Hate President Bush, Hate the War in Iraq, Love the Soldiers
So let’s get this straight from the beginning: I hate the war. I hated it even more when we began attacking Iraq. I hated the way old Dubbya convinced the nation that this was some kind of holy, righteous war. I hated the way he used the deaths of all those innocent people in the World Trade Center to justify killing thousands more innocent people in another country. I do not believe in this war. I am pro-peace.
So every time I see that yellow ribbon tied to my tree, a symbol of my support to our troops, it’s a little odd, even for me.
My cousin joined the military after the war began. He didn’t join because he wanted to “get some scalps” in Iraq. He joined because he couldn’t afford college, he couldn’t support himself on mediocre jobs, and he wanted to be a soldier. He wanted to train and grow strong, and he wanted to see the world. He wanted to make a difference, and this was his way. I am proud of him for his courage.
So now he and his buddies are in Iraq, and you know what? He doesn’t know if he supports the war either. He’s just out there with his friends in the dry, blazing heat, risking his life. Out there on the front lines, the notions of “war,” “peace,” and “killing” aren’t philosophical debates that grad students discuss over coffee. They’re daily life. When the insurgents shoot at you, you damn well better fire back. It’s not about morality or ideals. It’s about life or death, and the lives of your friends.
I asked my cousin how he could stand being out there if he doesn’t support the war. He told me about life from the perspective of his troop. Iraq, he said, is in a civil war. His troop, at least, is not killing innocent people. He’s protecting them. Basically, they go on a mission into the city and sweep for insurgents and rebels, trying to make the city safer for everyone who lives there: Yes, this includes Iraqi men, women, and children.
He isn’t sure about the overall, grand scheme of the war. He does, however, know that what he as an individual does on a daily basis is protect people. And I agree with him. He risks his life and struggles with uncomfortable conditions, a single pawn in a huge game of chess that he doesn’t understand or agree with. But his move is right. His move protects life.
Does he also destroy life? Perhaps sometimes. But what would you do if a bunch of people started threatening you and your buddies?
So as angry as this war in Iraq makes me, it makes me angrier still to see people protesting with signs that say “Thank God for Dead Soldiers” at the funerals of fallen men. War is a horrible, negative thing. What good does it do to add to the negativity by attacking the families who are stuck here everyday worrying about loved ones? Why add to the sorrow of death? People are dying on all sides, and all deaths are equally terrible. Dead soldiers aren’t going to end this war. Death only creates more bitterness on both sides and perpetuates the very spirit that creates war and violence to begin with.
I hate the war. I hate the prejudice that started the concept of war centuries ago. However, generating a prejudice against soldiers is not the solution. They’re people, like us, doing the best they can. The soldiers are not the war. The soldiers are, as overly clichÃ?© as this may sound, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, and friends to someone. I hate the war, but I’m proud of my cousin. If you hate the war, you hate it because you love your fellow human beings in Iraq and wish them no harm. Guess what? Soldiers are fellow human beings, too.
I’m as anti-war as you can get. I protest war, promote peace, and tie yellow ribbons around my tree-because peace is about supporting all humanity, including soldiers.
