Now is Not the Time to Break the Rules....

President Bush has lost too much in Iraq's war. As a strategist, I had already predicted this outcome of sending 20,000 more brave soldiers to their death-march this past week. If President Bush had taken the time to use the White House's resources and maybe check out a few books to study (I know, studying is not his forte...), maybe the handling of Iraq's war would've been different.

War is nothing but a campaign to carry out political motives that would push towards a goal, and allow one side to advance over the other. And so I ask, what is President Bush's goal now ? Saddam Hussein was a good goal, a perfect one, really...one that would've given a somewhat salvageable ending of the war. But after he was captured, Bush did not even realize that a perfect opportunity was on hand for him to justify his actions. He could've walked away, telling the public: "Look ! I've captured a terrorist/mass murderer who had the capabilities to hurt US citizens and others around the world..." But instead opted to "continue the struggle in Iraq for freedom." (The President did not really say these words, but he's been repeating the same spiel for a long time...) And thus, he had decided to leave out the first rule of war - have a clear goal in mind for your campaign.

The second rule, is to have an exit. President Bush had the perfect opportunity to step out with enough to keep the people somewhat pleased that they're sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers did not die for nothing - they died to get a dictator out of power. It may have not had the same affect on all of the populous, but it's a hell of a lot better than trying to justify that they died for "enduring the freedom of Americans". The worst that could happen is that the population will argue amongst themselves whether it should've been Osama they were really hunting, or Saddam - one evil murderer captured is better than nothing....

Honesty with the people would have to be the third. Any good general should give his or her people a stirring speech about how victory will be theirs, but should also tell the truth about the motives in going to battle. President Bush has caused doubt in the people because of his shady and secret objectives in the war in Iraq. When you lose the support of the people, your campaign will fail. The population is responsible for giving you soldiers, money, and support for the war - the least they are owed is whether or not your motives are for oil, plausible WMD's, ridding dictatorships, terrorism, strategic position and allies (that would've been my personal reason for waging war in Iraq...it's definitely one step closer to Iran and semi-developed nuclear weapons...President Bush probably realized it only after capturing Saddam - a very poor effort as we shall see in the last rule....)

The President losing the support of people in his own camp is number four. The people who are supposed to stand by his every decision have seemed to back out, and that is not good for a Commander in Chief. A general's advisors and captains are main keys to winning a campaign, and dissention in a general's camp means disorganization among the soldiers. This also shows that a general is only out for his own personal gain since advisors have turned their back on him collectively, despite warnings and pleads from them. President Bush should listen to his advisors, his generals and captains, since they have had the experience and knowledge that he hasn't (If Georgie would've studied, Georgie might have something credible to contribute during his meetings with his war machine....) But Bush has left his people in the dust, and more of them are coming out to the public in outrage. This just shows the people even more that this campaign was never about them, but more about his own ego and agenda.

And the final fifth rule that President Bush has already broken is that a good leader should forsee all. Not some - All ! A general who forsees what will happen with every actions s/he takes, and ever reaction s/he faces, will know when to implement the previous four rules. President Bush had tunnel vision since he only saw...um... whatever it is he saw in Iraq. If he had forseen every outcome and looked ahead, he wouldn't have continued the war past Saddam. He also would've laid the ground work ahead of time, to plan out his intentions to the people in a manner such that the people would have time to accept the motives (He has very talented speech writers, advisors, and strategists...as shown by the stunning performance he gave me on C-Span when he debated with then opponent Senator John Kerry...)

But despite all of this, President Bush has decided to be a rebel without a cause (literally) and break the rules he needed to follow, and go ahead with the ones he needed to discard. The only consolation that the people have is that Bush cannot be re-elected again....and that is a sad state to be in.....

Note : There is a sixth rule that everyone should be aware of, and has been for the past four years of war - the soldiers are the most important pieces in a campaign. Without them, there is no war. How many more can the people spare before it's too late ?

Octavian