ANN ARBOR–The “go-to” bowl may be the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA come January, but in September prior to Aventinus’s opening game with the Goal Diggers, it’s the one that’s been flushed and at least ostensibly clean. Such bowls, however, have become increasingly rare, noted GM Mark Woods Sunday night following the 2-4 loss to the Goal Diggers, leading to a geopolitical comparison to the Iraq War in the early part of the 21st century.
“It’s like they’ve made a mess and decided to walk away, only there’s no General Patraeus to lead a ‘caca’ counter-insurgency,” said Woods.
“They’ve given in to the rhetoric of a younger (Senator) Barack Obama,” he added.
General David Patraeus was assigned command of the Multi-National Forces in Iraq in January 2007 as part of an overhauled strategy known as the “surge,” in which President Bush added some 20,000 additional troops deployed mainly to Baghdad.
Though highly contested by leading Democrats including Senators Harry Reid, Joseph Biden, Hillary Clinton and then Senator Barack Obama, the strategy seemed to have improved security of the region, leading to a decrease in deaths of both civilians and U.S. troops.
Despite the seeming success, Patraeus continued to receive harsh criticism, however. Democratic Representative Robert Wexler (FL) asked Patraeus in a September 11, 2007 hearing: “How many more names will be added to the wall before we admit it is time to leave?”
“But, you can’t leave,” insisted Woods with a patriotic catch in his voice. “Not without wiping up the stains, and cleaning up the entire region, making it secure for others.”
It was no longer certain if Woods was referring to the counterinsurgency strategy of Patraeus or the need for people to flush public toilets after making messy boom boom.
Forward Scott Bray scored for Aventinus, as did Jeff Carter, returning from a four-year retirement, prompting unnamed sources to sing the “Welcome Back Kotter” theme song for most of the rest of the night.