Angelina Jolie: The Surge Is Working and the Troops wish to Stay.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

"As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible."


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120430737505503363.html?mod=Best+of+the+Web+Today

[Drum]

1. Hmmm...

:eyes:

[janetblond]

67. Ever heard of Rupert Murdoch .. ??

Well, guess what?
He owns Faux news, right-wing rags, AND THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

[The Backlash Cometh]

71. They embedded the journalists so they would selectively see what

they wanted the journalists to see. Why not celebrities?

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. Whenever VIPS tell us what the troops want

I am reminded of the ignorance of the Amurikan people regarding the army.

They seem to be unaware that troops receive orders and that includes what to tell VIPs when asked very specific questions

And yes, that is a lawful, legal order

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. WTF?

How many troops did she talk to?

[BeHereNow]

9. Probably the same hand picked ones that shared the plastic turkey with the monkey

Ms. Jolie has just been used by the spin machine.
Shame on her- can she really be that out of touch
with how it works?

BHN

[FARAFIELD]

36. She didnt say the surge was working

If you are going to put that she said that in the lead make sure she says, thats just lazy

[proud2BlibKansan]

91. Hello? I didn't write the OP

[LynnTheDem]

4. Poor Jolie isn't quite correct.

Majority of troops dissatisfied with handling of war; believe war was wrong
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2007_01/010500.php

And poor Jolie has been quite incorrect for some time...

U.S. Troops in Iraq: 72% Say End War in 2006
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article12103.htm

"humanitarian process"? Yeah, America has such cred there. :eyes:

[Warpy]

7. It's a good thing nobody hires her for her political acumen

I count her like I count Robert Duvall, probably the greatest character actor in a couple of decades and a total right wing wanker. I'd never hire either of them to give a political speech, but I do hire them to tell stories on film.

[Popol Vuh]

26. Here, here..

And if I were to consider any actor/actress for public office. I'd have to say there is pretty much only one I'd consider - Martin Sheen.

[live love laugh]

5. My boss's brother was deployed and couldn't wait to get back after a break.

She said he felt responsible for those who were still over there--they protect each other. It was mind boggling to hear but I imagine that strong bonds are created in tough circumstances.

[Mojorabbit]

30. My sister

was the same way when the Iraq war started. She had served with her unit in Afghanistan in a highly specialized medical team which went out in the thick of things and also set up field hospitals. She wanted to go with them if they were sent to Iraq. The bonds that are formed are very strong. It had nothing to do with the politics of the war, it was all about the unit she served with and each of them having the other's back. It took all our family had to keep her from volunteering to go.

[Echo In Light]

55. I know one guy who hates it, and two younger marines who are sadists

The vet who doesn't like being re-deployed of course is much older/saner. The two marines are from extended family, totally brainwashed, typical violence and sports lovin All American types.

[Middle finga]

6. Damn that's the same thing John McCain says when he talks

to the troops, they must be all talking to the same preselected group of troops

[hay rick]

8. John McCain

had the same pleasant experience strolling through a Baghdad market last year.
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/04/01/mccain-iraq-stroll/

Bottom line: Angelina is still hot.

[Demobrat]

10. Shut up or enlist.

And take your no-talent boring boy-toy down to the recruitment center with you.

[BeHereNow]

11. Maybe she could play Jessica Lynch?

A nice propaganda movie where the beautiful white girl,
with perfect hair and make up in the middle of the desert,
is menaced by the swarthy brown men in Iraq...

I can see it now...

:puke: :puke: :puke: :puke:

Stick to standing around looking good Ms. Jolie-Pitt.
Go adopt some Iraqi orphans.

BHN

[Occulus]

42. I thought Jolie already made that movie.

And I thought there was a better game than Tomb Raider every time a Tomb Raider game was released.

Tomb Raider had the potential to be a Myst-type game with action and Myst its chance. :)

[BeHereNow]

43. Heh-heh...CLEVER.

I loved Myst when it came out-COOL graphics.
BHN

[Imagevision]

52. Oh Angie darlin you're so full of shit... controversy doesn't always work sweetie, but,

I do hope you have another wonderful/healthy/happy baby though.

[Quantess]

32. She COULD ENLIST!

Why doesn't she!!?!1? Oh I see, she's got an important job in the entertainment industry, and she's underpaid anyway. :rofl:

Just kidding.
I know her personality type, and she just wants attention in whichever way she can get it. Right now, she's a mother of many children, which she loves, but she probably misses the shock-value of her single youth, just a little. So Angelina goes and says this.

[mrbluto]

39. Really?

Is that the way you want to play it?

I'm no fan of this war, but one doesn't need to be a solider in order to have a right to an opinion.

We get Neocons who yodel that army guys died to provide our right to free speech so we ought to STFU.

They're wrong.

First off they're wrong if you agree with the constitution. (We were endowed with our creator with that right according to the constitution)

Second off, It's the wrong way to look at it. It disenfranchises plenty of people who work hard to help this country, yet don't pick up a gun. (EMTs, Public defenders, Teachers, etc.)

We have to deal with pro-war/non-enlisting people without suggesting they all must sign up or be hypocrites. Why? Because establishing that sort of story is liable to come back and bite us on the ass.

My 2 cents.

[renate]

41. Brad Pitt's a good guy--politically anyway

http://usliberals.about.com/od/celebrityactivists/p/BradPitt.htm

I'm not a big fan of adultery, but politically he's okay; and anybody smart enough to be a Democrat is probably smart enough not to be a boy toy. (Whether he's untalented or boring is for others to debate--I don't go to movies much.)

[BeHereNow]

44. At least he has the sense not to open hi mouth on topic he doesn't know shit about.

Unlike his lovely wife.
BHN

[roguevalley]

93. she's done more accidentally than everyone on this thread will

do on purpose. she gives one third of her income to causes that help children. are you aware that we hold children to be deported that have no one and they aren't allowed legal advice. she gave money to make sure they do. she does good work all the time. too bad one remark, made toward helping relieve the humanitarian fuck up that we made is used against her.

[BeHereNow]

94. And her charitable good work now makes her a foreign policy expert?

Methinks you may be confusing reality with the movies.
BHN

[Lorien]

116. She's a UN Ambassador

she has testified on Capitol hill on behalf of refugees in various areas of the world. I think she has a better grasp on some of those situations then most of us do (though I personally would like to see us get out of Iraq ASAP-there is no denying that whatever we do people WILL suffer for it).

[roguevalley]

121. me thinks you haven't done your homework. she was INVITED to

join the Council on Foreign Relations. Invitation only. I would suggest that you get right with Google. It can be your friend.

And I do know reality from movies. Thanks.

[Lorien]

115. Very well put. She has done more directly and indirectly for the world's

refugees then you and I can ever hope to. I think that she's expressing an honest opinion; we did indeed cause a massive clusterfuck in Iraq that has caused immeasurable harm to millions. I suspect that if any of us saw the suffering personally we would be inclined to want to help in any way that we could. It's a tough call; being there is causing so much harm, not being there will cause harm...there needs to be a third way.

[INDIA]

120. Yes, because an immediate pullout from Iraq will be GREAT for..

the Iraqi people! The Iraqi police, army, and government are completely competent, and prepared to take over that country. As soon as U.S. forces leave, Sunnis, Shias and Kurds along with foreign jihaists will all join hands and sing "kumbaya" around a big campfire. :sarcasm:

She's a humanitarian. She's concerned about the Iraqi PEOPLE. She doesn't care about the politics of this war, (although she is liberal, along with Pitt.) A lot of people on DU want an immediate pullout because it will be a political victory for the Dems and an embarassment for Bush. Nevermind the humanitarian implications.

This war was obviously stupid, unecessary, and probably illegal. But now that we're there, we owe it to the Iraqi people to protect them, and establish a competent government and security force.

You might present the argument that you don't want anymore U.S. troops to die. That of course, is a very legitimate concern. But I sometimes question the sincerity of that claim when I see it on DU. I've seen several posters espouse this sentiment, and then turn around and call our servicemen "war criminals" and "murderers." One longtime poster (with over 30k posts) got into it with me after she claimed that U.S. Marines were "war criminals" who "climax" in their trousers while gleefully killing civilains. That same poster, several weeks later, states she wanted to bring the troops home because she didn't want one single more troop to lose his life in Iraq. Forgive me if I question her sincerity... :eyes:

[Hepburn]

59. A-fucking-men!

:applause:

[INDIA]

118. Jolie and Pitt have done more good for the world in one week...

than you could do in 100 lifetimes. She has an opinion. The opinion relates to what is probably best for the Iraqi people, which is, a US troop presence to ensure security for humanitarian efforts in a very damaged country. It's difficult to feed/house/educate people when there is no security. Do you think the Iraqi Army and Police are sufficienty prepared to secure that country?

Maybe she's not the one who should "shut up." Not to mention she's actually been to Iraq, and worked intesively with the United Nations in humanitarian efforts all over the world. YOU on the other hand, read the internets while eating fritos. Her opinion will carry slightly more weight with me.

I'll give her opinion an objective look. I don't think she should "shut up."

[Breeze54]

12. That surprises me a great deal.....

I'm not sure I believe that at all.

Not with all the work they're doing in NO and the humanitarian things she fosters.

Was she drunk during the interview? :shrug:

[SemiCharmedQuark]

13. She wrote this in an editorial for WaPo

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/27/AR2008022702217_pf.html

[BeHereNow]

17. Although well intentioned, I am sure, the woman doesn't know crap about the factions in Iraq.

Ever heard of genocide MS. Jolie?
Many Iraqis can't go back because they will be killed.
Why don't celebrities stick to what they know?

BHN

[Breeze54]

24. I think you're wrong on that. She's an ambassador for peace at the UN.

I'm pretty sure she's well aware of what's going on in Iraq and that's why I'm surprised about that statement.

[BeHereNow]

34. An Ambassador does not a foreign relations/policy scholar make...

http://www.genocidewatch.org/IraqHeadedforGenocideTime29November2006.htm
As I know you know to do- of this "report" ask yourself this: Cui bono?
BHN

[mac2]

38. Peace=War Orwellian theorist

[Dorian Gray]

79. Her OPED was well written and interesting

and it's obvious that she is attacking this through a humanitarian viewpoint rather than through a "pro-war" view. She's been vocally opposed to the war for a long time. It still happened. She sees that Iraq is at a sort of crossroads right now, and she is hoping that the US, the UN and the Iraqi government can work together to repair the extensive damage done BY THE WAR.

I don't think that the OpEd is so scandalous.

[mcg]

81. She also said "our priorities are quite strange"

http://www.opiniojuris.org/posts/1151242426.shtml

On Funding Priorities: You start to see — the more times I have been to Washington, the more times you talk to somebody about, we have got to get money for AIDS orphans, ... whether it be any kind of response to any tragedy, often, the answer is, well, we're at — we are at war right now.... And, so, whether you're for or against the war, you can certainly see that the amount of money being spent at war and the amount of money we are not spending in countries and dealing with situations that could end up in conflict if left unassisted, and then cause war. So, you know — so, our priorities are quite strange. So, we're not — we are missing a lot of opportunities to do a lot of the good that America is used to doing, has a history of doing. And we're not able to be as generous. We're not able to be on the forefront of all of these wonderful things as much. And, so, whether or not you're for or against the war, you have to start to notice that that — that there's something wrong with that.

[Echo In Light]

56. Would people be less inclined to cut her slack if she wasn't an attractive actress?

"Attractive" {relative} being the operative term here.

[Donnachaidh]

14. She needs to shut up and smile for those UN posterbabe for poverty photo-ops.

Perhaps she wants to *prove* to the world just how out of touch she is?

[misanthrope]

15. Consider the source**nm

**

[SemiCharmedQuark]

16. The Washington Post?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/27/AR2008022702217_pf.html

[tabasco]

18. LMAO.

She talked to Petraeus and hand-picked troops, so she really found out the truth.

But she is a very pretty spokeswoman for the Bush cabal.

[BeHereNow]

20. And silly enough to believe her own press while knowing NOTHING about Iraq.

God damn, these Sean Penn types are maddening.

BHN

[mac2]

19. Now Angelina is part of the RW elite?

Guess that comment will get her more movies financed by corporations in Hollywood.

It's obvious the media kisses her big butt. She can do no wrong...even steal another actress's husband. She's probably a very religious person too.

There are better actresses and beauties in Hollywood but she is part of the old guard with her Republican actor father. Guess that money is needed for her large family. Is she competing with "Cheaper by the Dozen"?

The surge working is always just around that corner. What for the last five or six years? It's a failure and more die everyday. That carrot on the string is getting pretty rotten.

If you asked the troops who wants to go home now Angelina I bet they would run you over to get on the plane before you finished the sentence. Many have served two turns in Iraq. They are National Guard not even regulars. If they complain they might get a bullet in the forehead.

Any movie with her in it...I'm not going. I've seen her in movies in the past and was not impressed so I won't miss much.

[John Kerry VonErich]

92. Can we call her Angelina Voight now?

nt

[bbinacan]

21. Just playing devil's advocate here.

What if the surge is working (the good news is that there is a 70% reduction in deaths)? What if the Sunni, Shia, and Kurds agree an a government? What if....etc. What if Iraq becomes more stable then it is now?

If the "What if" scenarios happen. I'm afraid McCain is the odds on favorite to win the GE.

[BeHereNow]

23. The reduction in deaths is due to the GENOCIDE.

That's the part of the story no one talks about.
BHN

[bbinacan]

25. Link please

or more info. from you.

Thanks

[BeHereNow]

33. Here is an excellent link for you to read.

http://www.genocidewatch.org/IraqHeadedforGenocideTime29November2006.htm

Of course the US media will ALWAYS report the US backed side as the victims.
Just keep that in mind.

BHN

[HCE SuiGeneris]

27. It's working. They are tired of dying. Capitulation for a while. Eternal hatred.

BushCo fucked them over as royally as a group of people can be. :cry:

My heart cries for all the innocents who have died... for the money, for the oil, and for the greed.

[mac2]

37. It is just horrible that the UN lets it happen.

Everyone turns a blind eye while many suffer and strave, etc.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

31. Big Problem? They CAN'T sustain the surge, even if they wanted to.

Troops are depleted, enlistment is down.

Further a big part of the reduction in violence has come from the cease fire called by Muqtada al-Sadr

[albert johnson]

46. right on with the cease fire ,plus

wiat till spring,thats when it usually picks up.also they talk like there is no fighting,when i believe the avg.american deathrate is 1-2 a day and the iraqi's 700- 1000 dead a month in an area about as big as wisconsin..yeah thats calm alright!

[Name removed]

89. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Hepburn]

62. And....

...what if Santa Claus really, really was for real?

:eyes:

[lonestarnot]

63. It's sure working for our economy tooooooooooo!

Fuck a rich bitch, you can get a glass of milk.

[northzax]

90. the 'surge' by definition isn't working

of course an increase in troops on the ground reduces violence. if we sent 50,000 more marines and soldiers, that would reduce it even more. it's not rocket science. The more people patrolling the streets, the less violence will happen. If your city doubles the number of police, and puts an officer on every corner, street violence and crime would decrease as well. it's not a tough thing to figure out (and it's what people have been saying for 5 years, that if we wanted to have an impact on violence in Iraq, we needed more troops on the ground) the problem is that we were promised that all that was needed was a short term bump and things would get better enough that we could leave. Well, it's March, the 'surge' has been going for seven months, where are the troops coming home? it's not a short term thing, as the 'surge' was promised to be.

this is how the American Heritage Dictionary defines 'surge':

[Connie_Corleone]

22. I'm waiting for Beowulf's opinion about Iraq.

[melody]

28. Let's see, this post quickly has 4 recs and someone in thread has already bleated for McCain

Why do I sense another "surge"?

Angelina Jolie is mistaken ... to be kind about it. My nephew and his friends would prefer to be home like, oh, a year ago.

[parasim]

29. I'm not surprised to hear they want to go back...

Although killing is the objective, protecting each other is the noble and humane part. I don't think it has anything to do with politics for them personally.

The fact that there are so many troops realize how wrong senseless killing is, though, means that the killing part of the military mindset is gone so far afield from natural human thinking that many of them are starting to see right though it.

Apparently Jolie doesn't see it that way. That's unfortunate...





edit: typo

[lurky]

35. Bush promised her a whole bunch of Iraqi babies

if she would say this.
:evilgrin:

[BrotherBuzz]

40. I assume she recieved the official info pack, had a minder assigned to her....

she never left the compound, maybe not even the canteen, and never met a troop that wasn't pre-screened.

[otohara]

45. We've Only Destroyed A Country

and I would think the Iraqi's would want to rebuild it themselves vs having mega corporations from America & Britain coming in and hiring foreign workers to do the work. I wish Ms Jolie would have conveyed more of what Iraqi's want.

[belpejic]

47. Arggghhhhhh

I wish Angelina Jolie would STFU and go away. She is a vapid Hollywood actress, and I for one could care less what she thinks. Her only qualification is looks, and that doesn't go far in the real world of diplomacy. At least Boner from U2 can speak intelligently on issues...

[malaise]

48. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

just saying.

[Eurobabe]

49. Hey Angie, thanks for clearing all that up

:eyes:

[MadHound]

50. Jolie obviously didn't talk to the soldiers that I know over there

I know five people over there, and everyone of them is of the opinion that Iraq is FUBAR, that we're serving no real purpose over there, and that it is time for the troops, all the troops, to come home ASAP.

[mmonk]

51. All can be forgiven if it "succeeds".

bush's invasion of Iraq, Hitler's invasion of Poland, etc.

[susankh4]

53. I am really sorry to say this....

but, my nephew in the Navy says the same thing. He is signing on for another tour of duty. Because he feels they are having an effect. He says when the Brits pulled out the torture and killing of women in those areas was "unimaginable."

I'm not saying I WANT this to be the case. Only pointing out that I don't doubt Ms. Jolie is hearing it on the ground.

[immoderate]

75. Navy? How much combat does he see?

--IMM

[KharmaTrain]

54. She's Talking Of NGOs and UN Groups...

And yes, if there's any country that needs the help right now it's Iraq. This isn't about the miltary occupation, but getting basics to the people...electricity, clean water, health services...the things the UN has had difficulty in setting up due to the on-going civil war.

Here's the rub...the "surge" or should we say "bribing the Sunnis not to kill us" has eased the miiltary situation that is enabling some of these groups to attempt to ramp up again...but that's today. The various factions in Iraq are just bidding their time...it's not IF our military is leaving, just when and they're not going anywhere. The NGOs and UN organizations will be needed in that country if we're ever able to extract our military out of there without having to shoot our way out.

This country has created a humanitarian disaster out of Iraq and our reponsibility for this carnage will be our "legacy" to fix for the remainder of our lives...with those who have fought and now return with broken bodies and minds...and to the people of Iraq who just happened to live over boooshie's oil and had to pay for it.

[Hepburn]

57. Apparently....

...the botox went from her lips to her brain.

Unreal...:eyes:

[Imagevision]

58. Angie, like McCain speaks with a brigade surrounding her...?

[Olney Blue]

60. The Iraqi occupation is now a "humanitarian" cause. Interesting spin.....

[The Gunslinger]

112. I caught that too...

I wonder if thats going to be the new reason for occupying Iraq.

[Xenotime]

61. America has done nothing but rained death and destruction

We need to get out NOW!

[Imagevision]

64. Bush total failure/flop in Iraq, and he didn't even get a handle on the freegin oil!!!

[baldguy]

65. I wonder how many Iraqis she talked to before coming to this conclusion?

[janetblond]

66. Wall Street Journal is owned by Rupert Murdoch...

Come on people!
What did you expect!

[SemiCharmedQuark]

72. She wrote it in an editorial for Wapo!

See links above.

[spanone]

68. wow, a celebrity has convinced me to vote for john mccain

:sarcasm:

[Imagevision]

69. Angie, Gollywood genious, simply issue a statement between movies and babies, got to

give up for to a very clever lady. Did anyone say if she supported the old but big Mac?

[smoogatz]

70. An ex-Marine student of mine explained it this way:

Whenever people from the media would come around, the officers would remind the troops to tell them how great everythng was. Failure to do so would result in unpleasant repercussions.

[UALRBSofL]

73. It's difficult to understand some of these hateful comments

Towards Angelina Jolie. I got the impression the people that read this article didn't quite get it. Reading comprehension is lacking as evidenced by some of these posts. Angelina Jolie has pushed for humanitarian efforts all her adult life. Look at what she and Brad Pitt have done with a program for rebuilding New Orleans. This article never advocated that the serge was working, she merely stated the few soldiers she talked to were invested in Iraq and not ready to go home. What she expressed were the humanitarian efforts needed for the 4 million displaced Iraqi's. Her goal in life is to help people around the world, the starving, the homeless, the displaced, and with that, I can't hold her accountable for the way she feels about Iraqi people. Here is just a brief overview of her humanitarian work.

Jolie first became personally aware of worldwide humanitarian crises while filming Tomb Raider in poverty-stricken and widely mined Cambodia. She eventually turned to UNHCR for more information on international trouble spots. In the following months she agreed to visit different refugee camps around the world to learn more about the situation and the conditions in these areas. In February 2001, Jolie went on her first field visit, an 18-day mission to Sierra Leone and Tanzania; she later expressed her shock at what she had witnessed.<43> In the coming months she returned to Cambodia for two weeks and later met with Afghan refugees in Pakistan where she donated $1 million for Afghan refugees in response to an international UNHCR emergency appeal.<44> She insisted on covering all costs related to her missions and shared the same rudimentary working and living conditions as UNHCR field staff on all of her visits.<43>Impressed by her interest and devotion in the subject, UNHCR named her a Goodwill Ambassador on August 27, 2001 at UNHCR headquarters in Geneva.<45> In a press conference Jolie explained her motives for joining the refugee agency:“ We cannot close ourselves off to information and ignore the fact that millions of people are out there suffering. I honestly want to help. I don't believe I feel differently from other people. I think we all want justice and equality, a chance for a life with meaning. All of us would like to believe that if we were in a bad situation someone would help us.<43> ” During her first three years as Goodwill Ambassador, Jolie concentrated her efforts on field missions, visiting refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) all around the world. Asked what she hoped to accomplish, she stated, “Awareness of the plight of these people. I think they should be commended for what they have survived, not looked down upon.”<46> In 2002, Jolie visited Tham Hin refugee camp in Thailand and Colombian refugees in Ecuador to take a closer look at the “Western Hemisphere's most severe humanitarian crisis”.<47> Jolie later went to various UNHCR facilities in Kosovo and paid a visit to Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya with refugees mainly from Sudan. She also met with Angolan refugees while filming Beyond Borders in Namibia.

In 2003, Jolie embarked on a six-day mission to Tanzania where she traveled to western border camps, hosting Congolese refugees and she paid a week-long visit to Sri Lanka. She later concluded a four-day mission to Russia as she traveled to North Caucasus. Concurrently with the release of her movie Beyond Borders in October 2003 she published Notes from My Travels, a collection of journal entries that chronicle her early field missions (2001-2002). During a private stay in Jordan in December 2003 she asked to visit Iraqi refugees in Jordan's remote eastern desert and later that month she went to Egypt to meet Sudanese refugees.On her first U.N. trip within the United States, Jolie went to Arizona in 2004, visiting detained asylum seekers at three facilities and the Southwest Key Program, a facility for unaccompanied children in Phoenix. With the humanitarian situation in Sudan worsening, she flew to Chad in June 2004, paying a visit to border sites and camps for refugees who had fled fighting in western Sudan's Darfur region. Four months later she returned to the region, this time going directly into West Darfur. Also in 2004, Jolie met with Afghan refugees in Thailand and on a private stay to Lebanon during the Christmas holidays, she visited UNHCR's regional office in Beirut, as well as some young refugees and cancer patients in the Lebanese capital.In 2005, Jolie visited Pakistani camps containing Afghan refugees, and she also met with Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz; she returned to Pakistan with Brad Pitt during the Thanksgiving weekend in November to see the impact of the October 8 Kashmir earthquake. In 2006, Jolie and Pitt flew to Haiti and visited a school supported by Yéle Haïti, a charity founded by Haitian-born hip hop musician Wyclef Jean, and while filming A Mighty Heart in India, Jolie met with Afghan and Burmese refugees in New Delhi. She spent Christmas Day 2006 with Colombian refugees in San José, Costa Rica where she handed out presents. In 2007, Jolie returned to Chad for a two-day mission to assess the deteriorating security situation for refugees from Darfur; Jolie and Pitt subsequently donated $1 million to three relief organizations in Chad and Darfur.<48> Jolie also made her first visit to Syria and Iraq, where she met with Iraqi refugees as well as multi-national forces and U.S. troopsWith increasing experience, Jolie became more involved in promoting humanitarian causes on a political level. She regularly attends World Refugee Day in Washington, D.C., and she was an invited speaker at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2005 and 2006. Jolie also began lobbying humanitarian interests in the U.S. capital, where she met with congressmen and senators at least 20 times from 2003.<45> She explained in Forbes:“ As much as I would love to never have to visit Washington, that's the way to move the ball.<45> ”

In 2005, Jolie took part at a National Press Club luncheon, where she announced the founding of the National Center for Refugee and Immigrant Children, an organization that provides free legal-aid to asylum-seeking children with no legal representation which Jolie personally funded with a donation of $500,000 for its first two years.<49> Jolie also pushed for several bills to aid refugees and vulnerable children in the Third World.<45> In addition to her political involvement, Jolie began using her public profile to promote humanitarian causes through the mass media. She filmed a MTV special, The Diary Of Angelina Jolie & Dr. Jeffrey Sachs in Africa, portraying her and noted economist Dr. Jeffrey Sachs on a trip to a remote group of villages in Western Kenya. There, Sachs's United Nations Millennium Project team is working with locals to end poverty, hunger and disease. In 2006, Jolie announced the founding of the Jolie/Pitt Foundation which made initial donations to Global Action for Children and Doctors Without Borders of $1 million each.<50> Jolie also co-chairs the Education Partnership for Children of Conflict, founded at the Clinton Global Initiative in 2006, which helps fund education programs for children affected by conflict.Jolie has received wide recognition for her humanitarian work. In 2003, she was the first recipient of the newly created Citizen of the World Award by the United Nations Correspondents Association, and in 2005, she was awarded the Global Humanitarian Award by the UNA-USA.<51> Cambodia's King Norodom Sihamoni awarded Jolie Cambodian citizenship for her conservation work in the country on August 12, 2005; she has pledged $5 million to set up a wildlife sanctuary in the north-western province of Battambang and owns property there.<52> In 2007, Jolie became a member of the Council on Foreign Relations,<53> and she received the Freedom Award by the International Rescue Committee.<54>Now, how many people can raise there hands and say they have don't this much Humanitarian work for people around the world? I know I can't and because she has don't great work to help people I'm not going to condemn her. We need more people like her.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelina_Jolie

[SemiCharmedQuark]

74. First of all, you need a link to Wikipedia for what you posted.

Second, you need to trim it down to four paragraphs. Third, I know she has done good work. However, what truly galls me, is that she is suggesting that all the troops want to stay, based on the few she talked to. None of the troops I know what to stay. They're counting the minutes. I think it is unfair for her to drag them into this.

[UALRBSofL]

77. I believe you are wrong in what she said. You are putting your own defenition to her article

That said, I don't believe she is suggesting that "ALL THE TROOPS WANT TO STAY" because she was very specific in saying "The few troops I talked to want to stay", which in my opinion, she's not speaking for the vast majority of troops. Second, what does it matter she references the troops she talks to? Do they not have a say in what goes on in Iraq or do they need to be muzzled?

[YankmeCrankme]

80. You give her too much credit for her comments

I read it. Here's a snippet:

"Without the right support, we could miss an opportunity to do some of the good we always stated we intended to do."

After 5 years, what exactly is the right support? She doesn't mention that. Do we continue to have a permanent presence in Iraq? Do we continue to use air power on civilian residences? Do we continue to detain Iraqis indefinitely without due process?

Frankly, we already missed the opportunity. She is living in fantasyland if she thinks the US is on a humanitarian mission or is going to start one anytime soon.

And if you read the commentary that included her comments you would see that it is being used as an attack on the Democrats, particularly Barrack Obama.

Sorry, unless she comes out and clarifies that she doesn't support the continued occupation of Iraq by foreign troops she doesn't get a pass on this from me. It was stupid/naive of her to allow herself to be used as a tool for the Bush administration, which is what this comes off as sounding.

[Forrest Greene]

85. Good Grief, Ms. Jolie Is Just

...another dimwit Hollywood papparazzi monster. Do you _really_ want to take the comments of a fictional creature like her about anything other than um, "acting," & publicity-hounding seriously in the real world?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

76. When the Japanese were invading China in 1937, they sent celebrities

to visit the troops and report in their press that everything was dandy and that Japanese soldiers were being treated as heroes.

[UALRBSofL]

78. Lydia, I guess you missed the point to the article

Almost the whole article talks about humanitarian need for the 4 million displaced Iraqi's and how the UN and other non-government organizations want to stay and help the Iraqi people. Now, the brief reference to the "few soldiers" was nothing like your implying because nowhere did she say Iraq was fine and dandy and that the troops were being treated as heroes by the Iraqi people.

[KaptBunnyPants]

82. Her father was a strong Guiliani supporter, but I thought she was different.

That's sad. I guess we'll just have to stay in Iraq forever.

[sampsonblk]

83. If that's what she saw, so be it.

I have no problem with that.

That doesn't change the facts: we should have nver invaded Iraq in the first place. And the "surge" cannot last forever. And US foreign policy is not to be determined by the troops. And this shit is costing a lot more money than we can afford. And once we come out of there, the place will likely go to pot.

[UALRBSofL]

84. Listen guys, I'm not trying to disagree with anyone about the war in Iraq

Because I agree, we shouldn't have invaded to begin with. However, I'm thinking of the people of Iraq. They are displaced all over the bordering country's and the ones still in Iraq are taking handouts from non-government aids such as food and clothing. The infrastructure is totally destroyed. Way over 50% have no jobs. The point is, I can see what Jolie is saying about the humanitarian issues of Iraq. We invaded Iraq, now, we shouldn't just leave it in shambles. Millions of Iraqi's will need help even after the troops are gone. In my opinion America is not a country that would invade and just leave. American's have a common goal of helping it's fellow man whether it's in our own country or in sovereign nations. That is the right thing to do. I hope were not going to follow the lead of what Russia did in the 80's, invade Afghanistan and just leave the country in shambles, where we saw a civil war after the Russian occupation was over. What kind of people would we be to do something like that?

[sampsonblk]

87. I can definitely see where you are coming from

"You break it, you bought" it comes to mind. And we definitely broke it.

[Marr]

86. Are people just responding to the thread's title?

Angelina Jolie has done a lot of good things with her life, and I don't think the title of this thread is very reflective of her comments. The kneejerk reactions in this thread are a bit disappointing.

[Snarkturian Clone]

88. I wish people would stop caring about what these

mindless celebutards think.

[robert yates]

95. No surprise here.

Ms. Jolie is a freshly-minted member of the COuncil on Foreign Relations.

I think there's a certain code of conduct members of that group are expected to observe; such as never publicly speak out against the interests of the corrupt elitist scumbags who run it.

[BeHereNow]

97. NO FUCKING WAY! Welcome to DU Mr. Yates! I was wondering about that earlier today!!!

SWEAR TO GOD- it crossed my mind just a few hours ago.
Well that explains everything, now doesn't it.
Fuck her and the horse she rode there.
Traitorous little bitch.

On edit- maybe I shouldn't have called her that-
it is entirely possible that she has no idea WHO the CFR
is and the evil they do. I mean, she is an actress, right?
Pretty, well intentioned but clearly not versed in the global elite.
At least I hope not, otherwise, she IS a sack of shit.

BHN

[BeHereNow]

98. So do you think she knows who they are?

Or do you think she was just flattered to be invited
thinking actress thoughts like, "Oh, they like me, they really like me."

BHN

[poppysgal]

96. I have a problem with

actors stating their opinions on politics. Although of course they have the right and Jolie has been active in humanitarian efforts, still, I have a slight problem with her becoming a spokesperson for deployed military members. Privilege and fame does not always constitute wisdom and good judgment. :eyes:

[BeHereNow]

100. See Robert Yates' post above.

And yes, I agree with you-
When celebrities start thinking they
actually KNOW something about
foreign policy and the global elite fuckers
running it, it is time for them to exit stage left.

STFU Jolie and Penn.

BHN

[poppysgal]

102. right on

:headbang: I totally agree.

[fascisthunter]

99. So Who Paid Her to Say This? (nt)

[BeHereNow]

101. I'm TELLING YOU- see Robert Yates post above! CFR shit- explains it ALL.

BHN

[fascisthunter]

103. self-deleted

duh

[BeHereNow]

104. Huh? What's BS?

That the CFR used her like an ignorant tool?
BHN

[fascisthunter]

105. my Bad.... I Should Have Read the Post You Were Referring to

before posting

[BeHereNow]

106. Whew... you had me worried for a minute.

I had you pegged as one of the DUers who understood this shit!
There are so many who don't these days.

BHN

[fascisthunter]

107. Just Woke from a Nap

me head is a bit foggy right now.

[BeHereNow]

108. Welcome back from dreamland...

I'm finding it much nicer there than the world we
are witnessing unfold these days...

I love dreaming.
I'm always disappointed when I return.

BHN

[fascisthunter]

109. I Hear That....

I fly quite a bit in my dreams.... too bad there is always ominous danger preceding it. Not even sure if they are nightmares.... I love flying.

[BeHereNow]

110. Flying dreams are blessings- learn to embrace them.

Don't be afraid- if you experience a sense of danger while dreaming
go lucid, take control of the dream.

It is possible.
Takes practice, and conscious desire BEFORE you go to sleep,
but the discipline is well worth the effort as it opens
dimensions of awareness you will not believe.

BHN

[fascisthunter]

117. Just Logged Back In...

I do embrace them and have learned to control some of my dreams.

[timtom]

111. Wotta total nitwit!

And she is golden to the right-wing idiots (the ones who whimper and whine about the likes of Sean Penn: "What gives celebrities the right to speak out about non-entertainment stuff?")

[noamnety]

113. If every last one of our troops wanted really really badly to stay

it would not justify our continued occupation of another country.

We don't have a legal right to invade just because it makes our troops feel good.

[seabeyond]

114. We don't have a legal right to invade ......................... n/t

[Tikki]

119. This woman THRIVES on controversy....

unless you've ever known someone like her you may not completely understand.


Tikki