It's July 2009, and Obama "has broken more campaign promises on Iraq than in any other area."

"a brigade a month," my ass. But you suspected that was a lie, right?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106178806

Tom Ricks, who has written two books on the war, told NPR's David Greene that he doesn't think that life in Iraq will be that different for the American military....

"This is not the first time the Americans have tried to transfer security responsibility to Iraqi forces. They've tried it several times. It has not worked several times," Ricks reminded Greene.

"The question now is, are Iraqi forces up to the job? And the answer is: Nobody knows."

And, Ricks says, President Obama "has broken more campaign promises on Iraq than in any other area." He's keeping troop levels the same and is looking at getting the troops out rather slowly.

Ricks also calls Obama's promise to get the combat troops out "a meaningless phrase. ... There are no noncombat troops in the U.S. military. There is no pacifist wing of the military."

He says troop levels will need to remain the same through Iraqi elections next January, then the administration plans to draw them down by about 10,000 troops a month starting in March.

"That means next summer is going to be a point of maximum vulnerability," he says. "Because you take the troops out in the beginning from the easy places, but the deeper you get, the more you have to take them out of the riskier places — or the places where the Iraqi troops are less reliable.

"So actually I think this summer will be a long, hot summer in Iraq, but 2010 will be even more difficult."

not sure if ricks is pissed that obama's broken his promise, or that he isn't pulling troops out faster, or that he's going to pull them out too fast.

He's keeping troop levels the same and is looking at getting the troops out rather slowly. [...] He says troop levels will need to remain the same through Iraqi elections next January, then the administration plans to draw them down by about 10,000 troops a month starting in March.

"That means next summer is going to be a point of maximum vulnerability," he says.

if he kept his promise and pulled out a brigade a month, that would make this summer, in fact, any time he did it, the 'point of maximum vulnerability'.

maybe he should just pull all the troops out over a weekend so that he can have kept his promise, probably the right thing to do.

maybe he should just pull all the troops out over a weekend so that he can have kept his promise, probably the right thing to do.

Lolololol.

fine with me, but we know O is a lying motherfucker and his fans are in permanent denial.

Anyone who didn't figure out this guy is full of shit a year ago deserves the three and a half years of told you so's and Olympic-level rationalizing they've got coming.

we pretty much had this debate last year iirc. basically: "this guy isn't the messiah you know!" vs "yes we know".

Change the campaign slogan to "Yes We Know!"

^SOTOLOL

Morbs sorry but is that the royal we, or you and the mouse in your pocket?

I've got a couple of areas of concern but they won't be solved calling motherfuckers on interwebs. And yes, this is sooooo '08.

Please point me to the 2008 posts where Obama supporters said they knew he wouldn't reduce troop levels AT ALL in his first 6 months.

so he gets a pass, RIGHT? Total and complete. "It's reality," etc.

really, fuck you assholes.

Morbs, what the fuck do you want these voters to do – ask for their votes back? There's plenty of complaining by Obama people on the political threads. I didn't vote for him because I knew he'd waffle on gay rights and showed too much inclination towards imperial greatness, but you don't see me getting sanctimonious about it. If they don't like him, they can vote for a socialist in '12 or stay home watching Bergman films on public television.

No actually fuck you

I want them to march on D.C. and riot if it comes to that. Burn, Washington, burn.

But I'm not talking to "voters," they're either resigned to the bullshit or idiots. (about 50/50)

better yet, stay home next time -- starting with the '10 midterms -- and kill the Democratic Party. KILL KILL KILL

yeah, that'll be sure to bring about a socialist utopia.

Morbs, chill. PLEASE.

No, he doesn't get a pass. What he gets is a panoply of information that you and I just don't, while also seeming to seek info from outside that loop. Iraq didn't just hang there as if in aspic, unchanging, between the election and now. To think that day-to-day stuff on the ground there doesn't impact on what troops go where and when is as unreasonable as expecting Obama not to react to it, or change tack.

I was hoping the DADT/DOMA stuff would get sorted out but w/moar GOP affairs, it's cold of me but when they have no leg to stand on their own perceived morals issues, could get both revoked easily.

Also good meme: the Fort Worth southern Stonewall thing is a gay-panic form of Jim Crow.

Dr Morbius was actually the fifth member of Rage Against the Machine wasn't he?

Long, Hot Summer' Ahead For U.S. Troops In Iraq

is there a bigger cliche in news reporting than the use of "long hot summer" for events and scenarios and difficult decisions that take place over the course of a summer?

right, and the news reporters get a pass, RIGHT? Total and complete. "It's reality," etc.

really, fuck you assholes.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?blogid=14&entry_id=41749

http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpposted/archive/2009/06/29/irish-fin-min-facing-a-long-hot-summer.aspx

http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/06/dallas-police-looking-at-chang.html

http://www.examiner.com/x-14144-DC-Single-Moms-Examiner~y2009m6d23-Free-movies-for-a-long-hot-summer

http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/09/obama-energy-health-business-washington-congress.html

http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/Opinion/Columnists/Footnote/colFOOT062609.htm

http://www.lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2009/06/22/news/iq_29446389.txt

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20090628/environment/long-hot-summer-ahead

no idea what that n/a post means.

Que bringing the relevance as usual. eat shit.

What he gets is a panoply of information that you and I just don't

AIEEEE CHRIST CHRIST CHRIST

is there a bigger cliche in news reporting than the use of "long hot summer" for events and scenarios and difficult decisions that take place over the course of a summer?

In the UK, we also have to put up with "Winter of Discontent"

it's gonna be a long hot summer for:

outdoor movies
dallas police
maltese bathers and
the irish finance minister

"Summer of Rage" never took off however

Que bringing the relevance as usual. eat shit.

dude, really? c'mon now.

outdoor movies &
dallas police &
maltese bathers &
the irish finance minister

DC-Single-Moms-Examiner

Nothing is more relevant than revolutionary posturing in Morbs' eyes. If you aren't doing that, you are just sheeple.

or youre just nothing, like all of us are in this phony democracy.

Look, Morbs, if you blow a gasket and your brain explodes, it won't be because you were using it.

xp Oh yes keep bringing the insight.

I'm not talking about posturing, Alex. Anything left of Joe Biden is "posturing," you sad-ass Gen Y fantasists.

It's awfully sad how all of our lives can be reduced to mere specks of dust in this big bad world. How we will go on living knowing that we aren't important? I know I'll post more dreck on messages boards! TAKE THAT IMPERIALISTS!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rHOBCQz3geI/SWet1jfGwwI/AAAAAAAAAY4/ws_X-ysvMMU/s320/grampa_simpson_cloud.jpg

gonna be a long hot summer for imperialists

xxp See I was giving you the benefit of the doubt. If you actually think that "revolution" is going to accomplish anything productive then you are dumber than a bag of Joe Bidens.

lolque

He's "gone Chaki" on us

I want them to march on D.C. and riot if it comes to that. Burn, Washington, burn.

― Dr Morbius, Thursday, July 2, 2009 8:10 AM (20 minutes ago)

Is this because of the government or because Mr. Que lives there?

Remind me, Dr. Morbius, because I forget: is it fun being 19, thumbing through your well-worn copy of Society of the Spectacle while drinking coffee with your crusty anarcho-punk buddies and rappin' about how much the government sucks?

Also, this is useful to check in on from time to time: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/

QUE YOU CAN BELIEVE IN

Morbs do you even own a bullhorn? These coup fantasies are going to be even more difficult to achieve without one. Maybe you and Dennis Perrin can go in on one together?

http://www.bluereefaquarium.co.uk/uploads/news/Smiling%20Baby%20Ray.jpg

Is this because of the government or because Mr. Que lives there?

it's gonna be a long, hot summer for barbe "que"

I don't fantasize. I know no "rebellion" -- even in the form of a viable liberal party -- is gonna happen until ppl lose their Wiis, and probably not then. I gave up on America in the '80s, and you ppl have richly confirmed my fatalism.

Morbs, please focus your passion on the job hunt.

gonna be a long, hot summer for wii owners

And yet America will never give up on you, Dr Morbius

"I don't fantasize. I know no "rebellion" -- even in the form of a viable liberal party -- is gonna happen until ppl lose their Wiis, and probably not then. I gave up on America in the '80s, and you ppl have richly confirmed my fatalism."

Aw this was so sad. I almost got a little misty there. Don't worry Morbs America hasn't given up on you! GO GET EM TIGER!

the irish finance minister

hoo boy ain't that the truth

I gave up on America in the '80s

then who are you shouting at?

a cloud

wait Morbz is really sb'd? that's lame

and LinkedIn appears to be down for maintenance... coincidence?

that sucks, morb doesn't deserve to be SB'd while there are tons of willfully disgusting, vile posters left on this sinking ship.

suggest meds

I wish this place would get rid of the SB feature. It's stupid.

he didn't do anything ban-worthy. he simply wasn't well liked. pretty lame. i have never SB'd anybody, but i think i'll start.

he didn't do anything ban-worthy. he simply wasn't well liked

well, this is the flaw in the sb system that always gets tuomas so riled up - the system relies on the integrity of its users, and that can't be controlled here. however, I kind of like that the community end up getting what it, as a body, wants: I feel Morbius was a valuable member (and will be again, I assume), whether irritating or no; a community made up solely of people who're totally cool with other sounds way boring imo

however, on the other hand, the whole discussion is very boring, so I am sb'ing myself for participating in it

i am torn because i don't think morbs should have been sb'd for his confrontational behavior, probably because I know morbs as a real life human who drinks bloody marys and is a bunch of fun to hang out with. however, i am glad that other ILXors were SB'd for being rude/confrontational/trolling.

a message board without trolls is like an old folks home without the cranky old people.

stop setting up easy jokes

lol

every film thread has suffered this day. Bring Back Morbs.

I'm trying to be as cruel as possible in attacking Public Enemies but need help.

Perhaps a Banner's Remorse thread?

my understanding is that morbs loved the picture

Mann see u

a message board without trolls is like an old folks home without the cranky old people.

^This is funny and true, but i don't even think 'troll' describes Morbius. He just used ILX to vent sometimes - sometimes resulting in good threads.
But I think it's a big mistake to put a system in place that bans people for any other reason than harassment, or purposely ruining other people's threads by derailing it into off-topic meta garbage (I realize I am basically doing this right now, but this thread is dead without Morbs anyway). The SB system is basically a popularity filter.

Anyone who came into this thread, knowing who started it, and hit SB for anything he said in here, just sucks IRL imo.

I promise I won't say anything more on the matter. I'm mostly a lurker and don't want to get all metal about ILX, but I think this sucks, and I hope he does come back if the thing is lifted, which I'm sure it will be, because I always enjoyed his contrarian style - especially on the film threads.

lol "metal". too late for that!

Yeah, I don't get the reason for the ban, this was a very amusing thread. Morbs was being cranky, other folks were being jokey, didn't seem like it was getting ugly though.

really, fuck you assholes

its well-known that he's a boor/bore on political threads but he's great on the film stuff

How does it work -- is one banned from a thread and/or banned from ILE?

site

oof

Ta ta!

look i love morbs but i think even he would realize once you're reduced to typing "fuck you assholes" on a message board it's time for a breather - at least some of these sb's must have come from a "it's for your own good" kind of feeling

suggest chill

haha exactly

Chronicle of a ban foretold:

never get rid of suggest ban, we're finally getting to the event horizon where all the tards are dropping like flies

― [.]¿[.] (and what), Wednesday, March 4, 2009 5:01 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

guess what, being an unpopular dick makes you more likely to taste mod, democratic bans just cut out the middle man

― 'lop chalpagne (and what), Friday, February 27, 2009 2:04 PM (6 days ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

im all for everyone from ilx eventually getting banned btw

― 'lop chalpagne (and what), Friday, February 27, 2009 1:53 PM (6 days ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

if an asshole like me can only have 30 and change theres no excuse

― 'lop chalpagne (and what), Friday, February 27, 2009 1:53 PM (6 days ago)

cosign all the above!

― Dr Morbius, Thursday, March 12, 2009 12:42 PM (3 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

You know that post is going to look awfully ironic in about six months, right?

― •--• --- --- •--• (Pleasant Plains), Thursday, March 12, 2009 1:15 PM (3 months ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

know, or care?

― Dr Morbius, Thursday, March 12, 2009 1:18 PM (3 months ago)

rockapads yr not a lurker, what the hell

look i love morbs but i think even he would realize once you're reduced to typing "fuck you assholes" on a message board it's time for a breather - at least some of these sb's must have come from a "it's for your own good" kind of feeling

cosign.

xp i read a LOT more than i post, but you're right.

I've been away from ILX for a few weeks (in Argentina if you must know) and so missed all the sb's, but as someone who Morbius called out a few times as an Obama fanboy I want to say that sb'ing Morbius is silly. This place is best when we have informed argument, and while Morbius wasn't always (or even usually) up to that standard himself, he pushed the rest of us further in that direction and for that was valuable.

morbz got SB'd?

man what's up with people?

why the fuck do people even touch that SB button? so dumb

I henceforth pledge that I won't ever sb anyone again.

http://www.fbcweatherford.com/promise_keepers/images/promisekeepers.jpg

Morbs and I share a lot of political beliefs, and I like him very much as a guy, but he wasn't starting debate here – he was killing it. Lots of us (J0hn D, nabisco, Shakey, etc) write contrarian posts without adducing Dennis Perrin.

misread that as "abducting" dennis perrin at first

morbs is the armond white of political threads

I think there's conversational room between starting and killing debate, and while Morbius was typically closer to the latter than to the former, he still pushed those of us interested in articulating our own views a little further.

when I see velko's new handle I keep goin "wait did I say that? I don't even know who armond white is!" and shit like that

haha wow, i didn't even SB Morbz

morbs got SB'd?! what the heck? he drives me up the wall sometimes but that's lame. can someone un-SB?

I've been away from ILX for a few weeks (in Argentina if you must know)

man you are milking this joke lolz

Morbz un-suggest-ban poll

he's gonna be back in like 2 weeks or something, if he wants to be

i like to imagine him and ethan K.O.ing chickenshit hillbillies together in ILX heaven

http://web.tiscalinet.it/antarias/foto/ugo1.jpg

Ban's lifted tomorrow, right?

I was hoping this would be a Morbs revive simply reading "Back, bitches" tbh