, as well as various distinct cultural groups. This means that the liberal model of majoritarian rule just can't apply. In order to have any form of stability in Iraq, the government must assure representation and provide protection to the various minorties, which, in the case of the Kurds, are ethnicly very distinct from the Shias and Sunnies. The government also cannot afford to have any blind spots, or signs of weakness, as this would only be capitalized on by the insurgency. As a frame of reference, the US, without all those tiresome ethnic differences, and without an ongoing war, took from 1783 (end of Revolutionary War) until 1789 (ratification of Constitution by majority of states) to form an effective government.

Also, as an aside, I can't stress enough the importance of this government. For all the US effort, where the war will be won or lost is within the Iraqi parliament, and will be through Iraqi politics. When you get right down to it, this conflict, like all others, is political, and the lesson that we learned in Vietnam is that no matter how many battles we win, if we don't address the politics of the matter, we will still lose.

[Imran Siddiqui]

^ What he said.

[Drake Tungsten]

But of course, Rumsfeld can never be wrong to you.

Yeah, that's the reason...

[Ted Striker]

What an idiot.

But no surprise.

[DRoseDARs]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

Rumsfeld is acting like they haven't been trying for the last 2.5 freaking months to get a compromise so they could get that done.

No, he's not. He's saying that 2.5 months is long damn time and that they need to get this **** wrapped up. God forbid someone tell it like it is...

Nevermind the fact that it took the United States 8 years to institutionally remake itself from the Articles of Confederation (ratified March 1, 1781) to the US Constitution (ratified June 21, 1788)...

[DRoseDARs]

...not counting the time it took to effect the changes ratified in the USC to correct the failings of the AoC nor the time that that little war we had before the AoC was ratified took.

[Drake Tungsten]

The Iraqis haven't even started work on their constitution yet, so I fail to see how your comparison is relevant. How long it took to choose the delegates to the Constitutional Convention would be a more appropriate fact, although the patent absurdity of comparing 1776 America with 2005 Iraq would still exist...

[DRoseDARs]

Yeah, because the American Revolutionaries were united in the cause of a free nation. The Iraqi Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds have this little problem of hating each others guts...

[Drake Tungsten]

That, of course, is the only difference...

[Ted Striker]

I'll take the blame on this one.

Rumsfeld is still mad from that one time when I dissed his momma.

I said "Rumsfeld, yo momma is so stupid, she took a spoon to the Superbowl!"

[DRoseDARs]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten
That, of course, is the only difference...

...which shouldn't take more than a few weeks to work out. Two and a half months is far too long to stop the hate.
[/RUMSFELD]