Face It, California Is a Quagmire

There is a place on this planet where 2,394 Americans lost their lives violently over the course of the last year. It is the same place where citizens of one beleagured city have voted to have the American military removed from its borders and banned residents from owning guns despite a crime rate 24% higher than more civilized parts of the globe.

While it sure sounds like Iraq, the "quagmire" described above is actually thousands of miles away from the relatively peaceful confines of Baghdad. In fact, coalition deaths in Iraq would have to increase 265% to match the bloodbath happening right here in the state of California.

And what is Bush doing about it? Not a damn thing. Not only does Bush not seem to have any plan for extricating the nation from the horrible human rights violations taking place right here on our own soil, he hasn't even mentioned it!

Even more astounding, our efforts to bring stability to the war-torn region have resulted in the creation of no less than 7 U.S. supported "camps," conveniently refered to as " federal detention centers," by the administration. Although we can't assume that the tenets of the Geneva Convention are being ignored by officials at these camps, far away from the prying eyes of the International Red Cross, it is a safe bet.

Bush's attempt to create a stable democracy in California by installing a Republican puppet government, led by Arnold Schwartzenneger, has proven a disasterous failure as well. Rather than "reach out" to the people of California, Schwartzenneger has spent most of his time pushing a radical neo-conservative agenda, like allowing for parents to know that their 13-year-old daughter is contemplating an abortion, fiscal responsibility, and teacher accountability. That the people of California voted these Hitlerian measures down should be evidence enough that our over-reaching efforts to foment change is drastically short-sighted and a miserable failure.

Now, evidence is emerging that Schwartzenneger has been allowed to publish his propoganda in California newspapers. Referred to as "editorials," these rah-rah neo-con diatribes are a direct assualt on freedom of the press, and should be renounced in the strongest terms.

The Bush administration's failure to recognize that the American presence in California is provoking this violent result is a black eye on the face of Uncle Sam. Let's face it. It's time to cut and run...er...I mean redeploy to a safe distance outside the borders of California and take on a more observatory role. Don't get me wrong, we should be available in case civil war breaks out, but it is time to face the cold reality that we are part of the problem in California, not part of the solution.

In fact, there is strong evidence to support the idea that the violence taking place there is a direct result of American occupation. Although statistics are vague regarding the regions level of violence before Americans came with their big guns and phony ideals, it is noteworthy that violence has increased for almost every year that we have spent there, and is commensurate with the obscene amounts of money we send to the region, which may be directly responsible for the unrest being experienced by the Hollywood Community.

Despite it being common sense, it bears repeating that there is no better representation of the average American than Hollywood liberals. If they are unhappy, it is a safe bet that the much poorer residents are as well. They are growing increasingly alienated from a federal government that had the audacity to send $46 billion to the area as recently as 2002. It is only a matter of time before the downtrodden revolt against this obvious effort to buy the regions loyalty.

Given California's obvious disdain for the ongoing American occupation and the rapidly deteriorating situation that has resulted, I call for an immediate withdrawl.
We can no longer be the worlds policemen. It is time to realize that and to rely on the United Nations to take over the situation in California, which is starting to look like Vietnam all over again. A series of resolutions demanding that California change its ways is sure to have the desired effect. If not, there are always sanctions, which were extremely effective in restricting Iraq's ruling body to building palaces and committing mass murder only within its own borders.

Indeed, Bush has done it again. As the situation in California rages out of control he sits atop his throne in D.C., no doubt memorizing the lyrical dialogue of My Pet Goat. It is time for real leadership in this country. Leadership that recognizes that American interests have damaged California beyond repair, and will work to cease all American involvement in the region. Only then will California experience true freedom, and the rest of the nation true security.