About Iraq

BOYBOY asked:


I was trying to do some research on this topic, but all I can find are the negitive side affects of the war in iraq. Someone please help!

Roberto

Alan Nelson asked:


cept positions in the Mideast, such as jobs in Iraq or Afghanistan for various reasons. Some will take these jobs out of a sense of duty, or to do their part for the cause. Others for the adventure or even to fine tune jobs skills in a very dynamic environment. For others, it’s simply a quicker way to make a lot of money.

For most, salaries earned while working jobs in Iraq or Afghanistan are the most they’ve ever earned. Many pull in salaries in excess of USD$10,000.00 every two weeks, which quickly compensates for the doldrums of living in a war zone. The money builds rapidly, and without a plan many will quickly squander it. Of course that’s not always the case, and for some, their goal may be nothing more than to take care of short debt, help out family members or put it away in a savings account until they decide what to do with it. Others will just spend it.

I’ve seen many who spend hard earned money as fast as they make it. They get to comfortable with their new salaries, as if the job is never going away or they plan to spend a career in a war zone. They’ll return home on vacation, buy a new car for the spouse, add an addition to the house, etc., etc.. Before they know it, the money is gone. Now they end up staying another year to recoup the savings that they’ve just spent.

I’ve met people who’ve fallen into this trap and end up working in these locations for years to cover their own spending or that of a family member. When I was in Iraq, I worked with a guy who had a spouse in Thailand. He spent a year working in Iraq, quit his job and then spent a year unemployed living the good life in Thailand. Certainly the dollar goes much farther in Thailand although in his case he built a big beautiful house and really lived it up. After that year was over and the money was gone, he was back in Iraq.

Others however, travel to a war zone with distinct goals in mind. They know what they want to achieve and how long it will take to get there. They’ve communicated with their spouses and prepared the family for their absence. These are the people who rarely return.



Gina

tracy asked:


I just received an email from my son and he is concerned about voting in the upcoming Presidential election. He is in Iraq. After asking several superiors, he has not gotten a clear answer. Anybody here know what I can tell him, or do I need to contact our Congressperson? Thanks.
If our troops vote by absentee ballot, who is responsible for getting them the absentee ballot to mail in?

James

Lid asked:


I know plenty of democrats went along with it too, so its not all republican’s faults. I just find it amazing how many people will still defend Bush and say Iraq was the right thing to do. Also did any of you republicans oppose the war in the beginning?

Javier

interdependent globalized world asked:


Why is it not clear at the highest levels that the Afghanistan war and the Iraq war are two extremely different wars?

Are our politicians really that foolish?

Beth

Cindy Sheehan asked:


Excerpt

The following is an excerpt from the book Peace Mom

by Cindy Sheehan

Published by Atria; September 2006;$22.95US/$31.50CAN; 0-7432-9791-1

Copyright © 2006 Cindy Sheehan

Chapter 6

Close Encounters of the Bush Kind

We were a little late getting to the bus the next morning because at first we couldn’t get Andy up — either by phone or by knocking on his door. When we boarded the bus we were greeted by approximately sixty people, making up fourteen or fifteen families like ours. All the others had the same sad look around their eyes. There was no jocularity or singing on this bus.

I met a young woman whose husband had been blown to vapor and they’d recovered nothing of him to bury. His mom and dad were also on the bus. They were so hurt and fragile.

But sitting right in front of me was another woman whom I have grown to dislike very strongly. I soon found out that she was the stepmother of a soldier who was killed, but she introduced herself and her husband as the parents of “Ed.” She then pointed out another woman who she said was Ed’s “sort of foster mother”– who I found out later was Ed’s real mother. The first woman was his stepmother, who didn’t have a very good relationship with Ed before he was killed. But ever since he was killed, she has been a tireless supporter of the war and the president. She is so “brave and valiant” to keep her chin up after her stepson was killed.

This stepmother and her husband became active participants in one of the most bizarre protests in history: The “Cindy doesn’t speak for me” tour. I can’t believe that these people’s views, beliefs, and intellect are so wee that they can’t even have a “We speak for ourselves” tour. Ed’s real mother, who is very antiwar and anti-Bush, is in my organization and her heart aches every time this woman claims Ed as her own and exploits his name and sacrifice to prop up the president and his misguided war.

We arrived at Fort Lewis about forty-five minutes after we left the hotel. Then we had to stand in the parking lot of the post hospital, where the meetings were to occur, for another hour because they weren’t ready to let us in yet. I was beginning to feel the Washington State “heat wave” more acutely as we stood on asphalt without shade or water.

This interlude, though, is when I found out that my soon to be new friend was Ed’s mother, not his “sort of foster mother.” I found out that she was even more deeply opposed to George Bush and the war than I was at the time. Her son was KIA back in 2003, so she’d had a little more time to ponder the reasons and lies. She even had a letter that she wanted to give George, accusing him of lying and taking our country to war for oil. Damn it, I thought to myself, I wish I had thought of that!

My new friend “Donna” requested, and received, a meeting with George Bush that was separate from the one with her flag-waving, red-white-and-blue-wearing ex-husband and his wife. She gave the letter to one of the president’s aides and waited in a room by herself until George had met with all of the other families. I wish to recount her meeting before I recount ours. Then maybe, dear reader, you won’t be so horrified by our little “tea party” with George.

Donna was waiting in her little curtained-off area for the president to appear. When he did, he strode right up to her and put his face an inch from hers — there they stood, nose to nose, and Donna, God bless her, did not back off. He sneered at her and said in his most intimidating (he thinks) voice, “I’m George W. Bush, I am president of the United States, and I hear you have something to say to me.”

Donna looked him squarely in the eye and said, “You bet I do.”

She then went on to outline her grievances against him, asking the question that I would try to ask George a year later: “Why did my son have to die?”

Donna told him that Ed had a good life and if he had lived, he would have been a productive and wonderful citizen of our society. Then Bush said the coldest thing to her that I have ever heard. After Donna got through talking about her dear boy, George, unbelievably and incredibly, said, “If your son came home from Iraq alive, how do you know he would have had a good life?”

When Donna told me that, I wondered how she didn’t slap him or spit in his face. President or not, that was a rude and coldhearted and pitiless thing to say. She said she was too shocked to even say anything in reply.

Our meeting with George was disturbing, but it took us a while to realize it because we were still in too much shock at the time to process it.

We were moved from a big room in the post hospital to a little room with a couch, chair, a coffee table, and a fake potted tree. The room was a curtained-off space that was barely big enough for the five of us. I had brought five pictures of Casey, ranging from when he was a baby to when he was a big soldier man.

The smiling pictures of a cheerful and chubby-cheeked baby break my heart. Why did I let my sunny, wonderful boy join Uncle Sam’s army? The pictures of Casey when he was a beautiful boy are heartbreaking, too. Then he became an awkward teenager — tall and skinny and all “asses and elbows,” as I used to say to him — with braces and acne, to boot! When the braces came off and the acne cleared, he was a handsome young man.

So we were sitting in this tiny room at Fort Lewis with the pictures of Casey on the coffee table. The scene was like some tragic and smaller version of our home and our decimated family. We were nervously waiting for George Bush to appear — when in walked Arizona senator John McCain.

The events that I am about to relate were later disputed by John McCain, but I know they are the truth. Up to that point in my life, I had never even met one senator, let alone one with the stature of John McCain, and I treasured what he said to us.

The senator was very personable and he sat right down on the couch and complimented the girls on how pretty they were and on how handsome Andy was — he called us all by our first names — then he looked at the pictures of Casey and had tears in his eyes.

I asked McCain why Casey had to die, and he told me, “Well, Cindy, I am afraid it’s going to be for nothing, like my buddies in Vietnam.” I was stunned by his openness and honesty, but I deeply appreciated it. However, he denies having said this.

We chatted with some small talk and then he asked us if there was anything else he could do for us and I said, “Yes, you can run with Senator Kerry as his vice president.” He chuckled and said, “Anything but that, Cindy. The country is too divided as it is.” Senator McCain remembers this exchange. We had quite a spirited talk about this, our first meeting, when I met with him again in his Washington, D.C., office in September.

I had a lot of respect for Senator McCain, and I love what he did in the Senate to try to limit George and Dick’s reign of torture. But after what the Rove team did to John McCain during the 2000 campaign when they smeared him and tried to aver that he had a black baby and demeaned his war record as a prisoner of war in Vietnam — trying to make him look as if he gave up national secrets under torture — then John McCain bends over and lets George Bush kiss him. He even campaigned for Bush in 2004. That’s when I lost respect for the senator, but in June 2004, I still had a lot of regard for him. Now, with the senator’s unending support for another Vietnam-style war, I fear that every shred of goodness and humanity in him has been lost.

After the senator left our little “living room,” we looked at each other, and Carly said, “I wonder if he is the president’s warm-up act.” And Pat said, “I wonder what Casey has in store for us next.”

After what seemed like hours, the curtain finally opened and in walked George. I was face-to-face with the devil, but I didn’t even know how monstrous this person really was yet.

The president of the United States of America, arguably the most powerful man in the world, walked into the room wearing a blue suit that looked straight off a Wal-Mart rack. His entire tone was one of being at a tea party, and the first thing he uttered was, “So, who are we honorin’ here?”

We all looked at one another in disbelief, and later, when we compared notes, we couldn’t believe that the so-called leader of the so-called free world didn’t even know Casey’s name. And unlike the senator, he didn’t know our names, because right before George entered they had us take off our name tags. I think this was to make it a better photo op, but I’m not really sure. At the very least, we couldn’t believe that an aide didn’t whisper, “Mr. President, this is the Sheehan family. Their son, Specialist Casey Sheehan, was killed in Iraq.”

So we told him who we were and who we were “honorin’.” We are still not sure who he honors, and I am not sure we really want to know.

I tried to get George to look at the pictures that we had brought of Casey, but he wouldn’t. We tried to talk about Casey and what a valuable member of our family he was, but he didn’t want to hear it. He didn’t want to know anything about Casey, and I feel he didn’t want to see the face of someone his lies killed. I believe George does not want to humanize his cannon fodder, or bullet sponges, as the soldiers call themselves.

At one point he approached Carly and said, “Who are you to the loved one?” (He always called Casey the “loved one.”) Carly replied, “Casey was my brother.”

George then said a very stupid thing, which he is famous for: “I wish I could bring your loved one back to fill the hole in your hearts.”

“So do we, Mr. President,” Carly agreed. At which point he gave her what Carly says was the “dirtiest look I ever received from another human being” and said to her, “I’m sure you do.” Then he dismissed Carly with a turn of his back and never spoke to her again for the rest of the meeting.

We had some presidential small talk. He wanted to know what we did for a living and was particularly interested in Andy’s career as a surveyor. We took some pictures with him, and he said to the kids, “Take care of your mama, she has a very sweet soul.”

Then he approached me for our infamous exchange. He took my right hand in both of his and said, “Mom” — he called me Mom — “I can’t imagine losin’ a loved one. Whether it is an aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, brother, sister . . .”

Before he could go through the entire litany of how Casey could be related to me without actually saying the word son, I stopped him and said, “Mr. President” — that’s when I still called him that — “Casey was my son. I think you can imagine it — you have two daughters — try to imagine one of them being killed.” I saw a brief flicker of humanity in his eyes, then it was gone. I said, “Trust me, Mr. President, you don’t want to go there.”

And he said, “You’re right, I don’t.”

At least, and I think for the first time, he was honest. I was stunned at his coldhearted statement and all I could mutter was, “Well, thanks for putting me there.”

George Bush stammered some things about everyone on earth deserving “freedom and democracy” and slobbered something else about “expressing the thanks of a grateful nation.” Trust me, we didn’t say “You’re welcome.” Then as fast as he swept in, the tea party was over.

When I say George pretended to have compassion it is because everything he said did not match his eyes. Speaking to him was like speaking to someone who is disconnected from reality. It is very disconcerting to talk to people when the heart light of their eyes does not match what they are saying.

It was a very disordered event, not quite but almost as disordered as burying a child.

One of the things I asked him when we were speaking was, “Why were we invited here? We didn’t vote for you in 2000 and we are certainly not going to vote for you this year!” His answer to me was, “Mom, this is not about politics.” For some unknown but totally forgivable reason I believed him. That is, until the Republican National Convention, when he betrayed my trust again.

In his acceptance speech for the nomination for president, he said something like, “I meet with the families of the fallen. I feel their pain. They tell me that they are praying for me and to complete the mission in Iraq so their loved ones don’t die in vain.” That is what tore it for me. He told me he wasn’t meeting us for political reasons, but that’s exactly what it was for. The so-called commander in chief doesn’t allow the showing of images of flag-draped coffins coming home from Iraq nor has he attended a single funeral.

He was trying to assure the nation that he had compassion. He was trying to tell the nation that we wanted more children killed just because Casey was dead.

Again, and again, and again, and again, he was lying. That’s when I decided to become involved in the 2004 presidential campaign. Not to campaign for John Kerry, but to campaign against George Bush.

Copyright © 2006 Cindy Sheehan

Author

Cindy Sheehan, mother of the late Specialist Casey Sheehan, U.S. Army, is cofounder of Gold Star Families for Peace, an organization devoted to families who have lost loved ones in Iraq.



Louise

James Opiko asked:


“Let’s give a welcome to Macaca, here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia.”—Sen. George Allen, Republican Presidential hopeful calling a student of Indian descent a “Monkey” in coded racist language. Allen then began talking about the “war on terror.”

The recent terror arrests in Britain show the need to fight “for our security in a rational, serious way rather than being bogged down in a war than is harmful to our security.”—Ned Lamont on the terror arrests in the U.K. after beating incumbent senior Senator of Connecticut, Joseph Lieberman.

Ned Lamont’s Connecticut victory is a victory for “level headed” America. George Allen’s xenophobic slam is a demonstration of the extremist and desperate direction that some section of this country is so hell bent on steering it to…a one hundred year backtrack.

George Allen’s apology is pure nonsense for his record of “accomplishments” speaks volumes. This same man:

1. Led the charge against a holiday for Martin Luther King – a prince of racial peace.

2. Is a key figure in fueling the rampant anti-immigrant mood in the country today – kick them ALL out (legal & illegal), they are contaminating our culture, taking our jobs, raping our women and introducing new diseases to our beloved motherland.

3. Had been dogged by numerous allegations of racial insensitivity for years as governor – his record as Governor of the state of Virginia (1994-1998) reeks of racially intolerant acts.

4. Has a past that includes a vociferous admiration of the Confederate flag and an office that once displayed a noose.

What more does one need to catalog this man as a die-hard racist?

Senator Allen is not only “foolish” and “mean” as some of his moderate Republican colleagues have called him but he is just a well-chronicled racist….period!

Because of his desire to become president in 2008 and due to the cognizance that an extremist will never be elected president in modern America, Senator Allen has introduced a half-baked anti-lynching legislation in the Senate and promised to lead the charge for an official apology for slavery…desperate political gerrymandering tailored to flaunt an extremist as a moderate.

The two Republican administrations of George Bush and Dick Cheney are textbook examples of how not to conduct the affairs of any government. I have watched this administration bungle and mangle the affairs of this great nation in the most alarming and reckless manner.

The 9-11 debacle was like a gong going off to mark the inauguration of a “rotten” era in American politics. This grave event has been milked and abused by greedy and selfish politicians at all levels of government, the media, the bigots and the supremacists.

Even the religious sycophants and “Jesus Freaks” such as Pat Roberts of the 700 Club have not been left out. Some are forecasting a third world war with quotations from the Bible…to advance their agenda of theft and deceit.

The Bush administration aided by some sectors of a partisan media has over the last six or so years outrageously manipulated a relatively factually ill-informed populace. A TV educated public that is largely incapable of analyzing news from a non-partisan and logical perspective. A people held at ransom by a marauding media in pursuit of the almighty dollar.

The people of the United States have been hoodwinked, cajoled and totally mesmerized by an administration fueled by “third world like” blood letting. “Scheduled” Terror alerts have been orchestrated for selfish political gain. Some exceedingly comical and outrightly ridiculous.

Intolerance, which until this administration came about, was somewhat subdued and slowly dying its natural death is now above the radar…thanks to George Bush and Co. Hate groups have been rejuvenated and re-invented…fueling hatred across the country.

On Immigration, Hate and “Macacaism”

Politicians are running amok taking sides on this issue to position their selfish selves for the forthcoming November elections. Some like Colorado’s Tom Tancredo have even forged “coalitions” with the most dastardly and virulently predatory hate groups in this country. Newscasters like Lou Dobbs of CNN, Sean Hannity and Bill O’Reily of FOX NEWS among many, are skillfully using their privileged positions in these media organizations to hammer in and stir salt into the open wounds of hatred, unremittingly using fear and misinformation which have instigated horrible hate crimes against immigrants, especially Latinos.

Tattooed Skinheads and the Ku Klux Klansmen wielding pistols and hi-tech rifles are running around the country vomiting hateful rhetoric…proclaiming imminent war on the “invaders,” poisoning the minds of well-meaning citizens.

Reminiscent of the slavery days, Hispanics are being portrayed as “lower forms of life”…it is not too long ago that this was said of blacks and earlier immigrants.

Commentators and Journalists have mindlessly manipulated news items on immigration, repeatedly narrating the most desperate and extreme talking points, in order to inflate their rankings in the Nielsen sweepstakes, a crucial yard stick in generating ad revenues.

Racism in America is on the upsurge and the predatory and ferrety instincts of the bigoted in this country are as sharp as ever. Racism never went away as we all know; we beat it down into a hiding hole, now the intolerant half of this nation is using the “illegal immigration issue” to rear their ugly heads out of their foxholes.

One issue stands clear – no one want’s terrorists in this land and the majority favor an orderly immigration itinerary, but a despicable few have cashed in on this issue repeatedly to transport their agenda of hate and intolerance.

Because of the reckless war policies instituted by the Bush administration, fewer Americans want to join the military, resulting in missed recruiting quotas …now being filled with hate-filled recruits.

It has been widely reported that white supremacists have infiltrated the military forces because admission standards have had to be lowered due to low recruit turnouts, ostensibly to defend the “homeland” from “foreign invaders.”

“Cazamigrantes” (A conglomeration of hate filled immigrant hunters) like the “Minute Men” are on the march and “chapters” are spreading like wild fire across the country igniting more hate.

These in my humble opinion are future “Home Grown Terrorists.” The military training they take delivery of today will be used against their “targets of hate” in the future, and they hate almost anything and anybody. How frightening!

The War in Iraq

In his recent statement, Mr. Lamont elucidates five critical observations:

1. With a force of 132,000 troops and a cost of $8 billion per month, we are currently refereeing a civil war in Iraq with no signs of progress and no credible exit strategy.

2. Our force readiness to face another threat elsewhere in the world has been diminished because of our preoccupation with Iraq.

3. Both anger at America around the world and the number of terrorists seeking to do us harm have increased. We are not stronger and safer because of Iraq; just the opposite is unfortunately true.

4. Potential attacks like the one that appears to have been foiled today are clear and present dangers. Al-Qaeda continues to have operational capacity to threaten air traffic around the world, including into and out of the United States.

5. We need to focus on our security, on apprehending Osama bin Laden and other terrorist leaders and on building a credible, effective foreign policy with our allies.

Osama bin Laden has not been caught, yet Vice President Dick Cheney continues to daydream about “weapons of mass destruction” in Iraq, a country that for all practical purposes is in the middle of a brutal civil war, a civil war emanating from politics of greed and deceit…sinister agendas that have absolutely nothing to do with Osama bin Laden and the war on terror. Meanwhile a hapless Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and an irritating and arrogant Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld continue to strut around like castrated peacocks.

Sure, Saddam Hussein was a brutal dictator but what did this have to do with the 9-11? Shouldn’t all efforts have been invested in Afghanistan where Osama bin Laden still perches, taunting America to “pee-pee” fits!

The American people need to wake up

America is a great nation, a nation that must learn from what it endured in the past. A nation that must review its bloody racial history and not repeat the same mistakes. A nation that must vet incompetence when electing leaders of high office, for you voted in “third world” incompetence in 2000 and again in 2004.

“The chain reaction of evil—hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars—must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation,”—Martin Luther King Jr. said.

I sincerely hope that America will recuperate and survive the immense moral and emotional damage that has been inflicted upon it over the last six years.

I rest my case.



Eugene

Derek Drekland asked:


Sure the economy is bad and a lot of people are out of work but the fact remains that there are still plenty of good paying jobs out there. Take jobs in Iraq and Afghanistan for instance, where war and strife have left so much devastation in their wake.

They Have the Money

At last count Iraq had well over eighty billion dollars in their surplus accounts to pay for rebuilding. Bear in mind thats only the money in surplus and doesn’t take into account future oil revenues that are due to come in.

Low Tech and High Tech Jobs

After decades of neglect under the regime of Saddam Hussein, many of those years under an oil embargo, Iraq’s massive oil infrastructure is in dire shape. This means years and possibly even decades of well paying jobs for pipe fitters, electricians and welders just to name a few.

Private Security Workers

Then of course, there are the jobs in Iraq and Afghanistan that involve private security. Right now there are over 200,000 private security workers in Iraq alone and as rebuilding in Afghanistan steps up so too with the need for private security workers there as well.

Prepare in Advance

The first thing that you need to do if you are serious about landing a well paying job in Iraq and Afghanistan is to get a passport and get your resume in order. Also, it doesn’t hurt to learn a little of the native language as well as some of their customs.

Look Online

Then get busy looking online, because that is where you are going to have your best chances at finding one. Also, bear in mind that these types of jobs often require that you commit yourself to an extended contract, so give it plenty of thought before you sign on.



Heidi

Joseph asked:


Let’s face it, we as parents always put our children’s needs first.  Doesn’t it go to say by electing The President of the United States, we need to think more about our children’s future than ourselves? After all we are all promised big changes by democrats that never occur. Pelosi and the democrats have controlled congress for almost 2 years and although they made many promises for change, nothing has occurred.

 

We are all well aware of the importance our teachers bring who teach and program our children. Parents and teachers have a profound effect on how are children will think and behave. Furthermore, we also know how important it is for our children to be surrounded with other well behaved positive thinking children from well rounded families.

 

It is no secret that Democratic President nominee Barack Obama has grown up with the teaching of extremely angry, militant, known fanatic people including: the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Louis Farrakhan, William Ayers and Rev. Michael Pfleger. We want to brush aside these conclusions as attacks and believe Mr. Obama, but, how can we? Are you really to believe that we are not affected by teachers who are militant and angry? This type of teaching plays a rule in anyone whom has endured it. Who is anyone kidding that Mr. Obama won’t run this country in the mindset of his teachers.

 

The Democratic Party, in its quest for power, has managed a propaganda campaign featuring change and containing subliminal messages that promote a God-like figure in Obama who falls short in every way. The only change is a dangerous one. It only makes sense that if Obama wins the presidential election, then power will shift and the master teachers of our children will include twisted messengers; Farrakhan, Wright, Ayers and Pfleger. They will gain the power to change America forever and their quest to demoralize this country, create a socialist America, and limit your freedom immensely.

 

Socialism does not work and we have many examples to look at. Socialism is a more gentle way of conducting communism however; do not get it wrong, they go hand in hand.  This is the reason Democrats are targeting young people, our children. Being a product of this teaching, they know how easy it is to program the minds of children. Making our leader appear young, hip, and cool to attract the young vote is all the wrong reasons. Sadly enough, the democrat party as we once knew is obsolete. This disease, “liberalism” has eaten away at most of the democrat party. Why else do they choose to nominate the most liberal, untraditional, extreme Marxism candidates?

 

 Think about it and research past candidates to understand this all began even before Jimmy Carter. If it wasn’t for republicans fighting back and filling the void for democrats, this liberalism would have spread much faster.  Many current leaders now, who marched and protested our soldiers in the Vietnam era are very powerful today in their work to bring down the Iraq war, attack our president, rid the country of God, and throw our freedom and capitalism down the drain. What better source than to find their way into our schools to poison our children’s minds and gain popularity in their votes to control our government. A known dear friend of barrack Obama’s, William Ayers is a prime example of this. Our military and strong leaders remain focused and have fought off the attacks of “liberalism”.  They protect our freedom and democracy under the help of God as we had been founded in America. Whether you believe in Jesus, as the son of God or not, there is certainly enough documentation to prove he was a wise and sincere teacher with many following. This is a teacher I want my children to learn from. There is no comparison to these fanatics Obama has in his closet.

 

President Bush uses faith to aid him in his decision-making and luckily he is so forthright to abscond from negative pressuring and he stayed focus to win in Iraq. This positive direction in Iraq is a huge victory in America as well because the democrat party wanted us to lose so very bad. To hear Obama change his mind and go from ending this war immediately, to now, ending it responsibly and finishing the war with a victory is something that was hard for him to say. If George Bush wasn’t so relentless and steadfast in his beliefs and would have caved into the democrats wishes, we would have mass hysteria and the democrats would have much ammunition to help win the election.

 

 If you haven’t figured it out, the democrats will do anything to win. The leadership of Gen. David Petraeus, also brought hope and stability to Iraq and prevented the terrorists from reuniting in Iraq or elsewhere for that matter, because, they are on the run. We should admire and learn from our soldiers who demonstrate patriotism at a time when most of us have almost forgotten who we are, what we stand for, and what is at stake.

 

If Barrack Obama and the democrat party had their way, they would have kept denouncing this war even if it meant endangering our soldiers just to gain power and win the 08’ presidential election. Obama would have pulled our troops from Iraq severely discrediting and injuring our military reputation throughout the world. Not to mention this would have initiated an unprecedented bloodbath to the Iraqi’s and created a breeding ground for terrorists with one common goal; Kill Americans, Israeli’s, and Western supporters.

 

Obama has openly stated how he would conduct our military in a time of war: quit and return home. He apparently lacks understanding about the true nature of our enemies which is extremely dangerous. How can we accept any notion that Obama is capable of keeping us safe from the terrorists around the world and protect our country as well as our allies.

 

Russia is just waiting for America to weaken so they can reek havoc on democratic nations such as; Ukraine, Poland, Georgia, etc. I have often believed Russia was befriending the Middle East, especially Iran, to gain power like the old Soviet Union. Iran is quickly making great strides toward getting the atomic bomb which would not be possible without Russia’s help. Russia was waiting for America to fail in Iraq so they could swoop in and gain power with the most evil of governments.

 

Doesn’t that scare you that most evil governments wanted to see us fail in Iraq and our own democratic party shared this desire? Look at the facts instead of letting the media sensationalize Obama and make your own decision. Look where Obama comes from, (teachings) how he has voted, and always says whatever it is to sound great even if it is completely opposite from what he originally has said.

 

This is a perilous time and only getting worse with the rise of the “old Soviet Union” and a possible nuclear Iran. Right now more than ever, the world needs a united and strong America. America rose out of nowhere and many have given their life to make us great.

 

Listen to the dead, stay strong and united to keep a free and democratic United States and continue pursuing freedom for the world. Obama and the democrats are waiting time bombs.



Vanessa

Dr. Susan Corso asked:


The long-awaited report from General David Petraeus on the ground in Iraq is due in the U.S. capital this week. Does anyone else hear his name as Betray Us?

I don’t think that’s his intent. I think General Petraeus wants to tell the world the truth about the surge strategy in Iraq. He may not be allowed to do so. In recent weeks, much has been made of White House speechwriters tackling the General’s report to make it fit for public consumption. The truth doesn’t need spin-doctors.

Confucius inspires me. “When purpose is directed, one becomes calm. When one is calm, then peace can be found.” Track them through Iraq with me.

Has purpose been directed? It has, but at incorrect intelligence leading to incorrect assumptions. Anyone else noticed how incorrect premises lead to less-than-productive actions which produce unhappy results?

What is our genuine purpose in Iraq? I can’t answer this question. The whole matter has been so spun, so doctored I can’t find the truth any more.

We need a new genuine purpose. The point Confucius makes is that when purpose is genuine, there is a natural result we may expect. Calm. There’s nothing calm about Iraq any more. Not in Washington, D.C. Not in the American populace. Maybe not even in the rest of the world. And certainly not in Iraq itself.

Is there calm to be found anywhere? Right now, I don’t think there is. It’s unfortunate because if our purpose were named Peace In Iraq, there would be a natural genuineness to it. Peace is a bottomline purpose for all people. It’s the one thing we can agree on that humans most universally want.

What we have trouble agreeing on is how to get there. Thomas Mann wrote, “War is a cowardly escape from the problems of peace.”

Peace does cause problems. Peace takes time. Peace requires commitment. Peace means we don’t always know how to proceed. Peace means we get to listen and really work to hear. Peace means there are insurmountable differences that we get to figure out how to surmount. Peace requires courage. Peace asks for a long-range view rather than short-term gain. There are all sorts of inconveniences peace puts us through.

I agree with Thomas Mann. War is a cowardly escape. Let’s take a page out of the book of one of the best-loved cowards of all time, the Cowardly Lion. When he goes off to see The Wizard (of Oz), all he wants is “the noive.”

Find your noive this week and hold the idea of Peace In Iraq as a new genuine purpose. Sit in the calm you generate and help the U.S. find its new mission. Operation Iraqi Peace.



Erica