TheNextReport

George Almost Confesses America went to war in Iraq in order to create a client state backed by a long-term U.S. military presence. After 4 years of conflict, after all of the deception about weapons of mass destruction, Saddam Hussein's involvement in 9-11 and the threat Al Qaeda poses to the American mainland, Mr. Bush's post-Petraeus speech finally came close to a confession: the reason the US invaded Iraq was to transfer the protective forces of the American military from Saudi Arabia to a more hospitable, permanent location. American protection of the Saudi royal family goes back to the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt. The presence of the American military on Saudi soil was augmented during and after the first Persian Gulf War in 1990. Reflecting the long-standing American commitment to the security of the kingdom and the intimate business ties between Saudi rulers and the Bush family, the existence of the US base in Saudi Arabia was considered a profound sacrilege

A 9/11 Visit to Buffalo Grill The restaurant had a carefully designed faux western décor adapted from a typical Texas saloon. Sets of decapitated longhorn cows graced the walls along with displays of rifles and six-shooters. The full-sized wooden Indian statue seemed to stare at me in mute reproach as “Sonofagun Gonna Have Some Fun on the Bayou” played on the loudspeaker. A maitre d’ wearing a cowboy hat, chaps, spurs and sheriff’s badge approached us and said, “vous désirez un table mesieurs?” I spent the anniversary of 9-11, 2002 in France having dinner with two visiting American friends at a Buffalo Grill. Buffalo Grill is Europe’s number one steak house. Since it opened its first European outlet in 1980, the restaurant chain with the distinctly Texas environment has built a network of franchises worth millions. Though not as ubiquitous as McDonald’s in France, Buffalo Grill has over 250 outlets throughout the country. I had never been in a BG before that evening, but had often noti