Three zeroes too many
One thousand American lives.
Husbands and wives. Daughters and sons. Fathers and mothers. Grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Coworkers. Neighbors. Friends.
Dead.
All in the service of a quixotic personal vendetta on the part of an ill-informed, ill-advised President of the United States, and a tunnel-visioned desire on the part of the Vice President to fatten the pockets of his pals in the military-industrial complex. Oh yes...and to rid the world of Saddam Hussein and his wacked-out sons.
One out of three isn't bad...if you're a hitter in baseball.
But if you're talking about the rationale for the loss of 1,000 American lives — not that the lives of those from other nations, including Iraq, are meaningless, but let's keep the focus simple for the moment — you owe them, and the families they leave behind, a much greater percentage than that.
As the son of a career Air Force noncom, I value and hold precious the lives and service of the good men and women of our armed forces. I understand intimately the conditions they face at home and in the field. I applaud them for their courage, their patriotism, and their dedication to duty. I am proud of their acceptance of this grave challenge — proud to call them my countrymen and countrywomen, my homeboys and homegirls. I pray earnestly for their protection every day on the battlefields and in the mean streets of Iraqi cities. I hope they will all make it home to their families and loved ones swiftly, safely, and soon.
But I weep for the impossible situation into which their leaders have injected them, and I fear that it won't end without more of their lives being added to the toll.
As though one thousand were not already far too many.
Husbands and wives. Daughters and sons. Fathers and mothers. Grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Coworkers. Neighbors. Friends.
Dead.
All in the service of a quixotic personal vendetta on the part of an ill-informed, ill-advised President of the United States, and a tunnel-visioned desire on the part of the Vice President to fatten the pockets of his pals in the military-industrial complex. Oh yes...and to rid the world of Saddam Hussein and his wacked-out sons.
One out of three isn't bad...if you're a hitter in baseball.
But if you're talking about the rationale for the loss of 1,000 American lives — not that the lives of those from other nations, including Iraq, are meaningless, but let's keep the focus simple for the moment — you owe them, and the families they leave behind, a much greater percentage than that.
As the son of a career Air Force noncom, I value and hold precious the lives and service of the good men and women of our armed forces. I understand intimately the conditions they face at home and in the field. I applaud them for their courage, their patriotism, and their dedication to duty. I am proud of their acceptance of this grave challenge — proud to call them my countrymen and countrywomen, my homeboys and homegirls. I pray earnestly for their protection every day on the battlefields and in the mean streets of Iraqi cities. I hope they will all make it home to their families and loved ones swiftly, safely, and soon.
But I weep for the impossible situation into which their leaders have injected them, and I fear that it won't end without more of their lives being added to the toll.
As though one thousand were not already far too many.
SwanShadow was randomly pounding the keyboard at 4:57 PM
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