i don't hate the united states...i take at least two vacation there a year, and some of my best friends are americans...criticizing the US government is not the same thing as hating america: if that were true, republicans who criticized bill clinton would have been anti-american

my quote that destroyed my credibility with you is true...the usa military doesn't ask for permission to set up military checkpoints or conduct airstrikes in civilian areas...they move around where they like by land and air despite opposition from the public and the government

puppet government is not just crap from some leftist blog...it's in the US army field manual:

paragraph 366:
Local Governments Under Duress and Puppet Governments

The restrictions placed upon the authority of a belligerent government cannot be avoided by a system of using a puppet government, central or local, to carry out acts which would be unlawful if performed directly by the occupant. Acts induced or compelled by the occupant are nonetheless its acts.
FM 27-10 Chptr 6 Occupation


if the usa had invaded the country and left the government essentially intact (after whacking hussein), then iraq might still be a sovereign country...instead, the usa disbanded the entire system of government, banned people from the bathist party from participating in government, disbanded the police force, and disbanded the entire army and sent them home WITH THEIR GUNS (probably the worst decision in the occupation of iraq)...in the ensuing vaccuum, the usa created and appointed an interim government, rebuilt/trained/equipped the military, cooked up a kangaroo court to try hussein and his cronies (who were kept in US military custody), and locked up tens of thousands of iraqis and foreign nationals indefinitely without trial in american prisons...that's a puppet government

iraq has elections now, but it does not have true sovereignty as long as the military occupation continues, and iraq does not have authority over the activities of the US military...the usa is still arresting people in iraq without trial and detaining 15,000 prisoners in an american prison in iraq, most of whom are innocent enough to release:
U.S. brings Iraq prison camp out of black hole - International Herald Tribune

if all that was being done in america by russian forces, wouldn't you question the sovereignity of your country and the legitimacy of your government? i think it is possible and desirable for iraq to stand on its own, but the US occupation weakens the legitimacy of, and domestic support for iraq's new government

i bet president obama will maintain the occupation, and tag it with some cheery slogan