Actionable Items

Last updated on: June 22, 2012 at 11:16 am by Fred Clark

8 Comments

Actionable Items 2012-06-22T11:16:03-04:00 Fred Clark

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

President Bush yesterday traveled to the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa. The War College brings together some of America's best military minds to, in the word's of its founder, Elihu Root, "study and confer on the great problems of national defense, of military science and of responsible command."

Faced with a perceived absence of any coherent plan for the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, the president yesterday set out to correct this problem — not by creating a plan, but by creating the perception of a plan. President Bush did not go to the War College to listen. He went to talk.

Bush's speech outlined what he called "a clear goal, understood by all — to see the Iraqi people in charge of Iraq for the first time in generations." And he offered "five steps in our plan to help Iraq achieve democracy and freedom":

We will hand over authority to a sovereign Iraqi government, help establish security, continue rebuilding Iraq's infrastructure, encourage more international support, and move toward a national election that will bring forward new leaders empowered by the Iraqi people.

In reading the president's five steps, I was reminded of National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice's tortured semantic distinction between a "plan" and a "series of actionable steps."

I'm not sure the president's "Steps to Help Iraq Achieve Democracy and Freedom" amounts to a "plan." I'm not even sure that it amounts to a "series of actionable steps." If I were Jerry Bremer listening to this speech, I would find it very reassuring to think that in 37 days I would be on a stateside golf-course and no longer nominally responsible for translating these laudable-but-vague goals into actions that would result in a concrete reality.

It's worth noting that four of these five steps have little to do with any kind of military action. The military agenda consists only of three words: "help establish security."

I used to work for a private security company doing corporate training. Our sales people were endlessly reminded that the company did not provide "security." The legal department was adamant on this point and our top attorney personally oversaw the training of all sales people to make sure that no one was telling potential clients that the company made such an offer. "Security" he said, was an abstract concept. The concept was too vague, too limitless, to be of use. If we promised clients that we would provide "security" we would open wide the door to lawsuits and liability.

That's a point I'm sure our officers and troops in Iraq would appreciate. Their task of helping to "establish security" in Iraq is similarly vague, limitless and unfulfillable. Their mandate seems to echo the breadth of the oaths of office sworn by many American officials, to defend against "all enemies, foreign and domestic" — but even the sweeping language of that oath is more specific about who those enemies might be. "Security" from whom? This is still maddeningly unclear.

The clearest picture President Bush presented in his speech of what all these semi-actionable steps might look like in practice is his description of what has occurred in Fallujah over the past two months. President Bush presents the case of Fallujah as a great success story:

In the city of Fallujah, there's been considerable violence by Saddam loyalists and foreign fighters, including the murder of four American contractors. American soldiers and Marines could have used overwhelming force. Our commanders, however, consulted with Iraq's Governing Council and local officials, and determined that massive strikes against the enemy would alienate the local population, and increase support for the insurgency. So we have pursued a different approach. We're making security a shared responsibility in Fallujah. Coalition commanders have worked with local leaders to create an all-Iraqi security force, which is now patrolling the city.

Fallujah, it seems, is a picture of the likeliest ultimate outcome of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. President Bush concludes his speech by citing the situation in Afghanistan as the model for what he hopes to accomplish in Iraq. In Fallujah, at least, he has succeeded.

Iraq

iraq

just war

Previous Post

May 21, 2004

L.B.: Shackled

Next Post

May 26, 2004 Spy Games

Recent Comments

8 Comments | Leave a Comment

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category class warfare evangelicals Iraq Left Behind Mammon music Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I am the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. Paul was not ashamed of me. What am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

God's word The cross Faith The gospel