RE: Still Struggling with Iraq?

[Wayfarer]

 A good reminder for anyone struggling with the Iraq issue.
 
 I sat in a movie theater watching " Schindler s List,"  asked myself, " Why didn t the Jews fight back?"    Now I know why.
 
 I sat in a movie theater, watching " Pearl Harbor"  and asked myself, " Why weren t we prepared?"    Now I know why.
 
 Civilized people cannot fathom, much less predict, the actions of evil people.
 
 On September 11, dozens of capable airplane passengers allowed themselves to be overpowered by a handful of poorly armed terrorists because they did not comprehend the depth of hatred that motivated their captors.
 
 On September 11, thousands of innocent people were murdered because too many Americans naively reject the reality that some nations are dedicated to the dominance of others. Many political pundits, pacifists and media personnel want us to forget the carnage. They say we must focus on the bravery of the rescuers and ignore the cowardice of the killers. They implore us to understand the motivation of the perpetrators. Major television stations have announced they will assist the healing process by not replaying devastating footage of the planes crashing into the Twin Towers.
 
 I will not be manipulated.
 I will not pretend to understand.
 I will not forget.
 
 I will not forget the liberal media who abused freedom of the press to kick our country when it was vulnerable and hurting.  I will not forget that CBS anchor Dan Rather preceded President Bush s address to the nation with the snide remark, " No matter how you feel about him, he is still our president."  
 
 I will not forget that ABC TV anchor Peter Jennings questioned President Bush s motives for not returning immediately to Washington, DC and commented, " We re all pretty skeptical and cynical about Washington."  
 
 And I will not forget that ABC s Mark Halperin warned if reporters weren t informed of every little detail of this war, they aren t " likely -- nor should they be expected -- to show deference."  
 
 I will not isolate myself from my fellow Americans by pretending an attack on the USS Cole in Yemen was not an attack on the United States of America.   I will not forget the Clinton administration equipped Islamic terrorists and their supporters with the world s most sophisticated telecommunications equipment and encryption technology, thereby compromising America s ability to trace terrorist radio, cell phone, land lines, faxes and modem communications.
 
 I will not be appeased with pointless, quick retaliatory strikes like those perfected by the previous administration.
 
 I will not be comforted by " feel-good, do nothing"  regulations like the silly, " Have your bags been under your control?"  question at the airport.
 
 I will not be influenced by so called," antiwar demonstrators"  who exploit the right of expression to chant anti-American obscenities.
 
 I will not forget the moral victory handed the North Vietnamese by American war protesters who reviled and spat upon the returning soldiers, airmen, sailors and marines.
 
 I will not be softened by the wishful thinking of pacifists who chose reassurance over reality.
 
 I will embrace the wise words of Prime Minister Tony Blair who told the Labor Party conference, " They have no moral inhibition on the slaughter of the innocent. If they could have murdered not 7,000 but 70,000, does anyone doubt they would have done so and rejoiced in it?
 
 There is no compromise possible with such people, no meeting of minds, no point of understanding with such terror. Just a choice: defeat it or be defeated by it. And defeat it we must!
 
 I will force myself to:
 
 hear the weeping, feel the helplessness, imagine the terror,sense the panic,smell the burning flesh, experience the loss, remember the hatred.
 
 I sat in a movie theater, watching " Private Ryan"  and asked myself, " Where did they find the courage?"  
 
 Now I know.
 
 We have no choice; Living without liberty is not living.
 
 -- Ed Evans, MGySgt., USMC (Ret.) Not as lean, Not as mean, But still a Marine.
 
 (Copied)
 
 
 

[Gamecock Camper]

 Wayfarer
Wayfarer, thanks for posting this.  It is very inspiring and makes us all think more pro-actively about the way bad people think and act.  Before September 11th we were naive, but never again...

[Dayton Dave]

 Wayfarer
Thank you for this post.

[cooncreekers]

 Wayfarer
AMEN  which for those who don`t know, means " let it be so"

[Michicampers]

 Wayfarer
Thank you, Wayfarer.

[Danusmom]

 Wayfarer
Amen, Wayfarer!  I hope you don t mind that I copied & pasted your post on the PUX forum.  This message is so well written, it deserves more exposure.
 
 Peace be with you all.

[SuZone]

 Wayfarer
Thank you, all Americans should see this post!  How nice it is for us to enjoy our beautiful country during this springtime, while our troops are fighting for freedom in that terrible pithole of the Middle East!  May God bless them all, and return them to us safe and sound.
 Sue

[Camperroo]

 Wayfarer
your words brought a tear to my eye...I have felt that so many in our country have forgotten so quickly...though painful...your words were exquisite

[LoadedCamera]

 Wayfarer
I feel that this type of information is so valuable, I am donating space on my domain to publish it.
 
 Please see http://www.loadedcamera.com/index1.html
 
 You will see links at the top that show this letter and another that I have collected.
 
 If you want to gain visibility, please send people there.  I am willing to also put more up as they are determined appropriate.
 
 I feel that this is something I can do to help provide some support to our US Men and Women providing us with the Freedoms that we experience.
 
 

[NCSunshine]

 Wayfarer
As a daughter of a WWII veteran and a wife of a Marine (former, but still a Marine), I appreciate your post very much.
 
 My father s army battalion have a reunion every year, this year will be 56 or 57.  These men have been a big influence on my life and when I got married they told my husband that I had a battalion of " fathers"  looking after me.
 
 One of them survived a concentration camp and came home weighing about 90 pounds.  There a books of pictures that were taken during the war, some of the concentration camp.  The one that made the biggest impression on me was one from the concentration camp that was of a mountain of bodies piled on top of each other after they had died (or very close to dying).  They did not CARE how they treated OUR MEN.
 
 The thought that we should know every move that our military does is crazy.  Every broadcast that is done, in my opinion, only gives the opposition more insight to what we are doing.  I agree that we should take care no to harm innocent lives, but we should take MORE care in protecting, supporting, and taking care of our service men and women.
 
 Do you get chills that run up and down your spine when the national anthem is played?  I do, makes me remember that my father could have lost his life defending my family and your families freedom.  Do you cry when you hear taps played?  I do, thoughts of the men and women that I did not know that died protecting our GREAT country.  These things really do mean a lot if you view them as more than just a song or just a pledge that you have been taught.  Just reflect in your mind about what these stand for in your life.
 
 Sorry, I could go on and on, but this is something that gets to my heart everyday when I hear Americans bad mouthing our President or Country.  So I ll stop boring you.
 
 GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! amen
 

[bikolee]

 NCSunshine

The thought that we should know every move that our military does is crazy. Every broadcast that is done, in my opinion, only gives the opposition more insight to what we are doing. I agree that we should take care no to harm innocent lives, but we should take MORE care in protecting, supporting, and taking care of our service men and women.

 Do you really believe that they, the media, and the military spokespersons, are telling you where and what they are actually doing? No, they aren t. Some media outlets would like to call it propaganda, but it s not. They ARE protecting all the soldiers while appeasing the mass media frenzy.
 
 War, SHOULD NOT BE televised! This ain t a movie................

[Trlrboy]

 Wayfarer
Bravo.

[sandykayak]

 Wayfarer
yes, I WAS " still struggling with [the] Iraq"   " situation."   Your piece was well written.
 
 To others who " took the liberty"  of posting his piece elsewhere...seems to me that  netiquette (and common courtesy) " demands"  that you ask the writer s permission first.
 
 He might have posted it, feeling comfortable among PUT friends.  If it s OK with him for it to go to the " world"  (too late now, probably), perhaps he ll post a global permission here so others can forward it.

[LoadedCamera]

 sandykayak
I do agree with your statements about " netiquette"  and " common courtesy" .  If there was an immediate way to contact this person, I would do so before displaying on my website.
 
 In the past, when I do not have a way to contact the person, I post as much information as possible of their name and any other information to ensure that credit is not assumed to be mine.
 
 I have posted the full line of information regarding this information.  I will as the crisis continues, add to the list of items found on the net or from personal aquisition (sp?).  I will ensure that I add any information that I can about the author and ensure that I contact them before posting (if possible).
 
 I do not feel that this was a breach of any ownership since I am attempting to share these feelings and thoughts with the writters name associated with them.  
 
 I hope this isn t taken in a harsh way, I am simply providing the facts as I know it...  It is a very good piece and needs to be shared with others!  I am only providing a method for that sharing....
 
 Byron
 

[ShirleyT]

 Wayfarer
Struggle? I ain t got no struggle with it! I pray my two cousins (serving in the United States Army, one leaving for Turkey this week, the other not sure of his orders after he graduates on Friday) and my cousin-in-law (serving in the National Guard, stationed in Ft. Campbell, Kentucky) come out safe through the whole thing.
 
 Bikolee - I agree, it should not have the coverage on television it does.
 
 Now about ownership and copyright of this particular letter.  I don t think Byron is in any danger of infringing on the rights of the author since no one can prove who actually wrote the letter. I did some research to find out if it was copyrighted and here is the information I found.
 
 

" Adopt-an-Opinion"  chain letters like this one are popular and hard to stop. Since they typically weren t intended for global distribution, they can be very difficult to validate. When we see a name attached to them, we think its safe to forward them because the author is known. But what if the attribution is based on misunderstanding?
    I found was dozens of sites (ranging from military, to reform party, to republican, to Jewish-interest and others) that posted it verbatim. Most attributed it to Sgt. Evans, but none appears to be the point of origin for it. Many admitted that they received it via e-mail and have not verified the author.
 
 My search also revealed many other works written by MGySgt. Ed Evans, a public relations officer with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. They have the same byline, style and tone as the piece above, leading many to believe he could have written " Do Not Forget"  as well. But he did not.
 
 Originally titled I Will Not Forget, this letter was forwarded to him shortly after the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington D.C. He did not know the sender, nor if he or she was the author of it or merely one of the thousands of people who have forwarded it. Touched by its message, he sent it to friends. When he did so, his e-mail software appended his " signature"  and thus his suspected authorship to it. Numerous people have contacted him to thank him for such an eloquent piece, but like the rest of the world, he is still looking for the real author.

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 This information came from the following website:
 http://www.breakthechain.org/usa2.html
 
 here is another website stating it can t be proven that Ed Evans is the true author.
 http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/donotforget.htm
 
 Who ever wrote it did a wonderful job!!