From Baghdad, The Lannisters Send Their Regards* -- UPDATE

So you remember all that blood and treasure the Bush Administration pissed away into the sands of Iraq?

It was in all the papers.

You remember how it was all shoveled into the same, Conservative "With us or with the terrorists!"/"Why do you hate America?"/"Liberal Fifth Columnist" ideological mass grave along with our national conscience, our international standing and whatever fragile little shards of bipartisanship were left over after eight years of The Great Clinton Penis Hunt?

You remember how Operation Endless Clusterfuck did not just materially weaken this country in every measurable way, but also emboldened and enriched the worst and most rabidly blood-drunk wingnuts among us?

You remember how Conservatives stood up and cheered for Bush and Cheney every bit as loudly as they now deny them?

I'm sure Chaney believes it, but he is wrong. He is not a conservative. @mr_electrico @donaselby @yesnicksearcy @smfiii @mattie96 @jtlol
— InvestaBullish (@InvestaBullish) June 1, 2013

Every bit as loudly as the now lie about, well, every fucking thing?

nick searcy        ✔ @yesnicksearcy

he stopped being racist & switched parties. “@Mr_Electrico: @Frank_Tortelli @SMFIII @Mattie96 @jtLOL Thurmond. what happened to that guy?”

4:27 PM - 1 Jun 2013

Well it turns out Cheney's Folly not only did all of that nearly-irreparable damage, but also -- at no additional charge to you the customer! -- substantially strengthened the hand of America's main global rival at the same time.

China Is Reaping Biggest Benefits of Iraq Oil Boom

BAGHDAD — Since the American-led invasion of 2003, Iraq has become one of the world’s top oil producers, and China is now its biggest customer.

China already buys nearly half the oil that Iraq produces, nearly 1.5 million barrels a day, and is angling for an even bigger share, bidding for a stake now owned by Exxon Mobil in one of Iraq’s largest oil fields.

“The Chinese are the biggest beneficiary of this post-Saddam oil boom in Iraq,” said Denise Natali, a Middle East expert at the National Defense University in Washington. “They need energy, and they want to get into the market.”

...

So now that this umpteenth confirmation of the epic failure of Bush foreign policy is "news", the next logical question is: How few syllables into the story will it take for enterprising bloggers to pivot to another sermon on the awful awfulness of Barack Obama?


*Post title makes sense only in the context of last night's "Game of Thrones" which I refuse to spoil but reviews of which you can sup on at your leisure here, here, here and here

UPDATE -- Apparently the innocuous picture I posted was not innocuous enough.  So I changed it.  My apologies.