Chamblee54

Today is veterans day. Formerly known as armistice day, this was the end of the first world war. That was ninety years ago. Only a handful of veterans from that conflict are still around.The last living American-born veteran is 107-year-old Frank Woodruff Buckles of Charles Town, W.Va. On the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the fighting would cease. If you got killed on the tenth minute, too bad.
Today, it is called Veterans Day. The idea is to honor the Men and Women who have served.
PG is not a veteran. He came of age in the Vietnam Era. There is a post at his old blog which tells the story. The bottom line is, by the time PG was old enough to join, the War in Vietnam was essentially over. Our government was trying to get a fig leaf peace treaty, so we could get our troops out. Mr. Nixon called it Peace with Honor, when it turned out to be anything but.
America is at war today. The war in Babylon has been out of the spotlight lately. Neither side in the election saw advantage in talking about it. The official line is that we are winning, and there does seem to be a certain amount of progress. However, when discussing war, a b.s. detector is a handy tool. PG has opposed this war from the beginning, and does not see much good coming out of it. However, how does that relate to the individual soldiers?
Last week at the bloggers night out, PG met Muskrat. He didn’t make a big deal about it that night, but the man has been to Iraq. When it is a person you have met, war takes on a different meaning. Today, at his blog, Muskrat talked about some of the kindness that he has been shown after his deployment. PG commented “Even…or maybe especially…those who are opposed to the war should thank the men and women who have served.”
Opposition to the war has been the target of many right wing types. Many say that opponents of the war are hoping for American defeat. ( “They have the ribbons and balloons already ordered for the defeat party.” The hideous Mark Steyn said that on the Michael Medved show). The fact is that a defeat in Iraq is a defeat for all of us. While many of us had these concerns before the war…and many of us expressed them… the fact is that we are there, and we need to make the best of the situation. Whether BHO is smart enough to do this is a good question. Like participation in the war, the presidency of BHO is now a done deal. The patriotic thing is to pull together, and try to make something good come out of this.
Osama Bin Ladin has been quoted as saying the he will defeat the United States the same way he defeated the Soviet Union. This is to say, he will prolong the conflict, and bankrupt the great power that is fighting him. Al Queda does not have to win battles to do this. All Al Queda has to do is stir up enough trouble so that America cannot leave. The longer we are in Iraq, the more damage we do to our economy. It is already happening. ( PG is not able to find a link to show that Mr. Bin Ladin said this. This may prove to be a fabrication. However, it is not far from the truth.If Bin Ladin did not say it, then he should have.)
The Men and Women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have performed a difficult task with honor and courage. The why and how of this conflict is out of their hands. The fact is, they have been given a job, and they have done it. They deserve the Thanks of America.