Because they don’t believe in democracy and as authoritarian sociopaths, they worship power.

If Robert Gates had any self-respect and was anything other than a pathetic Bush yes-man, he’d immediately resign in protest.

That would explain an awful lot, wouldn’t it….?

/sarc off

One more thing; if an organization is better by being “big and successful as Halliburton” and “providing a large range of services” why do conservatives hate large government (which is a democratic/republic they can take part in) but love large corporations (which is essencially an oligarchy)?

Why do conservatives hate our form of government?
Why do conservatives hate our freedoms?

Truth is, 2 years later, and I do not see a completion on projects. Quicker and better is only laudable if their is measurable progress on the task completed. To see NOLA today, it is the shortcomings of Halliburton or/FEMA. Pick your poison, Lib Teenie.

Hence, ladies and gentlemen, Lib Teenie’s defense for hiring illegals in NOLA–w/Bush in charge, no pesky regulations.
Republicans–taking a dangerous and tragic situation to FUBAR.

Primarily, this $50 billion would pay not only for the cost of launching air strikes against IRAN, but would also pay for U.S. Navy expenses in the Persian Gulf after any air strikes as the U.S. Navy tried to keep the Iranians from closing down oil tanker traffic in that area.

Remember, this $50 billion is in the range of what the Bush administration claimed back in 2002 that their planned invasion of Iraq would cost.

This time around, they say that no ground forces would be required in any assault on IRAN, but there would be huge expenses racked up by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy, respectively, in the air campaign and the Persian Gulf/Strait of Hormuz campaign.

Gates was kept out of the loop because the White House (Cheney and Bush) have primarily been talking with all the U.S. Navy admirals who’ve been put in place at top positions at the Pentagon, admirals who will carry out any attack against IRAN and defense of vital seaways afterward.

If this is the case, then Gates should immediately resign and go public…for the sake of our nation. Because any attack against IRAN will have a disastrous effect on the U.S. economy due to disruptions in the oil markets following any such attack.

Gates should resign. He ought not to do a Powell and pretend that staying longer will protect the troops or limit this administration’s excesses. It won’t. It will only make committing those excesses easier, which would make him an aider and abettor of them.

And it’s a sign of stupidity when we send them to fight an unnecessary and avoidable war.

And it’s a sign of incompetence when those who sent them can’t (or don’t) follow up with collateral efforts (diplomatic, economic and other) needed to enable an exit strategy.

And it’s a sign of irresponsibility when they are left without a viable or achievable mission in the midst of a sectarian civil war.

Meanwhile, our wealth and the lives of our soldiers and Iraqi citizens continues to be squandered.

The size of the company, its ability to provide a large range of services, its ability to get up and running very quickly, the fact that it does its work all over the world and not just for the U.S. government, the age and success of the company itself. All of these are grades better than other similar companies, not to mention that many smaller such companies are unwilling or too inexperienced to work in a warzone.

Like I said, companies dont get as big and successful as Halliburton has by being useless and incompetent.

Ive had my say and now Im just repeating everything. Im sure you will continue to ‘prove’ that Halliburton is a tool of Bush because they didnt provide a new car and house to every last Katrina refugee, but you cant escape the fact that both dems and Repubs have utilized the company. If you want to whine about Bush then you have to whine about Clinton, unless you wish to be intellectually dishonest.

Ok tom, this is your cue to insult me now.

Comment by John — August 30, 2007 @ 1:31 pm

I think you meant 50 billion. Easy mistake to make since these bastards have been spending BILLIONS as though is was millions.

Probably because it was realized that the military should concentrate on combat prowess rather than creating its own beauracracy focused on providing for the daily non-combat needs of the troops. The military isnt necessarily all that good at such things; witness how the Army assigns nomenclature to something as simple as a candy bar. Just my guess.

Its a sign of the wealth and power of America that we have the money and the ability to provide more than a pup-tent and a c-rat for our soldiers in the field.

Wow, Im really having to do a lot of work today. “Pantload” and “skidmark”? Is that your method of trying to distract from any rational input, do you believe such peurile additions to your posts add real substance or are you incapable of cogent discussion?

I wasnt the person to first reference Halliburton, it was one of your liberal brethren (hint: see the early posts), so perhaps your righteous indignation should be pointed elsewhere.

Halliburton was mentioned, I went after it and others decided to retort; its normally why these sites exist, for discussing and debating, though you seem intent on turning it into the DU. I suppose I could call you names too but then it would simply regress into something more like…well…more like what you have been posting. Dull.

Didn’t the armed services used to provide this for themselves not too long ago? Wonder why that changed?

Comment by LibTeenie — August 30, 2007 @ 1:36 pm”

Correct, but that “infrastructure” means WATER, ELECTRICITY, and other essentials that are REQUIRED before houses can be built. The “infrastructure” still needs to be fixed in order to build……

So if the “infrastructure” still needs to be fixed, I would say that the job was NOT done and that it was a MONEY grab!!!!!

Oh… and by the way….. Most of the companies providing the service to work on Katrina rebuilding, have been using ILLEGALS.

Do you think that if LOCAL companies were doing the job that they would CUT CORNERS like that???

Prove to us that Halliburton can do anything it’s currently doing in Iraq quicker and better than others.

Tom, you are spot on. This has been a profiteers campaign.

Its not rebuilding alone, its also general services. Halliburton wasnt contracted to rebuild private homes, its not their purview, they are utilized to provide services and expertise on infrastructure and general foundational issues.

Thats a lot of question marks…do you need a glass of water?

My comments were exactly on-point, pantload. The relationship between Halliburton, Bechtel, Blackwater, et. al. and the government as crafted by GDumbya and the Keystone Kops has institutionalized graft, greed and political misconduct to an unprecedented level. It makes political contribution scandals, senators trolling for sex in airport bathrooms and earmarks pale in comparison.

As usual, you are not really “having a spirited and polite debate”, skidmark. You are just setting up straw-man arguments to distract from the real issue at hand.

But you just go ahead and keep on kidding yourself if it makes you feel better and keeps you from having to admit that you drank the kool-aid.

Whatever you want to believe; however, even if that were true you failed to address the post we are currently debating, the one that references Halliburton as some sort of evil tool of the Republicans.

You failed in your stated goal of not letting a “non-Repub slide on such an issue”; if you were the serious bipartisan critiquer you claim to be, one would think you would have jumped at the chance to correct the claim.

Oh, and by “one” I mean ME….just to make sure I dont have to spend any more time explaining colloquial terms.