Old Fogey's Quotes on Her Birthday

"Stay the course" is not a strategy; it is a slogan, useful in domestic politics but meaningless in the field. . . .

This crisis is far too acute for recrimination. If we are still at war during the 2008 campaign, as seems likely if you do not change course, it will benefit neither party but will leave your successor with the same choices you now face, but under far worse circumstances.

Richard Holbrooke, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
Three Choices, Mr. President
[Holbrooke's idea of a kind of federation of the three regions in Iraq (with oil revenue sharing) makes the most sense of any proposal I have seen. There are no military solutions to most civil wars--especially when the military comes from the outside. Unfortunately, Bush is more concerned with his legacy than the ultimate fate of Iraq. If he can get out before the collapse comes, he can always blame it on whoever follows him. The cost in human lives is tragic.]

But the White House is cutting and running from "stay the course." A phrase meant to connote steely resolve instead has become a symbol for being out of touch and rigid in the face of a war that seems to grow worse by the week, Republican strategists say. Democrats have now turned "stay the course" into an attack line in campaign commercials, and the Bush team is busy explaining that "stay the course" does not actually mean stay the course.

Peter Baker in the WaPo
Bush's New Tack Steers Clear of 'Stay the Course'
[After the Republicans have so effectively used their concocted slogan 'cut and run' against the Democrats, it must be a little unnerving to find their own slogan coming back to bite them in the butt. The Democrats didn't even have to come up with another sound bite slogan. The most effective weapon to use against political opponents is their own words.]

"There are times I'd say, 'God, I wish I'd died.' "

Jeffrey K. Skilling, the former chief executive of Enron Corp
Skilling Gets 24 Years for Fraud at Enron
[Although I try to have compassion for all people, those who have great power and abuse it are the hardest for me to swallow. I have far more compassion for the Enron employees who lost more than $1 billion with the company's demise. There have to be devastating consequences for those whose unmitigated greed cause devastating results for others.]

Can you imagine Republicans sitting around in Washington and saying to each other, 'Jeez, now we have to spend more money to win -- in Idaho?'

Larry Grant, a Democratic candidate for the House in Idaho
Solidly Republican, Suddenly in Doubt
[It must be disconcerting to those Rovians in the GOP who were willing to use any despicable means to achieve the end result of Republican dominance. It was again proves the Greek notion of hubris and the American notion of giving persons enough rope to hang themselves. I hope one result of the devastation of the last 6 years will be a new awareness by whoever is in power that often the means is what brings one down. It is not the action of one Republican (Foley) that has caused problems for the GOP, it is the party leaders' willingness to sacrifice young men to retain power.]

"We like to have them . . . not worrying about whether or not they are going to be able to make the mortgage payment or car payment."

Maj. Gen. Michael Lehnert, commander of Marine Corps bases in the western United States
Debt Keeping Troops From Duty
[It seems that a growing number of troops are ineligible for overseas duty because their desperate financial situations leave them vulnerable to becoming security risks. Sure, they often are not wise about money management but perhaps a part of the problem comes from having too little money to manage. This administration claims to be a big friend to the military, but it seems to me they are only generous to the defense contractors.]