Saturday, July 26, 2008

Why We Fight by John P. Stevenson

Why We Fight by John P. Stevenson
Why We Fight…

The Reasons and Motivations of the War for Civilization


A Choice between Here and There


You hear it everywhere… “What are we doing in Iraq?” “Why are we fighting?” “When will the War end?” These are valid questions, questions that deserve straight, honest answers. And it’s not factual to say that the Bush administration hasn’t provided those answers; they have. It’s just that some people haven’t liked the answers they got.

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If you find yourself wondering why we’re engaged in conflict, think back to a bright Tuesday in September nearly seven years ago. Do you remember where you were? What you were doing? Do you remember what went through your mind when the second plane hit the second tower, live on nationwide TV, and the realization dawned that what had been a horrible accident had become an act of war?

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I do. Vividly. I can recall the shock as I watched the flashing silver shape cut across the screen from left to right, banking sharply just before impact, flames and glass and debris blowing out the other side of the building as though it were blood and tissue from an exit wound. The shock lasted perhaps ten seconds, then I turned to a friend standing next to me and said, “Someone just declared war on us.” In my mind, the transition from peace to war took just that long, just that 10-second gap between seeing, and knowing. For some, especially the heroes who would be the first to fall in this war, it would be much quicker; for many, that transition has never been made.

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Our President, the man charged with the responsibility of keeping us safe from foreign aggression, the man who is the ultimate commander of the armed might of the United States, resolved that this would not happen again on his watch. He vowed, before Congress, before the Nation, before the World, and before God that we would go anywhere, pay any price, endure any hardship, to bring justice to those who brought terror to us. He made it clear that there would be nowhere to hide, no sanctuary from our wrath. The doctrine was simple and direct… there were only two sides in this War: Stand with us, on the side of civilization, or cast your lot with those who sought the end of civilization. He stated plainly that this would not be a war like any other. Many things would be done in the darkness, concealed from all save those who would feel the effects of our anger. Many things would be done for the world to see, and to learn from. And it would not be a war that would end with the liberation of one country, the death of one man, or the capture of an enemy capital. It would be a generational conflict, and we who began the struggle would not likely live to see its end.

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And thus far, he has been a man of his word. We followed Al-Qaeda to Afghanistan, where they were sheltered and supported by the brutal theocracy of the Taliban. Warlords who came to power following the collapse of the government, they returned the country to medieval times, banning all modern conveniences, forbidding the education of females, and instituting the death penalty for even the most minor infractions of shari’a law, the same laws that saw Saudi police force dozens of young girls back into their burning schoolhouse because, in their haste to escape the flames, they had not properly covered themselves. Carried out in front of large crowds at outdoor stadiums, even children could find themselves convicted of some offense and facing public execution.

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Into this maelstrom of hate, the President sent our combat forces, into a land that had not been conquered since the time of Alexander the Great. The British found defeat there in the 1880’s, as did the Soviets one hundred years later. Analysts boldly predicted massive casualties for the Americans, and Russian experts, wounds still raw and exposed from the Soviet Union’s disastrous Afghan war, proclaimed certain defeat for US forces.

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But we were not defeated, and though brave men and women died, our casualties were comparatively light. By the first spring after the towers fell, Afghanistan was secured, the Taliban had been routed from power, thousands of terrorists were dead or captured, and Al-Qaeda had lost it’s most important sanctuary.

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Though the fighting in Afghanistan would, and does, continue, soon a new threat would emerge; or rather, an old one would reemerge. Saddam Hussein, a despot so barbaric that he had used chemical weapons on his own people, once again moved to the forefront of international threats. After repeated attempts to use the UN to cajole him into compliance with the terms of the 1991 cease-fire, the decision was made. Given the new calculus that governed in the wake of 9-11, no longer could we be content to merely watch and wait for the inevitable. We had to act pre-emptively, alone if necessary, before madmen with weapons far more dangerous than machine guns and high explosives could once more strike our homeland. Saddam fit every definition of evil, and his hatred of the west in general, and the US in particular, meant that his time had come.

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On the evening of March 19th, 2003, our President announced the beginning of the end for Saddam’s regime. As our troops began the campaign to liberate Iraq, he said these words in an address to the nation:

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“Our nation enters this conflict reluctantly -- yet, our purpose is sure. The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder. We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities.

“Now that conflict has come, the only way to limit its duration is to apply decisive force. And I assure you, this will not be a campaign of half measures, and we will accept no outcome but victory.”

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Though his words were clear and measured, still there were those who failed to grasp their true import. Among these were the liberals who denounced the war at every turn, eager to pounce on each death, setback, and error as though war could be a perfected endeavor, and anything less would be justification for opposing it. Some of the loudest of these critics were the very ones who voted to authorize the invasion of Iraq to begin with, the 100 or so Democrats in Congress who voted “Yes” on the resolution. Some familiar names top that list, notables of the Democratic party such as Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and John Kerry.

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So now the war is in, not it’s fifth year since the invasion of Iraq, nor even it’s soon-to-be seventh since that bright September morning etched in our memories. This war didn’t begin when the twin towers fell, or when Flight 93 plunged into a meadow in Pennsylvania. It had been a long-running conflict when a small boat exploded against the hull of the USS Cole, and when terrorists brought down two American embassies in Africa. It was an old struggle when Iranian militants took 52 Americans hostage in our embassy, and when savages shattered the peace of an Olympic village in Munich.

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In truth, this conflict has always been with us, for it is the fundamental struggle between civilization and barbarism. Since ancient man took the first tentative steps to reach out and peacefully coexist with his neighbor, thereby improving their common lot, there have been those who seek to tear apart the fragile bonds of civilization. And make no mistake… they will succeed if given the chance. As a quote often attributed to the Irish philosopher Edmund Burke reads, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” That’s as true now as it was in Burke’s day, and we have all too many otherwise good people advocating the doing of nothing.

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We currently have two men vieing for the job of Commander-in-Chief of this nation at war. Though I have doubt and misgivings about John McCain’s political stances, I have no doubt that he will do something when it comes to this war in which we find ourselves called for service. He’s a man who’s experienced the triumph of evil precisely because people did nothing to oppose it. Some even campaigned actively for it’s success. The likliehood that he would sit still, waiting for terror to once more visit our shores, is virtually nil. Despite Barack Obama’s high-sounding calls for inspiring hope and change, neither is the responsibility of the President. Keeping us safe is.

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Whether or not liberals wish to admit it, we are in the midst of a World War. How can a man who can’t even rule out sitting down with our enemies be expected to lead us in that conflict? How can a man who will hold a campaign rally in a foreign capital, yet refuse to visit a nearby hospital full of our wounded soldiers because it would be “inappropriate,” seriously consider himself ready to be Commander-in-Chief of those soldiers?

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And, more importantly, how can we consider possibly casting a vote for such a man?

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John "The Unimonster" Stevenson is a friend of mine who is sans full computer access at this time. Until he can post regularly on his own blogs (links will be posted later), I will give him full access to mine. If anyone knows someone who could use a good writer for a paper, magazine, ezine (that PAYS), I can put you in touch with John.

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He deserves a shot.

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