Iraq is Not Viet Nam

Iraq is not another Viet Nam. There are differences. Viet Nam was an atrocity perpetrated, and undertaken on the basis of fabricated 'intelligence' against an Asian nation, and against the American people, by a Democratic administration. Iraq is an atrocity perpetrated, and undertaken on the basis of fabricated 'intelligence' against a Middle Eastern nation, and against the American people, by a Republican administration.

There are other differences. When the American people finally 'got it' that they had been lied to and led into an illegitimate war in Viet Nam, they got angry not so much at the leaders who got us there, but at the soldiers who were simply doing what they had to do for a cause they had to believe in...and obey orders. Today, those growing numbers of Americans who 'get it' that their commander in chief has repeatedly lied to them and has attempted to justify a dangerously anti-democratic policy of preemptive attack appreciate that the soldiers fighting and dying in this war are simply doing what they have to do...obey orders. And they understand that many, many of those soldiers really believe they are doing good, because that is what they are being told by their superiors, who are instructed by their superiors. And many of them ARE doing good...but their good works are being abused by the very administration that puts them in harm's way for reasons based in greed and adoration of power.

It's important for those of us who are Baby Boomers to try to educate those who were not witness to the meltdown of American society during the Viet Nam era. It is our obligation to ensure that those who weren't watching understand how utterly dissembling the pack of fiends in Washington were at the time. And it's important to let them know that those who followed were equally miserable; Richard Nixon condoned felonious behavior and tread dangerously close to ruining the country's integrity and credibility.

It's important to help people understand that it is one of the hardest, and the highest, obligations of those who are governed to demand honesty and integrity from the governors and to tolerate no less. Patriotism is not blind parochial adoration, nor unquestionning trust; it is pride in the principles upon which one's country is built and pride in the knowledge that those principles guide every decision of that country on the global stage.

I weep at the abyss in which we find ourselves in this country. We as a nation have allowed ourselves to succumb to the irrational blathering of a very stupid, dangerous, and self-serving man whose morals compete for loathsomeness with rapists and child molesters and Enron executives.

It's time to stop complaining. It's time to tack action. Bush and his entire administration need to go. The first step in making that happen is for each and every one of us to INSIST that people we know vote in every election. The elections this November can turn the tide and rein in the criminal behaviors of Bush and his team. For my part, I'm going to do something that is probably illegal; if you work at my company, you promote democracy, and if you don't SHOW IT by voting and demonstrating an understanding of the issues, you find work elsewhere. I'll start the petition in my neighborhood, too.

Everything I've seen in the Bush administration argues persuasively for preemptive abortion. And, despite my strong belief that woman should control their own bodies, I don't like the idea of abortion. Except for Republicans and their ilk.