Colin Powell, military leader and first Black US secretary of state, dies from COVID-19 complication

Discussion in 'Current Events' started by Egoboy, Oct 18, 2021.

  1. CenterField

    CenterField Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    At the time I was pretty convinced myself that Iraq had WMDs. I subscribed to The Economist at the time, the British magazine, and they were absolutely adamant that this was the case. So a lot of people believed in it, including journalists who specialize in foreign affairs from one of the most prestigious publications in the world. Diplomates from a lot of countries believed in it too - France was an exception and was crucified for it. We later found out that it wasn't true, that France was actually among the few who got it right, and yes, it was a big blunder, but in real time Secretary Powell had to go by what his intelligence services were telling him. You wouldn't expect that the Secretary himself would go undercover into Iraq and try to sort out the information, right? It is easier to look back and blame him, knowing what we now know, but at the time, he wasn't alone in believing in the wrong information. I don't think that Colin Powell was the type of man who shies away from his responsibility. I'm sure that what happened haunted him until his last days. But he was human, fallible, and was dragged into an error by faulty intelligence. It doesn't really detract from the admiration I have for him. Perfection is not an attainable ideal for a human being, but Colin Powell had a lot more character and a lot more integrity than the vast majority of politicians we have the displeasure of currently having in this country (in both parties).
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2021
  2. CenterField

    CenterField Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    For me, Colin Powell was a statesman. Politicians worry about their re-election. Statesmen worry about the destiny of the nation. We could certainly use more statesmen like Colin Powell, instead of the sorry excuses we have today for politicians (from both parties).

    Colin Powell > Donald Trump
    Colin Powell > Mitch McConnell
    Colin Powell > Kevin McCarthy
    Colin Powell > Ron DeSantis
    Colin Powell > Joe Biden
    Colin Powell > Kamala Harris
    Colin Powell > Chuck Schumer
    Colin Powell > Nancy Pelosi

    Colin Powell > the whole lot of them. All of them. By far. By very far. I can't think of a current politician with the dignity and integrity of Colin Powell.
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2021
  3. spiritgide

    spiritgide Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Any other heroes on your hanging list?
    As always, let he who is without sin cast the first stone, and all of today's left-wing dorks think that describes them.
    That's how we got the circus of cur dogs that are running washington right now.
    Bet you don't have a problem with General Milley agreeing to tip off China if we were planning an invasion, do you?
     
  4. notme

    notme Well-Known Member

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    Uh you're totally wrong.

    There were 4 countries who attacked Iraq, and 4 other countries who politically supported it. That's all. Everybody else opposed it or maybe were neutral. That makes it France being among the many. Germany totally opposed it too. There was in international inquiry at it for months on end to find WMD's in Iraq, and they kept reporting that there was nothing there!! You even had a top CIA agent who disagreed with the lies of the US, and as a reprisal she got ratted out by her the Bush administration making her flee for her life while abroad.

    And I heard enough of this whining about how he could not help himself of getting faulty intelligence. The guy's job was to get the right intelligence,... and it got blasted all over that there were no WMD's in the open by the people who had the boots on the ground in Iraq!! Hence it's obvious he flat out lied, and he did shy away from it all, and made himself a multi millionaire selling his memoires. You might be able to find that he thinks his lies are tarnishing his good record, but that's an utterly far cry of owning up of having the deaths of 100,000's of people on his conscience.
     
  5. Polydectes

    Polydectes Well-Known Member

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    He did have pretty serious cancer and I believe he was going through treatment.

    It's most likely he died from cancer but because the hospital wanted the government to pay the bills they claimed it was covid.

    Hospitals do not have to have a positive test they don't have to test at all to declare cause of death. They just have to list some symptoms. If they go through the rigor of doing a test one of the tests they created for covid was so incredibly sensitive most people would show up as positive.
     
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  6. notme

    notme Well-Known Member

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    I see your religious ramblings of without sin cast the first stone, and I raise you a freedom of speech.
    That guy flat out lied to the world, to rally countries to attack a country ... and it did happen with him being a secretary of state being responsible of the death of 100,000's of people.

    And I will add to this, that as far as I was able to find, that he was more concerned about his legacy then the amount of people died because of his lies.
     
  7. TCassa89

    TCassa89 Well-Known Member

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    That thing you said they didn't mention, they mentioned in literally the second paragraph....



    (CNN)Colin Powell, the first Black US secretary of state whose leadership in several Republican administrations helped shape American foreign policy in the last years of the 20th century and the early years of the 21st, has died from complications from Covid-19, his family said on Facebook. He was 84.

    "General Colin L. Powell, former U.S. Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, passed away this morning due to complications from Covid 19," the Powell family wrote on Facebook, noting he was fully vaccinated.
    Powell had multiple myeloma, a cancer of plasma cells that suppresses the body's immune response, as well as Parkinson's, Peggy Cifrino, Powell's longtime chief of staff, confirmed to CNN. Even if fully vaccinated against Covid-19, those who are immunocompromised are at greater risk from the virus.
     
  8. CenterField

    CenterField Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    No, while you are right that I underestimated the number of countries opposing it, you also underestimated the number of countries favoring it. So, we were both wrong. There were 48 countries supporting the USA's position publicly, and more in private. From the Wikipedia entry:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gover...e_Iraq_War_prior_to_the_2003_invasion_of_Iraq

    "Countries supporting the U.S. position
    Shortly before the Iraq War began, the US government announced that 49 countries were joined in a "coalition of the willing" in favor of forcibly removing Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq, with some number of other countries expressing their support in private. Of the 49 countries, the following countries had an active or participant role, by providing either significant troops or political support: Australia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom and (United States).

    Five of these countries supplied combat forces directly participating in the invasion of Iraq: the United States, Denmark, United Kingdom, Australia, and Poland. Other countries have provided logistical and intelligence support, chemical and biological response teams, overflight rights, humanitarian and reconstruction aid, and political support."

    Also, see this:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coalition_of_the_willing

    List of countries
    The official list of the United States' allies as of March 21, 2003 contained the following 31 countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom and Uzbekistan.

    Additions since then have included Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Kuwait, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, Palau, Portugal, Rwanda, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Uganda.
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2021
  9. spiritgide

    spiritgide Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    And you, full of left-handed hate and hogwash, are determined to destroy that legacy?

    I wonder what there is in your legacy to make you that righteous.
     
  10. Hoosier8

    Hoosier8 Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Later. Breaking news did not.
     
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  11. Tahuyaman

    Tahuyaman Well-Known Member

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    Colin Powell's death from cancer doesn't give government the right to order everyone to take a vaccine.
     
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  12. Tahuyaman

    Tahuyaman Well-Known Member

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    The Secretary of State doesn't control US and foreign intelligence agencies.
     
  13. Shinebox

    Shinebox Well-Known Member

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    employing a wee bit of spin are we? ...

    source(s)? ...
     
  14. Ddyad

    Ddyad Well-Known Member

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    Americans are the world. I bet you have noticed. ;-)
     
  15. Ddyad

    Ddyad Well-Known Member

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    You just have to remember that Dubois was a Communist and cut him some slack when he drifts into discussions of "general strikes" and a "dictatorship of the proletariat". He was a believer.
     
  16. spiritgide

    spiritgide Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Spin? Funny how comparisons of comparable conditions shift the perspective of a lefty so quick. Double standard? No. Worse than that. Much worse.


    And the reports of Powell's death did say "Complications" of covid. Powell had Parkinsons, and blood cancer- so he was not only elderly at 84, but in fragile health.
    That is widely acknowledged to be a situation where covid aggravates existing conditions, and is not the direct and only cause of death.
     
  17. dairyair

    dairyair Well-Known Member

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    Correct. In fact, due to him being vaccinated and still dying of complications related to covid doesn't fit a narrative of mandatory vaccines. So, what is your concern?
    The Fed gov't can't mandate the country into vaccines. Just their employers and contractors. Just like any pvt businesses is allowed to do.
     
  18. Tahuyaman

    Tahuyaman Well-Known Member

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    He died from a cancer and treatment which destroyed his immune system. My concern is that we are losing our individual freedoms bit by bit.
     
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  19. dairyair

    dairyair Well-Known Member

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    We have been for many many decades. Does the Patriot Act concern you? I never wanted that intrusive law to pass in the name of security.

    But vaccines are not part of losing our freedoms, that's a temporary safety measure and will go away once the pandemic becomes a small part of viruses in the public.
    Same with masks. Rural areas don't have mask mandates. Crowded indoor areas typically do. But that isn't all across the country.

    I went to the Ryder cup at the end of Sept. Virtually no one but workers had masks and the only place it was required was in the indoor shopping center set up there.
     
  20. Shinebox

    Shinebox Well-Known Member

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    I guess you missed the part I bolded ...
     
  21. Polydectes

    Polydectes Well-Known Member

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    Cdc
     
  22. Shinebox

    Shinebox Well-Known Member

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    post the link(s)? ...
     
  23. Polydectes

    Polydectes Well-Known Member

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    Why? Is your Google broken?
     
  24. Shinebox

    Shinebox Well-Known Member

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    you made a claim I don't believe is true ... back it up ...

    I don't believe the CDC has anything to do with how hospitals fill out death certificates ...
     
  25. Polydectes

    Polydectes Well-Known Member

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    So what do I care?
     

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