With war probable within 24 hours, can I make a rather simple request? Can posters on all sides just take a chill pill?
Has anyone read or viewed the interviews with our troops over there? These soldiers are men & women, young and relatively old, black, white, Hispanic, and Asian, with wives, husbands, girlfriends, boyfriends, and CHILDREN, not to mention parents and grandparents. Do you know why they are there? To protect my sorry ass, and, just as equally, to protect your sorry asses. They do not have a political agenda of any kind. But, these people are in mortal danger, right now.
So please, can we put away the partisan name-calling and such?
Just for the time being? No accusations of traitors, or commies, or war-mongerers, or baby-killers?
When it’s all over, God-willing within days or weeks, then we can get back to arguing left vs. right, Dem vs. Rep, etc.
Until then, a little respect from all sides will go a long way.
I’ll take two, please. I’ve been finding myself more and more upset not only over the situation - which is less-than-ideal already - but of the stark polarization and the demonization that both sides seem to be hurling at each other, making a bad situation worse in the process.
I don’t think that I have personally indulged in any of the name-calling. But I do feel a strong sense of responsibility for speaking out about what I believe.
If it helps, I don’t think I have heard anyone say that they are not concerned about the troops.
I have nothing but respect for the US and UK military currently awaiting deployment at the Kuwait-Iraqi border. These are men and women who chose as their job the protection of their respective countries, and its interests. I sincerely hope each and every one of them will return home safe and sound.
Similarly, I sincerely hope the Iraqi military and Iraqi citizens will come through this war unharmed. I know, impossible. But I’ll shed a tear for every Iraqi citizen who’ll die as a result of being born in the wrong country at the wrong time.
In the meantime, I reserve every right to criticise the political leaders that send those esteemed troops to war. I do not think I resort to name calling, personally. But I sure as hell am not going to stop criticising GWB and Tony Blair, just because the troops deserve consideration. They have my utter consideration, which is precisely one of the reasons why I voice my criticism.
Wow. You’ve been sobbing your eyes out every day for quite a few years now, I reckon: Genocide in Iraq. The whole reason the soldiers are there is to stop the genocide. I won’t criticize the troops either, but I reserve every right to criticize myopia.
While thinking of the troops, let’s also spare a thought the people of Iraq, who are about to experience something very, very nasty. Let’s hope things will get better for them afterwards.
Oh Lord, yes. I am kind of in denial and am numb about the whole thing still, but one thing I know for sure—those soldiers deserve all our good thoughts and prayers. And the innocent Iraqi people certainly do too.
Actually, I understand that there are 200 Poles going in as well, and that there are German and Chzech soldiers acting as “Bio Warfare” specialists in Kuwait too!
As our Prime Minister John Howard stated yesterday in a national press conference… “Please, I beg of you… if you have a beef about this, have your beef with me… have your beef with the government - but please, have nothing but total support and respect for the well being of our men and women on the ground in the region…”
Ah, nice one. I don’t favour war, so I’m obviously a big supporter of genocide. Because as the entire world agrees, there was no other possible way to overthrow Hussein that a war, right now.
Hence the unanymous ratification of the UN resolution allowing the US to attack Iraq.
I didn’t say you were favoring genocide, Coldfire. Nice dodge. I said that you must have been crying your eyes out over it for years now. After all, you said that you would shed a tear for every Iraqi who lost his life just for being in the wrong country at the wrong time. That would apply to every Iraqi born in Saddam’s Iraq, wouldn’t it?
Desmo, I agree that both my president and your prime minister are full of shit. What’s your point?
Yes, Libertarian, every person who died as a result of Saddam Hussein’s evil regime is one too many. Where do I imply otherwise? Obviously, the “shed a tear” part in my first post was a figure of speech. So no, I have not literally been crying for years over the fate of the Iraqi people. Sheesh.
What you consider myopia, I consider faith in a diplomatic resolution. It is one thing to disagree with someone, it is another to label his view as dismissable because you disagree, Lib.
This is plain, simple English, Lib. Perhaps you simply need to expand your statement: “The whole reason the soldiers are there is to stop the genocide.”
Diplomacy with Saddam Hussein? I’m not sure that even Neville Chamberlain would have bought that one. Anyway, I’ve not said that your views are “dismissable”. I just think that it is myopic to wail about possible civilian deaths from the war because if the objective succeeds, these will be the final deaths of innocent Iraqis whereas another month of diplomacy is another 5,000 to 10,000 Iraqi deaths. Two more months is twice that. And so on.
Did anyone hear the Iraqi military guy call president Bush an “idiot” during a press conference yesterday?
I mean REALLY! Isn’t that language reserved for the Pit?!
I support my president 100% but even for those who do not agree with the war, please GOD remember the sacrifices US, Spanish and British troops are making to rid the planet of Hussein.
I happen to agree with Coldfire’s preference for a further few months to bring about a substantial decrease in daily Iraqi deaths and the risk of WMD deployment via a route other than killing thousands of the people meant to be being liberated.
Indeed, if it’s mass-death prevention we’re aiming for, do you agree that a few billion of our war-chest should go to Eritrea and Burundi?
