Left I on the News

George Bush:

"As Iraqis stand up, we will stand down."

The considerably more verbose Donald Rumsfeld:

"As the capabilities of the Republic of Korea grow, obviously they will assume more and more responsibility as they have been doing in recent years."

U.S. troops entered Korea in 1950; the Korean War nominally ended (without a peace treaty, but with a truce) in 1953. There are still 37,000 American troops in Korea. Ah, but don't worry, "As Koreans stand up, we will stand down."

"The Pentagon wants to have 25,000 troops in South Korea by the end of 2008, compared to 37,500 last year, a reduction in forces that U.S. commanders say is made possible by the growing capability of South Korea's 690,000 troops."

It's sure taken a long time for 690,000 South Koreans to represent a "growing capability," hasn't it? If they continue at that rate, and there's no particular reason to believe they will, it will be 2013 or so, a full 60 years after the end of the war, before the last American troops leave Korea.

And is Iraq Korea a fully sovereign nation even now? Consider this:

"Despite a desire by officials here to assume greater responsibility for the defense of their country, the United States and South Korea agreed Friday to leave a U.S. commander in charge of their combined armies in the event of a war on the Korean peninsula.

"With steady improvements made by South Korea's military and the nation's emergence as an economic power, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun said recently that his country was ready to take on more control of its armed forces, and suggested altering the current arrangement that put South Korean forces under U.S. command during wartime. "

I love the use of the euphemism "agreed." Yeah, sure they did. The President of this "sovereign" country is forced to beg ("suggest") the occupying forces to allow Koreans to be in control, to which the Americans reply "Thanks, but no thanks." That's how they "agreed."

Here's my exit strategy for Iraq (and Korea, for that matter): "As the American people stand up (and say NO! to the occupation), American forces will be stood down." Stand up, America! Just say NO!