Posted on 09/08/2003 6:53:49 AM PDT by Moose4
President Bush doesn't need to worry about any misgivings about the Iraq war from the citizens of Lexington County, one of the country's most conservative.
Hours before the president addressed the nation, making the case for remaining in Iraq, more than 200 Lexington County residents showed up for a pro-troop rally at White Knoll High School.
"I'm glad to be free, and I know that the people of Iraq need to be free," said Emma Moore, of Lexington, whose daughter is a member of the high school's ROTC program.
The rally, sponsored by five area American Legion posts, two Veterans of Foreign Wars posts and other civic organizations, featured several prominent South Carolina politicians, including State Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum , a Lexington resident, and U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C.
Because of rain, a scheduled F-16 flyover was canceled. Instead, rallygoers were treated to marches and patriotic music inside the high school auditorium.
"We're doing the right thing in Iraq," said Tenenbaum, a Democrat running for retiring U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings' seat.
"I'm sick of the debate about whether we should be over there or not," she added.
Wilson, a stalwart of patriotic rallies throughout the state, reminded the audience of his military experience and the military service of his three sons.
Wilson said he would soon be visiting Iraq and would "tell the soldiers there of your support."
Keynote speaker Col. Keith Coln, commander of the 169th Fighter Wing based at McEntire Air National Guard Station, was one of a handful of soldiers at the rally who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
"This war was a fight we needed to protect our way of life and our Arab allies who share our same values," said Coln, a Greenville native who commanded the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing out of Qatar during the war.
Coln presented Lexington veterans with a U.S. flag that had flown on an F-16 over Iraq.
Tech Sgt. Stacy Lucius, also stationed at McEntire, returned from Qatar in May.
"To be honest, it was no different than what we were doing on base, loading planes," he said.
But Lucius said he worried about his fellow soldiers in Iraq.
"You hear about one or two of them dying each day," he said. "They're out on the street and don't know what to expect ‘.‘.‘. but that's the cost of helping the people of Iraq regain their freedom."
Other war veterans shared Lucius' assessment.
"I hope it doesn't turn into another Vietnam," said Batesburg-Leesville resident Lester Brown, a Vietnam veteran who has a nephew serving in Kuwait.
"In Vietnam, I got a sense we didn't accomplish anything," he said. "Here I think we're doing the right thing, but the sooner we can get out, the better."
You'll be hard-pressed to find a place more pro-troops than here in central South Carolina, with a major Army training base (Fort Jackson) and a large Air Force base (Shaw AFB) nearby. I mean, heck, the Yankee Army came through here 138 years ago and liked it so much that they stayed! :)
}:-)4
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.