Still shot from the movie Flight 93 depicting the passengers counter-attacking the terrorists on their airplane.
In the aftermath of the American Revolution many wars had to be fought to secure our young country’s sovereignty. We battled against French privateers in the Quasi-War, North African pirates in the Barbary Wars and finally the English in the War of 1812. The tenacity shown by our fledgling nation firmly established our independence.
However our struggle for freedom didn’t end there. We continued to fight until we were finally able to fully realize the ideals of our Republic. In the process we struggled through the Civil War, Women’s Suffrage, two World Wars and the Civil Rights Movement. The successes that we achieved in these battles have forged a powerful country that I am very proud of.
230 years after the Declaration of Independence another country has declared its freedom. Ever since the 1920s Iraq has suffered under a number of minority Sunni Arab regimes that suppressed all other ethnic groups. None were more brutal than Saddam Hussein’s genocidal government that was overthrown by the United States.
For the first time in Iraqi history the country has a government that democratically represents all ethnic groups. Their elections have been monitored and assisted by the UN to ensure as much fairness and transparency as humanly possible.
Critics like Democratic Senators Robert Byrd and John Kerry have taken the stance that America is spending too much money to help secure and rehabilitate Iraq. “Anti-war” groups posted a billboard in Times Square to measure the amount of money being spent to help Iraq. A website has been set up to track the costs based on Congressional appropriations and ingeniously compares the costs to other commodities that could have been bought with the money. If you like you can even add a counter to your webpage in order to keep updated on the costs of the war.
This leads me to the question, just how much money is freedom worth? Would $300 billion dollars be too much? How about 150 billion? Can we make a deal?
…It’s hard to believe that these are Americans who value freedom so cheaply…
In the forties the US had a lend lease program to help arm our World War II allies. An estimated $48 billion was spent and most of it was not expected to be repaid (that’s about 480 billion in 2006 dollars if adjusted for inflation). Ironically, the small portion that we expected England to pay us back was given a 2% interest rate and payments were stretched over such a long period of time that the final installment is expected to be paid on December 31, 2006.
After the war the Marshall plan was rolled out to help the bombed-out economies of Western Europe recover. Another 13 billion was spent and very little was expected to be paid back (that’s about 130 billion in 2006 dollars if adjusted for inflation).
In hindsight it’s easy to say that these expenditures were worth it. I don’t think that it is any less worthy to support Iraq either. It would be foolish to come so far and then abandon them. I fear that these Scrooges are more concerned with political intrigue than the welfare of the people of Iraq, especially when you consider the scorn that they contemplate Iraq’s newfound freedom with.
The day we stepped up to the plate to turn back Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait we accepted the responsibility for the people of both those countries. Our leaders had a tragic failure of nerves when the Iraqi Republican Guard was on the run in the first Gulf War. We could have easily passed a new UN resolution to remove Saddam’s regime, but the prospect of civil unrest between the Iraqi ethnic groups froze our resolve to bring Saddam to justice. This only made things worse.
The passengers of Flight 93 didn’t lack the will to fight. They only had one option, to fight. Sometimes having too many options leads to making bad decisions based on lazy procrastinations. To abandon Iraq now will only mean cleaning up a larger mess later on. Let’s not make the same mistake twice.
This Fourth of July please thank any military personnel that you meet for their service to our country. They deserve the recognition.
Have a great and safe holiday.
In the aftermath of the American Revolution many wars had to be fought to secure our young country’s sovereignty. We battled against French privateers in the Quasi-War, North African pirates in the Barbary Wars and finally the English in the War of 1812. The tenacity shown by our fledgling nation firmly established our independence.
However our struggle for freedom didn’t end there. We continued to fight until we were finally able to fully realize the ideals of our Republic. In the process we struggled through the Civil War, Women’s Suffrage, two World Wars and the Civil Rights Movement. The successes that we achieved in these battles have forged a powerful country that I am very proud of.
230 years after the Declaration of Independence another country has declared its freedom. Ever since the 1920s Iraq has suffered under a number of minority Sunni Arab regimes that suppressed all other ethnic groups. None were more brutal than Saddam Hussein’s genocidal government that was overthrown by the United States.
For the first time in Iraqi history the country has a government that democratically represents all ethnic groups. Their elections have been monitored and assisted by the UN to ensure as much fairness and transparency as humanly possible.
Critics like Democratic Senators Robert Byrd and John Kerry have taken the stance that America is spending too much money to help secure and rehabilitate Iraq. “Anti-war” groups posted a billboard in Times Square to measure the amount of money being spent to help Iraq. A website has been set up to track the costs based on Congressional appropriations and ingeniously compares the costs to other commodities that could have been bought with the money. If you like you can even add a counter to your webpage in order to keep updated on the costs of the war.
This leads me to the question, just how much money is freedom worth? Would $300 billion dollars be too much? How about 150 billion? Can we make a deal?
…It’s hard to believe that these are Americans who value freedom so cheaply…
In the forties the US had a lend lease program to help arm our World War II allies. An estimated $48 billion was spent and most of it was not expected to be repaid (that’s about 480 billion in 2006 dollars if adjusted for inflation). Ironically, the small portion that we expected England to pay us back was given a 2% interest rate and payments were stretched over such a long period of time that the final installment is expected to be paid on December 31, 2006.
After the war the Marshall plan was rolled out to help the bombed-out economies of Western Europe recover. Another 13 billion was spent and very little was expected to be paid back (that’s about 130 billion in 2006 dollars if adjusted for inflation).
In hindsight it’s easy to say that these expenditures were worth it. I don’t think that it is any less worthy to support Iraq either. It would be foolish to come so far and then abandon them. I fear that these Scrooges are more concerned with political intrigue than the welfare of the people of Iraq, especially when you consider the scorn that they contemplate Iraq’s newfound freedom with.
The day we stepped up to the plate to turn back Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait we accepted the responsibility for the people of both those countries. Our leaders had a tragic failure of nerves when the Iraqi Republican Guard was on the run in the first Gulf War. We could have easily passed a new UN resolution to remove Saddam’s regime, but the prospect of civil unrest between the Iraqi ethnic groups froze our resolve to bring Saddam to justice. This only made things worse.
The passengers of Flight 93 didn’t lack the will to fight. They only had one option, to fight. Sometimes having too many options leads to making bad decisions based on lazy procrastinations. To abandon Iraq now will only mean cleaning up a larger mess later on. Let’s not make the same mistake twice.
This Fourth of July please thank any military personnel that you meet for their service to our country. They deserve the recognition.
Have a great and safe holiday.
45 comments:
The price of freedom has always been dear. See The Price They Paid.
We who are living safely in our homes have this joyful existence because of the sacrifice of patriots.
Have a wonderful Independence Day, FN!
I wonder what America haters like John Brown do today hide under their beds.
Happy Independence Day Beak and AOW. I dont know what Brown will be doing today, but most America bashers will probably go to bbqs and parties just like everyone else.
All my leftwing friends party on the Fourth. They may be quasi-freeloaders but at least they contribute to the economy.
Happy Fourth of July to everyone
Should we be thanking the murderers and rapists of the 101st?
Or should we leave them out, FN?
What did I do yesterday?
I went to a commie rally with my buddy MULLAH BEAK the DHS PEDOPHILE in Union Square Park.
It's cute that you talk about me even on sites I don't visit very often, McBeak.
And for the Fourth of July what heroes would you like to celebrate Mr. Brown?
The Martyrs of Fallujah?
You know the guys with the torture dungeons.
Terrorists who send young men to Shiite mosques to blow up Muslim worshippers.
Kidnappers, assassins and common criminals.
You are barking up the wrong tree, but its good that you read quality blogs like mine.
Cheers
Funny, FN. Thank MULLAH BEAK the DHS PEDOPHILE for my presence.
I think we all know who has the torture dungeons. The concentration camps. The rape rooms.
Uncle Sam does. That you believe what the Pentagon says about anything anymore proves only one thing: you're a gullible fool who wants to be lied to. It's sad, really.
Anyway, the exposure of such things - the rape rooms, etc. - is in large part why your little Storm Troopers are losing their ass in Iraq.
CUT'N'RUN or STAY'N'DIE, FN.
That's your choice. Thanks for playing.
If BringItOn, Sambo Rice and MafiaDon aren't criminals, what are they? Freedom Givers.
Ha!
Anyway, I celebrated Frederick Douglass, FN.
Rather than celebrate slavers like George Washington and rapists like Thomas Jefferson, I celebrated the life of a slave in revolt.
Sorry, Kev, but your rhetoric betrays your ignorance.
You really shouldn't act like you know anything about Douglass when you so clearly don't.
Douglass vilified house slaves like Sambo Rice.
Like Ron Brown, Sambo Rice serves the as a house servant in Uncle Sam's genocidal War of Terror.
Other than Sambo Rice's incresed importance as a servant of imperialism, there's no difference between what the two of them do.
Not that this has anything to do with Frederick Douglass, of course.
Which was your intent, I suppose, to distract from the fact that you don't know thing one about him.
Not that this has anything to do with Frederick Douglass, of course.
Which was your intent, I suppose, to distract from the fact that you don't know thing one about him.
How shallow can you be? Frederick Douglas would be thrilled to tears to know of the success of our great Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice (who replaced another African American!). How many black Secretary of States were there in the 19th Century?
...Douglas came to believe in the US Constitution and worked hard to improve the conditions of former slaves like himself. He served the US government in a wide variety of offices and strongly supported Presidents Lincoln and Grant (although Grant wasnt exactly a model President).
Even though he knew the real John Brown, he tried to convince him that a rebellion was the wrong path. He later went back to Harpers Ferry years after the rebellion and condemned the act, speaking of reconciliation instead.
So Mr. Fake Brown, Douglas never revolted, he joined the system and campaigned on behalf of his people from the inside. That was Democracy at work.
He was a true American patriot.
I'm sure Douglass would be even more thrilled to know that White Supremacist warmongers like yourself feel compelled to speak in his name, FN. Similiarly, I'm sure he'd be surprised to hear that he never revolted. Especially considering he was a runaway slave.
Brownie,
My Puerto Rican family will be shocked and probably a bit amused that a white man has just called me a white supremacist.
Ha ha haaaa... You bark like a poodle.
Anyways, I see that you have defined yourself as the spokesman for Frederick Douglass. LOL
What does Douglass have in common with people that have really revolted against the US? Morons like Timothy McVeigh, Donald DeFreeze, or the Southern Democrat Jefferson Davis.
Douglass was a servant of the United States government. He was a US Marshal, an ambassador and a Washington DC Recorder of Deeds. Douglass regularly conferred with Presidents Andrew Johnson, Lincoln and Grant. The man participated in the political process and helped to make it stronger.
You must be disappointed that Douglass was a rich American. If you’d like you can visit his Washington DC estate, it’s a museum now. The lavish residence has 21 rooms and rests on 15 prime acres. He lived in comfort thanks to his enthusiasm for capitalism. You gotta love it…
Keep fighting the power comrade, maybe you can sell some Che shirts while you are at it.
fern - the watimes is full of great reading today, this editorial in particular:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/op-ed/20060706-085930-1585r.htm
it is my feeling that every single person eventually gets exactly what's coming to them. that's how it works. easy. top of the morning!
i am the only one who calls fern "fern"!
that is reason enough for your banishment!
Well, John Brown started calling me a Sambo and making nasty sexual references so I deleted his comment. As the administrator of these comments I dont tolerate such name calling amongst bloggers and I'm sure not going to tolerate any such behavior against me.
Thats too bad because I was enjoying the conversation, but Brownie got a little pissed off and began acting like a weeny.
Its a crying shame.
Thanks for the article Nanc. I see another member of Galloway's Respect Party is showing his respect...
...name calling amongst bloggers...except for me calling you "fern" - right smoochums?
You may have beaten me this time Superwoman, but I'll be back with a plan even more diabolical than the last.
Then I will rule the world!!!!!
bwaaaa haaa ha ha haaaaaaaaa
nah!
girls rule
and
boys drool!
and that's superwoman ma'am to you you little whippersnapper!
What is this foolishness? How am I in Vermont and Union Square at the same time?
Lets see John Brown imitating John Bwown wants to prattle on about Blacks in Amrica. Lets see there are plenty of black entrepenuers, professionals and service men who can speak for themselves.
Who decided that a trustfundista who has never worked a single day in his life is the arbiter of the planet. It is funny how a person who has never worked at all should presume to lecture those who do.
Brown reveals the arrogance of Communists. They decide to lecture Jews like myself and MZ about Jewish history. They are experts on how Native Americans should think. They presume to speak of the injustices commited against Native Americans and blacks but remain silent on their own record of genocide in recent history against indigenous people and the creation of neoslavery gulags.
Tell us how a lily white person who lives off his parents wealth is an expert. The correct term is societal parasite. Stop sucking off your parents wealth and get a real job. You should be qualified to pan handle or you can read your posts in a comedy club.
there is no hate in fern for another person, you fool - you are squawking up the wrong tree chicken little!
Do note that John Brown never posts about work. He has never held a real job and is a trustfundista living in a Brooklyn Commune with his parents footing the bill for his fantasies.
beak, you forgot about the tofu eating part...
Administrator's Note:
John Brown's comment impersonating Beak has been deleted.
great - anything to make it look like i'm talking to myself again - i don't mind being the sole sacrifice.
These B Movies always have a scene where a sexy babe gets kidnapped and offered as a sacrifice.
Lucky for you the swashbuckling star always sweeps in at the last minute to save the damsel in distress.
GOODKNIGHT, grief.
a bit about your post, freedomnow: America has done quite a bit over the years to defend its democracy. Now it's trying to carry on this tradition and pass on the flame of freedom and riteousness to the Iraqi government.
But the price in dollars isn't the issue here--at least not as far as I'm concerned. As an Israeli citizen, I don't really have the right to talk about dollar figures as far as Iraq goes. It's not my money after all(well...my parents' money as they still live in America). It's the lives of the brave young soldiers and those who are coming home crippled that bother me.
Like I commented previously on this site, I'm simply not willing to see so many Americans go down for the price of leaving Iraq a democratic country. The question I stated before: "Do you think achieving complete freedom in Iraq is possible?" remains. And I seriously doubt that even if American troops remain in Iraq for (let's say) 10 more years there will be no more insurgency and the insurgents won't take over as soon as the Americans leave.
On a brighter note, I hope all of you(with the acception of Brownie) had a great 4th. I encountered a fellow American here and wished him a happy fourth. He happens to be Black and told me it wasn't his holiday...oh well...Good thing there are people like Secretary of State Rice and Colon Powell to make up for the ignorance that has been crippling the Black people for half a century.
Kev,
I couldnt have said it better. In the wake of 911 our soldiers have become motivated to do their job, while some Americans have slipped back into pre-9/11 isolationist mode.
The insurgency is an impotent military force. As criminals they are effective in the slaughter of unarmed civilians, but they cannot achieve any considerable military victories.
There is a massive exaggeration of the prowess of Iraqi insurgents. It is one thing to respect your enemy, but we have gone to the opposite extreme.
What have the terrorists in Iraq achieved? Compare that to what the US has achieved.
Time is on our side. We are inflicting terrible casualties on our enemies and our Iraqi allies get stronger every day.
fern - if you haven't already done so, you really should go to aow's and read her review on the new movie "islam, what the west needs to know". a very good piece.
this is just a test.
Yup it works...
so i passed?
Safety inspection operator #A345ZY89-2 has certified you.
Our quality control department is standing by to make your blogging experience a more pleasant one.
Thank you for your patronage.
Kev: you said "these people are VOLUNTEERING every day to do this job." Then you commented to the affect that the soldiers who've seen action and even those who've been wounded want to come right back.
Is it just me or does this remind anybody of shihads who are willing to give their lives in order to kill or maim Israelis and Westerners and gain a place in heaven?
Note: I'm in no way comparing American soldiers to shihads. I'm just questioning Kev's reasoning.
Note 2: No disrespect meant, Kev.
Greg,
If Kev doesnt mind I'd like to bring up some important observations on this point.
I see the similarity between the two, but there is a huge difference between professional soldiers and terrorists.
Soldiers are responsible to the rule of law and can only engage the enemy under those standards. Terrorists violate the rule of law as a general principle and civilians are their preferred targets.
Further, terrorist leaders view their followers as bullets and feed them lies about Jihad and paradise. They are taught that giving their lives for the cause should be their primary aim, while US troops are instructed to fight intelligently.
Israeli troops have a similar dynamic of retaining high morale in the face of brutal terrorist warfare. This is because the brutality of their enemy confirms their confidence in their cause. The liberal institutions of Israel stand in stark contrast to the disturbed visions of Palestinian terrorist groups.
Let’s face the reality. War is about killing. As long as there are organizations and governments like Hezbollah, Iran, Syria, Al Qaeda, Hamas, North Korea and the Taliban, there will always be a need for men that are willing to fight against such fascism.
Well that answers all of my questions...
all of them?
Nope, no rambling there Kev.
Thanks
kev and freedomnow: I never likened American soldiers to Arab terrorists. I would never do that...not for the life of me. My question, rather, regarded your reference to these kids wanting to go back to battle as soon as they'd get home. That's what seems a little overthetop.
I see teenage soldiers here every day but as soon as they're released from the army they're very happy and do mandatory reserve duty only because it's the law.
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