Dear George Bush: Atta Boy!

When dealing with a President who less than one-third of the nation appreciates, it can be easy to slam the guy. But just because a leader consistently shows no respect for the troops he so eagerly deploys, or for the reputation and future health of the nation he leads, doesn’t mean everything he does is bad. Occasionally the billionaire head of the U.S. gets his head banged into a wall enough to at least encourage something close to the right thing is done.

U.S. Will Talk with Iran, Syria About Iraqi Stability

The U.S. and Iraqi governments will invite ambassadors from Iran and Syria to discuss security in Iraq, says Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

“We hope that all governments will seize this opportunity to improve their relations with Iraq,” Rice said, “and to work for peace and stability in the region.”

The surprise announcement came as Rice spoke on Capitol Hill with Defense Secretary Robert Gates. They were there to ask the Senate to support President Bush’s request for $99.6 billion to pay for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Could it be some type of smokescreen? Definitely. But the thing is, the official stance for the U.S. on Iran up to now has been that it’s a nation of Nazi murderers. You just know that Bush hates himself for reaching out to them in any way, shape or form.

So sure, the PNAC crowd will still likely get its way and U.S. bombs will be dropping in Tehran soon enough. But the fact is that, after you invade a nation and create a bloody civil war, it starts looking more and more like you’re a nation of insane maniacs when you refuse to speak to said nation’s neighbors about the whole thing, even in a group setting.

We’ll see how it all plays out, of course, but good decisions need to be recognized. Maybe it’s not enough to be optimistic that this will change your strategy of “kill everyone, let Christ and Exxon sort it out” but it’s something.

We understand the U.S. is still all about strength and would never listen to anyone about anything, and that you already have your mouthpiece letting the world know that you think diplomacy is a load of crap.

“We are not engaging in diplomatic recognition of Iran. We are not engaging in bilateral talks with Iran,” Tony Snow said. “A number of people have been characterizing US participation in a regional meeting as a change in policy, it is nothing of the sort.”

Regardless, we must encourage any move that gives the U.S. a semblance of humanity. Being at the table is something.

So atta boy, George. Now let’s work on not treating injured U.S. veterans like their annoying piles of waste. Baby steps, George, baby steps.

–WKW

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