The backlash - continued

Not all posts on this subject will truly fit the descriptor "backlash", but I'm going to be using that in the title of each one so that I can easily trace my way back through them to the beginning.

Here's the second reply Nell (sidebar) received to the "Since combat operations ended" post (linked below).

To Bob and Nell - Bravo Zulu (That's Navy-talk for "Well done" to the both of you for having the courage and investing the time to air your views.

To Bob and Nell and everyone else - It is exactly this type of aggressive dialogue that enables our country to excel in the world. The freedom to express our views, disparate as they may be, over our own names, is what gives our nation its great strength and moral fiber.

We all have to do our best to gather credible information from all sources in order to formulate and support our opinions on any issue of importance to ourselves, be it the type of school we choose for our children, investments to make with our money, candidates for office to support, and issues of global impact such as the situation in Iraq.

I don't believe everything I hear on Al Jezeera any more than I believe everything I hear on FOX News. I know the e-mail I received came from a friend of mine who spent time in Iraq, so I automatically add credibility to most parts of the message since he elected to forward it to all of us.

Although I don't believe everything, but I do believe some things:

I believe that oppressors must be confronted earlier, rather than later (Think of Neville Chamberlain and Hitler after the plebiscite in the Sudetenland)

I believe that the economic impact of the world's oil supply greatly influenced the decision to act in Iraq (There was no congressional mandate to intervene in Rwanda during the ethnic slaughter of Hutus and Tutsis)

I believe that Saddam Hussein's own action invading Iran and Kuwait greatly influenced the decision to act in Iraq

I believe that religious terrorists slaughtered 3000 souls (of many religions) on 11 September 2001, and that this greatly influenced the decision to act in Iraq

I believe that no nation can claim the moral high-ground (refer to the use of US Forces against Native Americans (yes - Americans) in the Dakotas in the 1870's in violation of existing treaties after gold was discovered

I believe that military options should be exercised as a last resort, and then decisively

I believe that the next 10 years in Iraq will define the success or failure of the actions of this last year

Again, many thanks to both Bob and Nell for sparking this great dialogue.

Greg XXXXX


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