July 31st, 2007: The Dog Days of Summer

Right behing you, I see the millions
On you, I see the glory
From you, I get opinion
From you, I get the story


Today was basically a wash as spotty internet access to my two biggest online addictions (see below) were/are hampering my ability to do nothing and relax. But that wasn't anything compare to the news my family got today.
I found out my Marine cousin, Josh, is to be deployed to Iraq in the next few days. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, especially considering his younger brother Luke also enlisted in the Marines and who knows whats in store for him.
Its hard to be objective when thinking about something like the Iraq War when you have loved ones about to be put smack dab in the middle of such a dangerous situation. I still stand by the noble intentions of liberating an oppressed people and spreading democracy, etc... but all those in the neocon branch of the Republican party are kidding themselves if they think this war was properly fought from Day 1. Because Day 1 wasn't when our first soldier touched foot in Iraq or Baghdad, but instead when the war was just the twinkle in a politician's eye. We should have looked at it from the end and worked our way to the beginning. What I mean by that is plan the end result, then work out in depth how to get there. Instead of that, I think too many in the administration took for granted a smooth exit after the departure of Saddam and instead focused on padding approval ratings from a smoothly executed conflict. WMD's be damned, I was fine with liberation, as was most of America, but the fact that parts of our intentions were overstated, links from Iraq to 9/11 were played up when there were none, and our strategy failed to take into account a bloody secretarian dispute... and you have a catastrophic mess.
Now, that said, we are in this war, and we owe it not only to those who served and died to preserve the objectives of our mission there, but also to the Iraqis who are living with the administration's mistakes to solve this conflict as best as it can be. And please, liberals, stop diluting yourself into thinking we've already lost (please take note, Harry Reid). That kind of attitude is a pariah that can be tolerated in small numbers, but not by our Senate Majority Leader. Honestly, a man with as little faith in our military shouldn't be in a position to be making important decisions in regard to a mall security detachment let alone the world's enforcers of freedom.
This brings me back to the sad realization that the fate of someone so close to me is in the hands of two men that, while on opposite ends of the political spectrum, are equally as inept as handling the lives of others. Josh, I know you'll stay safe, you have a good head about you plus the prayers of this family and the country behind you. Just know how much I and others, no matter what the MSM or activists would have you believe, admire and respect you. You are my role model. Stay positive and know that what you're doing means so much in comparison to what I or others are writing or saying here at home. You, cousin, are the hero.


Thats it for me now. Hopefully something more cheerful can change the tone of the next entry!

Until next time...