Category: Uncategorized

Example: Lincoln did NOT write the Gettsburg Address on the back of an envelope while riding on the train from Washington to Gettysburg.

It is the job of the military to fight wars. It is the duty of the civilian leadership to ascertain those rare times that we should fight those wars. In the run-up to the war in Iraq, from September of 2002 to April 2003, I was at a demonstration against this potential conflict nearly every week. Certainly, I was informed by some of my pacifist acquaintances of the impropriety of a “war of choice.” But I was also persuaded by people who had fought in the military: World War II veteran George HW Bush (“41”), who chose NOT to go into Baghdad during the Gulf War and Vietnam War veteran Colin Powell, who helped lead the Gulf War effort. (Powell has recanted his February 2003 testimony before the U.N.)

During the buildup to the war, perhaps in January 2003, CBS News reporter Bob Simon, who was captured during the 1991 Gulf War, did an opinion piece for CBS Sunday Morning. He said, essentially, that the U.S. has over 100,000 troops in Iraq, Saddam Hussein is (reluctantly) letting the inspectors go wherever they want looking for the WMDs. Why not keep the status quo? Just keep looking until they’re found?

Of course, that was not the intention of the “chicken hawks” Bush, Cheney and those around them. They wanted to invade Iraq, and seemed to have used 9/11 as the excuse.
I haven’t found a more recent poll, but in a Harris poll in February 2005:
47 percent believed that Saddam Hussein helped plan and support the hijackers who attacked the U.S. on September 11, 2001, up six percentage points from November;
44 percent actually believed that several of the hijackers who attacked the U.S. on September 11 were Iraqis, up significantly from 37% in November (most of the hijackers were Saudis);
36 percent believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when the U.S. invaded (down slightly from 38% in November).

As much as I opposed the war, I was also of the opinion that those military leaders that wanted 300,000 troops were probably right. But the administration wanted to win the war on the cheap, so they found someone to agree with their numbers, around 135,000, launched the war, toppled Saddam, and W infamously declared “Mission Accomplished.”

Meanwhile, those opposing the war were forced on their heels with three little words: “Support the Troops.” War opponents were bending over backwards showing that “we support the troops”, if not the particular mission. But opposing the war was tantamount to treason, even more so than during Vietnam, the last war I actively opposed.
I look at things this way: the troops are supposed to fight when and where assigned. They should avoid egregious errors (My Lai, Abu Gharib). But the decision to deploy falls on the civilian leadership.

The parallels with Vietnam came out very quickly, and I’m not sure I bought them early on, but now, I’m more inclined to:
VietNam: A long, and largely, secret relationship, going back to 1956.
Iraq: A long, and largely, secret relationship, going back to at least 1983.
VietNam: The rationale is to stop the spread of communism there, lest we fight it at our front door.
Iraq: The rationale is to stop the spread of terrorism there, lest we fight it at our front door.
VietNam: Our broader involvement was based on a big lie. (Gulf of Tonkin resolution, 1964.)
Iraq: Our broader involvement was based on a big lie. (9/11 and Iraq, 2001 onward.)

So on this Veterans’ Day, I recognize and honor the great valor of those who have fought in wars, even as I mourn again the idiocy that got us here.

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Lydia’s persistent cold- 3 ½ weeks of varying conditions: runny nose, cough, sneezing. She was home for a week, has been to the doctor twice, Is now on antibiotics. Yet she is generally in good spirits (except on Tuesday, when I think she had teething pain).

A friend of mine had an episode of TIA. I must admit that I had no idea what TIA was, unless it was referring to the Travel Industry Association of America or the Toy Industry association. Best wishes to Deb.

One of the members of my church choir was hit by a truck on Central Avenue (Route 5) in Albany last week. She had to have hip replacement surgery and will require quite a bit of rehab. A speedy recovery to Lucille.

I’m happy to note that my minister is out of the hospital, after having some neurosurgical procedure. Joe’ll be back in the saddle in a couple weeks.

Benjamin: my friends from choir, Britany and David had a baby on Friday, a boy weighing about 6 ½ pounds and measuring at 2o inches. Family was already home on Sunday. Bethany is now a big sister. I’m very happy for them all.

In re: birthing, our birth class teacher Emily is on the front cover of today’s Metroland. The daughter of one of my co-workers goes to school with Emily’s son Arlo, something I didn’t know until today.

Darrin & Suzy-my boss and his long-time girlfriend are engaged to be married next year. Congrats.

Give blood- that’s what I did yesterday, time #111.

A story even too too wacky for Greg Burgas!

POLITICS

Election Day-yes, the incumbent mayor won in Albany, but only one of his three picks for school board. And my friend Judy was one of the winners, no doubt because of my lawn sign. (Does ANYONE vote as a result of lawn signs?)

My friend Mark wrote: “Is it just me, or is there something ironic with having both of the following headlines in the same box on MSNBC?

The ONLY time I ever saw him lose his cool due to events external to the family was the blackout of November 9, 1965, forty years ago today. He suggested that the event, which covered 13 states and two Canadian provinces, was perhaps a communist plot. I NEVER heard my father mention communism, except in passing, and certainly never as something that he particularly feared. When my father was worried, I was worried, even if I didn’t quite believe that the blackout was a function of a Red menace.

As a result of that event, “the powers that be” said that the power would never go out in that fashion ever again. And, of course, that proved to be true, if you don’t count some smaller incidents, such as the 1977 blackout in NYC.

Until August 14, 2003.

The thing I most remember about that day: practically the first thing I heard about that blackout was the authorities eliminating the possibility that the event was related to terrorism. (That, and the fact that in Albany, every fourth traffic light was working. Our office lost power, but our house was out for only five minutes or so.)

So, where is the line between taking legitimate precautions and living in fear? More and more, I know less and less. I tend to lean against what I consider to be the position of paranoia, but maybe I’m just naive.

What is it about me and female Scorpio women musicians vis a vis my romantic relationships? lang, Mitchell, and now Raitt. And I never realized it until this month. More self-discovery on the blog.