Lending New Meaning to the Phrase "As They Stand Up, We'll Stand Down"

When you can take the pebble from my hand, it will be time for you to leave. -- Master Po, from the series "Kung Fu"

It's time to leave.  Time to leave Iraq.  In fact, it was time to leave quite a while ago.  We have entered the monastery, pissed all over the grounds, stolen all the candles, and corrupted the other students; and not only have we taken the pebble from his hand, we've stolen the robes off his back, taken his pride, and humiliated him in his nakedness.  And now Master Po wants to kill us.  That generally means it's time to leave.

But it's ESPECIALLY time to leave NOW: now that the very last reason that the neocon thugs could possibly give for our continued presence is officially OVER.

"As Iraqi troops stand up, we'll stand down."

That's been the Neocon mantra for some time now.  Our Iraqi allies in the military and police force are being trained, they tell us (though the fact that the Pentagon won't report the number being trained means that it will never happen anyway).  They love us; they're our allies in this "war."  Our little children.  And when they're all grown up and ready to stand on their own, we'll kick ourselves out of their nest.

But what of it when your children are committing patricide?  What happens when the very army you are training is torturing and killing you?

From CNN:

Iraqi Colleagues Killed U.S. Soldiers, military says

SAN FRANCISCO, California (AP) -- Two California soldiers shot to death in Iraq were murdered by Iraqi civil-defense officers patrolling with them, military investigators have found.

That's just great.  Kids these days.  You take them on a field trip to build character, and they end up drilling holes in your chest and pulling your fingernails out with pliers.  If only we had posted the Ten Commandments in Iraqi Police Training headquarters, they would know better...

The deaths of Army Spc. Patrick R. McCaffrey Sr. and 1st Lt. Andre D. Tyson were originally attributed to an ambush during a patrol near Balad, Iraq, on June 22, 2004.

But the Army's Criminal Investigation Command found that one or more of the Iraqis attached to the American soldiers on patrol fired at them, a military official said Tuesday. (Watch a mother's quest for truth -- 1:26)

A Pentagon spokesman knew of no other similar incident, calling it "extremely rare."

That's true.  This is pretty much a first.  This really is the first time Master Po has tried to beat us senseless with a cudgel.  I don't know--is he trying to give us a hint?

The Army has conducted an extensive investigation into the deaths but declined to provide details out of respect for relatives of the soldiers, spokesman Paul Boyce said Tuesday evening.

Yeah.  Uhhhh...that's because there was brutal torture involved.  Too quaint to report, really.

It was unclear whether the investigators had established a motive or arrested any suspects.

Motive?  I have no idea.  I suspect a love triangle.  Yeah, that's it.  A love triangle.  It certainly wouldn't have anything to do with this...(warning: graphic thumbnail photos)

Of course, the soldier's families believe they died for a great cause:

Nadia McCaffrey has become a vocal critic of the war in Iraq, and said her son had reservations about it, too, though he served well and was promoted posthumously to sergeant.

"I really want this story to come out; I want people to know what happened to my son," she said. "There is no doubt to me that this (ambushes by attached Iraqi units) is still happening to soldiers today, but our chain of command is awfully reckless; they don't seem to give a damn about what's happening to soldiers."

Ms. McCaffrey, you're on a need to know basis, and that information is classified.  Thank you for your son's sacrifice, though--i've sent you a condolence letter with my xeroxed signature to show I care.  Now, about that death tax repeal...

"We continue to have confidence in our operations with Iraqi soldiers and have witnessed the evolution of a stronger fighting army for the Iraqi people," he said.

Yes, so much confidence that you refuse to publish the fucking numbers.  Kind of like that American economy you have so much confidence in...

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THE TIME TO END THIS IS NOW.  This is not a war; it's an OCCUPATION.  In an occupation there are only two options: Annexation or Withdrawal.

And when the very civilian police force you are trying to train (in such pathetic numbers that you refuse to release the data) is AMBUSHING AND KILLING YOU, it's time for a withdrawal.

This is not about defeat or victory.  It's like sticking your finger in an anthill: you can either crush the anthill, or your can pull your finger out.  Bill O'Reilly would apparently crush the anthill, because he's a fascist asshole.  Me, I say we pull our finger out.

But don't fucking tell me that by pulling our finger out, we'll just be emboldening the ants--and that we need to keep our finger in there to help train the friendly soldier ants who are biting it.  That's just BULLSHIT.

Personally, I'd have listened to Master Po a long time ago.  It's time to LEAVE.