From The Consortium News
By Robert Parry

If the American people should have learned one lesson from the past seven years, it is that the careless mix of tough talk and wishful thinking gets good people killed – and pushes even powerful nations to the brink of bankruptcy.

Yet, the current and possibly future Republican presidents combined these two dangerous elements on the same day: George W. Bush eschewing “appeasement” in the Middle East and John McCain offering a dreamy image of military victory in Iraq by 2013.

On May 15, in Columbus, Ohio, McCain put his listeners in some imaginary time machine and plopped them down in the happy future at the end of his first term.

“By January 2013, America has welcomed home most of the servicemen and women who have sacrificed terribly so that America might be secure in her freedom,” McCain said.

“The Iraq War has been won. Iraq is a functioning democracy, although still suffering from the lingering effects of decades of tyranny and centuries of sectarian tension. Violence still occurs, but it is spasmodic and much reduced.”

Meanwhile, half a world away speaking to the Israeli Knesset in Jerusalem, Bush showed off his vintage tough guy-ism, mocking Americans, such as Democratic presidential frontrunner Barack Obama, who favor talks with Iran and other Middle East adversaries.

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