Posted on 05/10/2004 11:02:06 PM PDT by abigail2
Why Iraq Is Becoming Vietnam
Liberals have long dreamed of turning our occupation of Iraq into another Vietnam, a scar on the face of America that they could revel in. I believe in many ways, they are succeeding.
Their latest victory is their success in turning incidents of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib prison into an indictment of American foreign policy and the President. Our Defense Secretary was dragged before a motley group of Senatorial inquisitors, many of whom don’t have the moral standing to tie his shoe, much less interrogate him.
The “scandal” is the Mai Lai massacre to this generation of liberals, and it reaches them like manna from heaven. They are hoping it is the turning point that allows them to toss dirt onto our Iraqi operation. It follows close on the heels of the Fallujah debacle, where America flinched instead of laying down the boot on crazy cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his band of fanatical thugs.
America essentially let human scum get away with murdering our countrymen and desecrating their bodies on worldwide TV. Everyone knew the appropriate response would be to cordon off the city, allow the innocent to escape, and liquidate the terrorists. But we didn’t have the will to follow through, fearing the world would view too many civilian casualties on TV.
The failure cannot be blamed on liberals. After all, they’re not failing—they’re succeeding. It is the decent people of America who are suffering the failure of will. Our president is guilty of the same.
President George W. Bush has proven himself to be a very capable war president, but an uneven president in non-war matters. The reason is that he correctly perceived a need in war to do whatever it took to prevail. But once the hot war was finished in Iraq, he began to filter his decisions through the prism of political consideration. That is a recipe for failure.
When will we learn, I wonder. Vietnam was a humiliating defeat. Not because it was an immoral war, as liberals like to say, but because we failed to let the troops win due to political considerations. Iraq is no different. The Marines could have subdued Fallujah in days, if not hours, if they were given a free hand.
What has all of this political consideration gotten for Mr. Bush and for America? We are so worried about the “Arab street” and what they will think about everything. To hell with the Arab street! The Arab street are the same people who cheered on 9-11.
It is obvious to anyone with half a brain that America is a decent nation, and that terrorists are evil. When wrongdoing is found on our side, it is an anomaly. With terrorists it is their modus operandi. Yet CNN and their ilk continue to produce pieces spotlighting America’s errors in war, and not the daily routine of our bloodthirsty enemies.
President Bush had it right when he long ago called Iraq, Iran, and North Korea the “axis of evil.” We would have done well to quickly move as needed against these enemies. But indecision, weakness, and lack of preparation have caused the Iraq campaign to languish. Its overall slowness is killing whatever support and goodwill the administration may have had for future campaigns.
On September 11th, 2001, fanatical terrorists made clear that they had declared war on us. This would be a war of annihilation—either theirs or ours—there was no third solution.
Currently we have the world’s terrorists right where we want them—coming to us in Iraq. Would we prefer they come back to New York City. Or perhaps Los Angeles, or Chicago?
Are we naïve enough to think that if we walk away from Iraq, we won’t be followed home? That the world’s terrorists won’t correctly gather that we are running away with our tail between our legs? Look what happened when we left Vietnam—mass graves and lost prestige.
Lack of will was our true enemy in Vietnam. We must exorcize this demon, or we will be condemned to repeat history.
©2004 Patrick Rooney
Patrick Rooney is the Director of Special Projects at BOND, the Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny, a nonprofit organization dedicated to “Rebuilding the Family By Rebuilding the Man.”
For more information, please visit www.bondinfo.org, call 1-800-411-BOND (2663), or write to patrick@bondinfo.org.
I agree but I don't want to let the "grunts" off that easy. The fact is that there will be a LOT of brass melted over this and it will include a Brigadier General.
That she was allowed by DOD to show up on a number of Talk Shows right after the pics hit the press tells me they are not sure what they have. She may take the fall but I don't believe her fall will be quiet.
I agree.
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IronJack posted an excellent article that I think is somewhat related to this one, in that 'it's time to get tough and get on with the business at hand'.
There's Plenty of Shame To Go Around
(Reposted due to incorrect spelling in the title of the link.)
Most liberals, however, do not hate America. The problem with political debate in this country is that people can only see the other side as immoral or inhuman. Conservatives say liberals are weak, immoral peaceniks, liberals say conservatives are greedy, heartless warmongers. They both call each other anti-American.
Political labels are shackles that tie us to a black and white view of the world. I am liberal on some issues and conservative on others -- what does that make me? Liberal? Conservative? Do I have to choose? When we can move past our lockstep partisanship, maybe then we can truly start to have a meaningful dialogue.
I wonder what the masses will do when they realize they've been lied to by "the most trusted voice(s) in America"?
Because it seemed to me the justification kept shifting. Sometimes it was one of the above, sometimes two, sometimes all the above. So now you're left with this: Saddam removed, and the war itself looking grim, despite the heroic efforts of U.S. troops.
The U.S. should have heeded the Powell doctrine, instead of the Rumsfeld fever-dream.
I don't say that liberals are weak peaceniks. I say that they are really socialists who aim to sell out our constitutional rights.
Right to bear arms? Don't "need" guns. Toss that out.
Right to property? Inheritance tax is a scheme to redistribute wealth (it doesn't really belong to you). Toss that out.
Right to freedom of religion? Freedom FROM religion to hear the left tell it.
I could go on.
The far left are admittedly anarchist-socialists (like Ted Rall). They may vote 'Rat now and then but they oppose our constitutional form of government (for the record, Ted Rall did support the impeachment of Bill Clinton, he knew that he was a perjuror. He also knew that Bill Clinton wasn't far enough to the left for him and thought Albert Gore Junior might advance his agenda more).
Look at AKpress.org if you don't have a Pacifica radio station (on the left end of your radio dial) to listen to. There are too many publications there to be "a fringe group". Too many academics follow this bile.
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