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January 29, 2004

Wind Beneath My Wings

I'm quite impressed by Dr. David Kay, the former Iraq Survey Group head inspector who stepped down recently. It takes a lot of courage to stand up for what you believe is right in the face of overwhelming opposition, but the man keeps talking plainly about what he sees as unmitigated failures in the U.S. intelligence-gathering process as it relates to Iraq. I admire that. Sometimes a person - or a nation - has to admit they were wrong before they can get back on the path to being right.

Incidentally, President Bush's gross mishandling of l'affaire Iraq is but one of many, many reasons I think he's been a horrible "leader" for this country. Absolutely horrible. The fact that he's done a handful of positive things doesn't make amends for all of the many negative things that he is responsible for making come to pass.

If my child or spouse had been sent to Iraq to give their life for their country's interests based on some bright shining lie, I would be enraged. And I don't feel safer after 9/11 at all. More foreign interests dislike us now than before that day, and the ones that already had it in for the United States are even more vociferous in their abject hatred. Most of the good will that the global community felt for the U.S. after 9/11 dissipated when Bush sent us headlong into Iraq without reasonable justification.

Oh, and as for where I stand on the whole "supporting the troops" thing, my stepdad is a Vietnam Veteran, I took two dissertation-level classes as an undergrad at FSU on the Vietnam War (because it interests me), and my grandfather was a World War II B-17 pilot who later became a training instructor and died in a plane crash at MacDill AFB right before the Korean War. I have been wearing his Army Air Force ID bracelet since I was 18 and can count on one hand the times I've ever taken it off (you can see it in this photo, taken during crew training before he was sent overseas for his tour of duty in WW2. My grandfather is in the front row, second from the left, and the bracelet is on his right wrist.).

Although Iraq is certainly the issue that has the biggest international impact for the United States, I'm actually more angered by what President Bush's policies have done nationally. Since he's taken office, millions of people have lost their jobs, more people are below the poverty level, more people do not have health coverage, and more people are being marginalized by his continued insistence on kowtowing to the financial elite.

It deeply embarrasses me that the man wants to go so far as to amend the Constitution of the United States in order to make his own soi-disant moral and religious beliefs a mandate. Homosexual couples don't jeopardize the sanctity of heterosexual marriage. Heterosexuals do.

There's this little thing called "separation of Church and State" that this country needs to go back to embracing. And whatever happened to the unalienable right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness"?

(Incidentally, Thomas Jefferson cribbed a lot of his ideas from my favorite philosopher, John Locke.)

Posted by Highwaygirl on January 29, 2004 12:28 PM to the category Current Affairs
Comments

GOOD! you support your troops... That's really all I was asking for... Thank you.

Posted by: Navy Wife at January 29, 2004 12:47 PM

I don't really even think in terms of "supporting our troops" anymore because I just feel too sorry for them. I think our troops got SCREWED, and the longer they spend overseas being forced to meddle in something they can't control, the more I feel my saftey as a US citize is in jeopardy. When I think of how our long time allies (e.g., France) feel about us now, I feel truly sick to my stomach. I sure as hell don't support our "Commander in Chief."

And don't even get me STARTED on gay marriage. The fact that fucking Britney Spears can get married for 55 hours, and my old boss and his partner who have been together for 15 years and have two children can't get married is truly WRONG.

November can't come soon enough.

Posted by: Ka Ching at January 29, 2004 01:12 PM

I couldn't agree with you more, HWG. I think a lot of us have felt this way for a long time. I'm appalled that our current administration has decided to use the tragedy of 9/11 and the fears of it's citizens about terrorism to justify a war we probably shouldn't have even started.

Not to start a heated discussion or anything, but what *exactly* are we talking about when someone says, "Support our troops". As opposed to what? Hoping they fail? Hoping they don't make it home? I don't think that is anyone's intention, ever. How do you define, "Supporting your troops"?

Posted by: Kyara at January 29, 2004 01:13 PM

Navy wife, as I posted yesterday, at no point did highwaygirl EVER say anything that could be interpreted as her not supporting the troops.

You continue to miss her point completely.

Posted by: rappy at January 29, 2004 01:23 PM

I don't know that there's anyone - at least I've never run across someone - who doesn't "support the troops" on at least a human level. Personally, I understand that for the most part people in the military are doing what they've been commanded to do.

Like KC said, I feel sorry that they've been put in such a precarious position on the basis of an untruth.

I truly think there are "just" wars and things that are worth fighting for. And I absolutely realize that it is more courageous people than myself who do the ugly work of preserving my freedom. Still, I cannot support a president who jeopardizes the lives of others and threatens his own nation's security through his relentless, unwavering pursuit of his own self-reverential goals. Sometimes the ends do not justify the means.

Posted by: Highwaygirl at January 29, 2004 01:26 PM

Support the Troops? Of course people support the troops.

I find it amusing that Bush was AWOL for significant periods of time during his tour of duty with the Texas National Guard. Pretty easy of him to commit troops to Iraq while his own children run around the campuses of Yale and University of Texas.

No sweat of his back.

For the love of gawd people, let's vote this guy back to private citizenhood before he does something else stupid.

Posted by: Phildozer at January 29, 2004 03:43 PM

Rappy, No in fact, I did not miss Highway girls point. As a matter of fact, I learned quite a bit from her points, and upon firther research find myself furious. Apparantly I have quite a bit to learn about alot of what Bush has done. I feel it has done me good to see his term from anothers point of view. Maybe I was looking at it too one-sided... With tunnel vision if you will. So, alas, I agree. November cannot come soon enough. Maybe than my husband can get the hel* home.

Posted by: navy wife at January 29, 2004 04:00 PM

Very interesting and professional site! Good luck! notem671

Posted by: jim at February 6, 2007 12:47 PM
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