American Patriot, Kentuckian Bill Moyer, a 73 year old Korean and Vietnam vet, attended a recent media event for Veterans of Foreign Wars. The person giving the speech avoided serving in overseas conflict, and apparently Bill was none too impressed.
Somehow, I don’t believe folks such as this guy, and the generation before him who saved the world in WWII, would have supported the loss of American life in support of the creation of an Islamic Republic. It hasn’t received a lot of attention, but the proposed “constitution” of Iraq will essentially ratify Iraq as an Islamic Republic and may, among other things, nullify rights women have had over there for over 40 years.
I have nothing against Muslims, (or any other religious group), but for the citizens of a country founded on the principle of Freedom of Religion to die in support of a theocracy, a government bound by the rules of one religion and one religion only, is about as unAmerican as it gets.
Yes, we’ve gone from the non-existent WMDs, to the removal of Sadam, to “we’re building a true democracy”, to “just sign the thing so we can say something good happened”. Well, folks, I don’t think American blood is equal or worth the creation of an Islamic state, especially when you consider that they very well could turn against us in the future!
Unfortunately, I have no better ideas than anyone else on the right way to exit this situation, but I know in my heart that no American, and especially no American relative of a US serviceman, can feel right about offering American lives in support of such a non-American institution as an Islamic Republic.
By the way, I’m a vet, as was my father and at least one of my uncles. I’ve avoided politics on this blog for most of a year, but as it’s becoming more and more clear that the only thing we will accomplish in Iraq is the creation of an Islamic Republic, one potentially hostile to the US, I had to say something.
Update: Doc doesn’t have the answers either, but as usual, he has an interesting perspective on the Iraq situation and also has a number of good links to various other points of view.