Even though I am a bleeding heart, peace-loving liberal, I respect the troops that fought and died for this country and who continue to do so. I do not quite understand that mindset in every case, but I respect the decision. My uncle died in Vietnam. It is the ultimate sacrifice and it affects so many people. However, especially in the cases of Vietnam and Iraq, I wonder why they must pay the price for the mistakes of politicians. In honor of Memorial Day, I decided to watch Rush To War, a documentary on Iraq.
Perhaps I am a masochist, or perhaps I am still grasping for a reasonable answer to the whole thing. I'm pretty sure that a reasonable answer does not exist, but I'm also pretty sure that the super neo-cons (Rumsfeld, Cheney, etc.) were just waiting for a catastrophic event like 9/11 to launch this plan (actually, there's a 1997 new ideology document that talks about how they would need a "Pearl Harbor type event" to "sell" the idea). As for the rest of America, this could suffice: "The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger." ~Herman Goering, Nazi Reichsmarshall
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Well, I think we've probably established that we aren't twins, but considering our differences, I find our minds are often very similar. Coming from a VERY military background, and having been married to a "separated" Marine (once a Marine, always a Marine, you know) you might suspect that I am in favor of any an all wars. Not so. But I do admire honerable people. I watched as many "volunteer" service members broke their own limbs, etc., in order to escape fulfilling the contracts they entered into: to fight in place of civilians when there is fighting to be done. Why there was fighting to be done is not really a question they are allowed to ask. I am very proud that the man I married is more praiseworthy than the man he was working for. (And here I am referring to the president who entered into this war, whether it was motivated by negligence, self promotion, or evil.) He went to war and did his duty, without any outward complaint. Yay for him. Those other guys....well, they are hardly men, and I spit on them (metaphorically).
Rant over.
By the way, I always refer to Memorial Day as Geranium Day. When I was a child, my grandmother always put red geraniums on the graves she visited. They're her favorite. Maybe the reason I was never afraid of cemetaries is because I always visited them on sunny days, carrying red flowers. Sadly, most things she brings these days are stolen very soon. No more geraniums. Isn't that sad?
Wow. Feeling prosy today. Sorry! ^_^
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