He's His Own Man

The second Iraq war is the worst American foreign policy blunder in my lifetime, possibly of all time.  It was wrong from the start, and based on a lie.  The global ramifications of our invasion are felt today, and will undoubtedly last well into the future.  One can draw a straight line from the destabilization of Iraq in 2003 to ISIS, the militant murderers so much in the news these days.

Saddam Hussein was a nasty tyrant, but many are now wishing he was still around.  He was a bloody, brutal bastard, but at least his secular regime did not allow Al Qaeda to set up operations in Iraq.  (As Bill Maher put it, "He kept the shit at shoe-level.")

But someone insisted that Saddam had to go, and go he did.  Since then, Iraq has turned into a safe haven and training ground for terrorist crazies.  ISIS is a direct descendant of the older group, Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), which emerged in the chaos following Saddam's ouster.

So, who was the genius who decided that the U.S. must invade Iraq?  Oh yeah, George W. Bush.  Dubya.  The Decider.

Dubya got plenty of great advice before and during our little Mesopotamian misadventures, not only from Dick-head Cheney, but also from neo-con warmongers like Paul Wolfowitz and Michael Hayden.

Dubya's little brother Jeb Bush is, at this early point, the most likely Republican presidential nominee for 2016.  Jeb just announced his team of advisers, and guess who's on it?  Wolfowitz, Hayden, and a whole bunch of others who previously played advisor to Dubya, or to his father, or to both.

Just prior to this announcement, Jeb gave a speech where he declared his love for his family, but emphasized "I'm my own man."

Jeb says he's his own man, then promptly surrounds himself with the same advisers that worked for his brother and his daddy.  Can you say "security blanket"?

Jeb says he's his own man, but has also stated that he never disagreed with anything his brother did as president, presumably including the Iraq war.  Bushes do no wrong, or at least don't admit it.  "C'mon, big brother George -- you know I love you.  I'd never say anything bad about ya.  No -- Please don't give me another purple nurple.  Ow!  Quit it, George!  Oww!!!"

Jeb has spent his adult life trading on the family name.  He's essentially a professional "Bush."  But he's his own man.  Sure he is.

Between now and November 2016, how many times do you suppose Jeb's gonna take questions about Iraq and brother Dubya?  This could be fun.