Advance warning!!! I apologize now- today's post may be a bit of a political rant; if this isn't your cup of tea, maybe you'd better check back another time! :)
Several thoughts on the situation re. Iraq...after watching Colin Powell's presentation before the UN yesterday, does any rationally-thinking person have any doubts about the duplicity of the Iraqi regime in attempting to thwart the inspection process? Those folks have been thumbing their nose at UN resolutions since the end of the '91 Gulf War...and re. Iraqi/al Qaeda ties? I don't know about you, but I'm more inclined to give our President and his administration the benefit of the doubt before Saddam Insane and his crew...And can we talk a moment about these inspections? That's what they are- inspections, NOT investigations! Hans Blix, et al, were not charged with an investigative mandate, to try and find new sites where Iraq may have been developing WMD's. Rather, they were to inspect the sites, etc...that the Iraqi regime, as a member of the UN, had identified as sites where their weapons program had been conducted, and that they were now in compliance with the UN resolutions THEY HAD AGREED TO. The inspections were never meant to be a high stakes game of hide-and-seek between Saddam and the UN...
And war? Nobody (with the exception of the aforementioned Saddam Insane) "wants" war; not our President nor his administration, certainly not our military leaders, who know more than anyone the horrors and violence of conflict and see it as something to avoid if at all possible, not members of Congress- of either party- and I imagine not the majority of Iraqi civilians, those who aren't blinded by the fanaticism of "jihad." Yet- sadly- if the UN is to be seen as anything other than a paper tiger, and given the commingling of terrorist organizations and rogue regimes, at some point force has to be an option, as sad an option as it is...Europe? And world opinion? With the exception of quisling France and Germany, most of Europe is with the US on action vs. Iraq, albeit to differing degrees, as indeed are several of the Middle Eastern nations; this is hardly the US going it alone...And the alleged "peace" movement here? While there are some committed pacifists involved, Quakers and others who are always, consistently opposed to war, and their convictions are to be respected, even if disagreed with, much of the so-called "anti-war" movement here has more been an "anti-Bush/anti-Republican/anti-capitalist" one, a forum more concerned with attempting to advance Far Left politics and causes (what does "Free Mumia" have to do with any action vs. Iraq? Or environmental extremist issues? Or trade issues?), more concerned with politics than peace. Where were the majority of these folks when the previous administration was introducing US troops into the Balkans to enforce UN mandates and to protect the Bosnians? Seems many of them are VERY selective in which military actions (and which administrations) they choose to protest...and entertainment-types? Please...again, yes, some DO take the time to become informed on the issues they care about, and even if one disagrees with their views, they can be respected for at least having been thoughtful on the issues; Susan Sarandon, Paul Newman, folks such as them? They are deserving of respect, irregardless of their points of view, because they take the time to become intelligent and informed. But others, like Martin "I'm not a President but I play one on television" Sheen? Sean Penn? Sheryl Crow? Sheryl- I LOVE your music, and you have an absolutely KILLER bod, but please, your political pronouncements make me cringe, not because I agree or disagree, but cuz' they're so inane! C'mon, folks!
And a few words about our President...this is not an evil man, nor is he a stupid man. While an Ivy League education may be over-rated (spoken like a TRUE public university alum!), a BA from Yale and an MBA from Harvard is nothing to sneeze at; by osmosis, you're bound to pick something up. And he has surrounded himself with talented people, experienced people, especially concerning world affairs: Dick Cheney, Colin Powell, Rummy, Condoleeza Rice, et al...I think about some of the things said and written about President Bush by some of the "deep thinkers," by some media outlets, academicians, opponents in Washington, etc...that he's not bright, he's a cowboy, he lacks depth, inexperienced, reckless, a saber-rattling war-mongerer too eager to engage our foes, simplistic in his worldview, and more, and I think that I'd heard these same things not all that long ago, when I was growing up, about another leader, and I think of the impact of that leader on our security, and the world...wouldn't it be something if, ten or so years from now, as a result of our engaging the forces of tyranny, weapons of mass destruction were no longer being pointed, that the walls of violence and intolerance cloaked in the guise of religion began to fall, and freedom and democracy, respect for and committments to human rights, began to flower throughout the Middle East, as they have- not over night, but steadily- throughout Central and Eastern Europe? Happy 92nd birthday, President Reagan!...lastly, no matter one's views on all of this, we should all hope and pray that, should action come, it be as quick as possible, and that as few innocent lives, on all sides, are lost as possible. (And I'll post something far less political next time, I promise! :)
"You've gotta stand for something/Or you're gonna fall for anything..."
