Starting out, I'll tell you that I'm not generally a "big picture" guy. I figure that if I'm going to make any difference on this celestial ball, it's going to be one person at a time- people, not policies. Oh, sure, I pay attention to what's going on; I vote; and I used to be quasi-political, but only on a local and State level. I have been blessed to not have to go to any war (though I did have a brief stint in Marine OCS. I'm a lot of things, but a Marine is not one of them. Took them a few weeks to figure it out, but they ultimately did figure that out). With our volunteer military, I guess I don't have to worry about any of my four offspring being dragged into combat against their will, but all of us ought to care about whether any given conflict is good policy. Oh, and I definitely support our troops. No life lived heroically and with valor is a waste, but the policies that put our brave men and women in harm's way always ought to be carefully scrutinized.
I always felt that the U.S. invasion and occupation of Afghanistan was justified and necessary, but I'm not a fan of the war in Iraq. Not so much anymore, but there was a stretch of time when I heard folks analogize the Iraq war with the Viet Nam conflict. Apparently, the "surge" has done some good, and we are undoing some of the damage we'd done by invading Iraq in the first place. So, unlike Viet Nam, we may actually be able to stay in Iraq for as long as we want. But to what end? Hearts and minds? That hasn't worked very well in the past. So, really, what are we trying to get done? When will we know our job there is finished? I kinda thought that our intervention in Kosovo was a good thing. Maybe it was. But, as I trolled the internet, I found the following blog posting from a dude in Russia:
http://ishmaelite.blogspot.com/2008/02/jatras-on-kosovo.html
Apparently, all Hell is breaking loose there, several years after our mission there was essentially accomplished. Churches are being destroyed (no, not the chicken joints). Islamic terrorists might have a new entry point into Europe.
Is Iraq going to look like Kosovo in nine years? What's Kosovo going to look like? Or Rwanda? Or Darfur? We don't have enough people or money to take care of all the world's problems. So, what do we do? I'm not running for any national office right now, so I don't have to pretend to have an answer. But any of the folks that are running for president better.
9 comments:
Dude, you're bummin' me out.
Say, did I ever tell you about the guy with the pain in his rear end?
Guy tells his friend about it, his buddy tells him, "I'll bet you got hemorrhoids ... here's what you do, make a cup of tea for yourself each day, drink the tea, then make the leaves into a poultice and pack them up your behind."
Two weeks later, he's no better. Guy goes to see a doctor.
Doctor tells him to drop trou and bend over. Doc takes a look up there and says, "yep, you got hemorrhoids ... wait, I see something else ... You're going to go on a long journey ..."
I'm not even going there.....and that's aimed at BOTH of you!
Okay, another comment for Andy...he IS heavy but he's you're brother. And no I'm not talking about those lbs that are melting away with the miles.
The card! Read the card! Yeah, Chase, I'm going to feel real guilty when I tell that one tomorrow. So, if the first dose doesn't work, does he get re-leaved anyway? (As you're always sayin' "I'm just sayin'".
Star, I know. Like I said, I'm not normally a "big picture" guy. Prolly that's a good thing.
Alright, Amy, let's see what I weigh. Hold on, I'll be right back...Damn. 236. 'Course, it is the evening...
C'mon man that should be HOT damn! You're on like Biggest Loser pace. Despite the Awful Waffle meal, good for you. I told you your face looked thinner, believe it and believe in you. You're an inspiration to yourself and maybe others if they're tuning in. You make me proud.
Hey, I like the Sponge Bob Mobile!
As for the rest, "Er, perhaps, and I'm just saying perhaps, war isn't the answer." Maybe not? Unless of course the dude won't let you pass, then it's on!
Thanks, Amy. It's just the whole "one step back" part I'm not wild about.
Ange, I do believe you've grown to accept the 'Bob, though your first reaction to it was less than enthusiastic, it was not the horrified look that Amy gave. Hey, it's not a subtle car. As to the rest? We are of one mind.
Well, as a Quaker, I'm never going to say war is "right" or "justified", but I think there are several big differences between Kosovo and Afghanistan and I'm not exactly sure a Russian blogger, what with Russia heavily supporting Serbia in this equation, is really an unbiased source of information on Kosovo. Particularly so when his post leads off with, "Kosovo is the heart of Serbia; Orthodoxy is the heart of Kosovo; and holiness is the heart of Orthodoxy. The recognition of the illegal declaration of Kosovo as a Muslim-dominated state is not only an act of geo-political suicide, but a further dismantling of what little remains of the Christian civilization of Europe."
Certainly valid points, as always, QJ, particularly as to his bias, but his bias gives us a window that we wouldn't otherwise have. One for the doctrine of unintended consequences: we get rid of Milosovic and the evil Serbs, and end up flushing out the counter-balance to muslim extremists, similar to getting the evil Russians out of Afghanistan with our help by training and arming the mujahedin, who end up giving us the same problems that they gave the Russians. What movie was it that contained, "God I miss the Soviets, they were great enemies". I don't miss the cold war much, but at least we knew who our enemies were.
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