Yogi Dean

Yogi Berra had the talent of saying something simple and silly, but upon reflection there was an underlying wisdom.

"It ain't over 'til its over" for example.

"Nobody goes there anymore - it's too crowded", is another.

Yogi Berra was a catcher on a baseball team.

Howard Dean who is running for President of the United States has the opposite gift.

When Saddam's sadistic offspring, Odai and Qusai, were killed in a firefight with American servicemen, Dean's response was "the ends don't justify the means".

Moments after Iraq was liberated from Saddam's tyranny, Dean said "I guess its a good thing".

After Saddam was captured, Dean's howled in a prepared speech, "America is not made safer with Saddam's capture".

It is actually quite difficult to squeeze so much foolishness into such a short space. It is particularly impressive given this world of media sound-bites. You have to make your point quickly for television - and boy, Dean sure did.

The man who won the popular vote for president, Al Gore - endorsed this buffoon. Makes you wonder about his appointees.

Dead or Alive

Remember when O.J. Simpson was in the back of the Bronco with a gun to his head? I distinctly remember hoping he'd blow his brains out and save us from what I knew even then would become a circus. It would also guarantee a certain amount of justice for the murder of two innocent people.

Prior to the capture of Saddam, I was having similar thoughts. My immediate reaction upon hearing he was captured was that we missed a chance to put some closure on his rule. However, upon further reflection I think it will be good for Iraq and the world to put him on trial.

Airing the atrocities of Saddam's rule will return those issues to the forefront. The morality of our mission will be presented for all who care to see. As a purely humanitarian mission, the liberation of Iraq makes the war in Kosovo seem quaint (5,000 killed versus and estimated 300,000 to 1,000,000 murderd by the Baathists). Nearly 300 mass graves have already been uncovered.

The trial will be good for Iraq, Arabs, the United States and the world. It will also be good for George Bush, which at this point in history is the same thing.

Shame

Several prominent liberal writers have admitted they were hoping for things to go poorly in Iraq, such is their hate for George W. Bush.

Make no mistake, "go poorly" means dead Americans.

Bush's legislative victories, like the signing of the Medicare Prescription bill, along with the improving economy are all conspiring to help the President's reelection bid - and drive his political opponents crazy. These successes make the Iraqi war and reconstruction even more politically important and nothing is more politically risky than the situation in Iraq.

Of course there are people who for whatever reasons are openly rooting for America's failure in the democratization of Iraq. History shows that hard-core Leftists and other extremists care more about ideas than people. What I'm curious about are ordinary people, who are otherwise decent, fighting their initial instincts when news of Iraqi success filters its way back.

There must be legions of people in this country (among them presidential contenders) who must be suffering pangs of guilt when they realize that they are not quite as happy as they should be upon learning of good news from Baghdad - like the capture of Saddam.

I feel a little sorry for those who don't feel pride of American accomplishments - America being the greatest force for good over evil the world has ever known - but to actually catch oneself rooting for America's enemies? I can't imagine how that would feel.

Timing

They say "timing is everything". The timing of recent events have been incredibly fortuitous for President Bush.

Just as the press was trying their hardest to pump up the Haliburton non-story and immediately after Al Gore stuck a shiv in Lieberman's back by endorsing Howard Dean, U.S. forces captured Saddam Hussein alive. The timing has been so good that some Democrats are becoming a little unhinged.

Bush's lucky streak started last month after Hillary flew all the way to Afghanistan thinking this would make her look stateswoman like, only to have Bush's dramatic Thanksgiving surprise thrill the troops in Iraq. The different reception each politician received could not have been more stark. I would love to have seen a tape of her face when she found out that Air Force One was in Baghdad. Even better, Bush's trip had been planned for weeks, so they couldn't even claim it was done to upstage the Senator.

In addition the economy is picking up steam, employment figures are up and the Dow broke the 10,000 barrier, just as we are heading into the presidential primary season.

Yes, they say "timing is everything" but they also say "you make your own luck".

European Morality

Let me get this straight - France and Germany do business with Saddam, prop up his brutal regime, sell him arms and do everything possible to keep him in power. And now the Iraqis should worry about offending them if they seek the death penalty for Saddam for the hundreds of thousands of murdered countrymen?