This entry is poorly written and I apologize for that.
I just finished watching The Choice 2004. It took a bit of struggling with the PBS video server (they have a lot of good stuff online), but it's really worth checking out. It gives you a very good insight into how each candidate works, what drives them, and how they've become successful. And even though they've obviously gone to huge efforts to portray Bush in a positive light, they also illustrate in very clear terms why he's a terrible person to have as President (great guy to have as a buddy though).
The other story I wanted to mention is the “suicide mission” flap in Iraq with US troops refusing to accept a death sentence in the form of an ill-planned and ill-equipped mission (more, more). Basically, soldiers were being ordered to drive fuel convoy trucks without weapons or anyone defending them — going on this mission quite likely would have killed them all. Here's a message from Spc. Amber McClenny:
"Hey, Mom. This is Amber. Real, real big emergency. I need you to contact someone. I mean, raise pure hell. We had broken down trucks. No armored vehicles. Get somebody on this. I need you now, Mom. I need you so bad. Just please, please help me. It's urgent. They are holding us against our will. We are now prisoners."
I'd like to ask a question, and it's a question that Kerry asked as well after Vietnam. To those of you reading this who support Bush and his Iraq War:
"Do you believe in this war enough that you are willing to die for it? Would you volunteer to be one of those already dead? Will you put up your hand and say, 'If 10,000 Americans must die for this war, I will be one of them.'? Will you make that sacrifice? If not, how many of you would volunteer your husband, your father, your brother's life for this war? How about your arms and legs? Is the trade worth it?"
Military families don't think it's a fair trade (more), and at this point the majority believe that Bush's policies on Iraq are wrong. More Americans continuing to die in Iraq is just swinging that opinion farther and farther toward an “America First” anti-war, anti-interventionist stance (more).
Let me ask you another question:
"Would you like to live in a world where you don't have to worry about war on a daily basis? Where you don't have to guess which countries and for what insane reason your President is going to invade next? Where you have to live in fear that terrorists retaliate against your country with a nuclear strike on New York City? Where you don't have to give up your freedom in trade for a security that gets worse daily?"
America is not going to be invaded by Arabs, and Arabs aren't about to nuke NYC for no reason at all. If America simply adopts a “you leave us the hell alone, and we leave you the hell alone” policy, terrorists really couldn't care less what is done from sea to shining sea. It's not as if they're nuking Iceland either. There's nothing of value in America other than its people — it's not like Iraq is going to invade Texas to steal hot dogs and apple pie.
War is a choice.
Do you really think that Amber McClenny wants to die for some rich person's notions about how the world should be? I doubt it. Do you really think some Iraqi sheep farmer wants to die because of some fight rich people are in? I doubt it as well. War has never done anything good for the poor and “middle class” (I hate that term — there is no such thing as a “middle class” — it's just poor people who are at the upper end of poor). War is certainly profitable for the rich, but it doesn't do anyone else a bit of good, and never has, unless you buy the ridiculous notion that one war fixing another war somehow is a good thing — it is still a net loss, even if you see a temporary gain.
But still, poor people keep dying willingly to make their masters rich.
This will never end until the poor people of the world drop their swords and drop their guns and refuse to fight any more. That is the one and only thing that will end it — I assure you, the rich overlords are not willing to die — and maybe the wholesale abuse of the US military by the government will lead to that. Sadly though, I doubt it.
I just don't get it at all.
“Stop murdering each other,” seems like such an easy common-sense piece of advice to follow.
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