http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3287127Oh my.
The grown-up Democrats (grown-up as compared with the primitives) are doing what they have to do, and the primitives and sub-primitives aren't happy at all about it.
Winebrat Donating Member (1000+ posts) Mon Apr-28-08 11:20 AM
Original message
House Democrats work to extend war funding for another year
April 28, 2008:
Headline: House Democrats work on huge Iraq money bill
House Democratic leaders are putting together the largest Iraq war spending bill yet, a measure that is expected to fund the war through the end of the Bush presidency and for nearly six months into the next president's term.
The bill, which could be unveiled as early as this week, signals that Democrats are resigned to the fact they can't change course in Iraq in the final months of President Bush's term. Instead, the party is pinning its hopes of ending the war on winning the White House in November.
<snip>
The bill is expected to provide $108 billion that the White House has requested for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Lawmakers who are drafting it say it also will include a so-called bridge fund of $70 billion to give the new president several months of breathing room before having to ask Congress for more money.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/0...
It's an angrily-flaming bonfire, the primitives and sub-primitives dancing around in circles, chanting their curses and wiggle-waggling their armpits at each other.
This is so big I'll just deal with one of the little side-arguments that takes place:
izquierdista (939 posts) Mon Apr-28-08 11:32 AM
Response to Original message
4. Not one more dime!
It was 33 years ago that the Democrats stopped the Vietnam War by not spending one more dime on it. No bridge funding, no breathing room, just say no.
On April 10, 1975, President Gerald Ford requested an additional $1 billion for the War in Vietnam. Congress refused. Twenty days later, U.S. Marines evacuated the U.S. embassy in Saigon. All U.S. troops left Vietnam.
TheBorealAvenger Donating Member (1000+ posts) Mon Apr-28-08 12:22 PM
Response to Reply #4
10. We were pretty much out of there in 1973
I think the "defunding" was for a few years before 1973.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_war
The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, the Vietnam Conflict, and, in Vietnam, the American War, occurred from 1959 to April 30, 1975.
izquierdista (939 posts) Mon Apr-28-08 12:38 PM
Response to Reply #10
11. Oh no we weren't
You don't want to argue this timeline with me. I am VERY aware of what happened when, since I became eligible for the draft in 1974.
davekriss Donating Member (1000+ posts) Mon Apr-28-08 01:33 PM
Response to Reply #11
32. Sounds like you are the same age as my brother
1974 was the last year for the draft lottery. My brother was very nervous as his birthdate was 25th on the list. Luckily, he never got called.
Gman Donating Member (1000+ posts) Mon Apr-28-08 01:34 PM
Response to Reply #11
33. We were pretty much pulling out by 1973.
my draft number was like 152 that year and I was freaking out as had been pretty much a given that if you were 150 or below you were going. They ended up only taking up to like 65 as the war wound down.
SOS (1000+ posts) Mon Apr-28-08 02:06 PM
Response to Reply #11
54. Draft ended July 1, 1973
The number of inductions during the last two years of the draft:
1972-49,514
1973-646 (draft ended)
1974- 0
Paris peace Accords were signed in January 1973
Combat operations ceased on March 31, 1973 (McCain released)
Church Amendment passed June 19, 1973
Church Amendment prohibited combat funding after August 15, 1973
This timeline is correct.
Congress did not end the war by defunding it.
izquierdista (939 posts) Mon Apr-28-08 02:34 PM
Response to Reply #54
69. Hair splitting
You write like a historian, who, not having witnessed something, nevertheless uses dates and numbers to pontificate about what transpired.
I KNOW that I was relieved when my draft number was >300; even if the peace accords fell apart and the war was back on, I would not be called up right away.
I KNOW that Congress tried many times to cut off funding and the Church Amendment was one of the attempts, but Jerry Ford was still paying the tab for Pentagon requests to stay involved and until Congress said "not one more dime" in April of 1975 was the flow of funds truly cut off.
I KNEW, when I saw the overloaded helicopters leaving Saigon on April 30, 1975, that the war was indeed, over.
Tell me, Mr. Historian, when will you KNOW that the Iraq war is over??
I dunno.
It seems rather presumptuous of the irrefragable primitive, who's new on Skins's island, to be challenging more-senior primitives. After all, we know the primitives know history.