The Road of Bones

Ah, another Thanksgiving, another cliché column topic. What are you thankful for? I am certain you have already glanced across 20 headlines with the very phrase – if you are a news junkie like I am, anyway. Oh, and if you did not notice, I have changed the title of this column to The Webster Retort. It was the feeling of the staff that a new moniker would allow more perceived freedom of topic. So be it.

By the time you read this, no doubt you will be dining on turkey leftovers. I sure will be. But as I write this, it is only the 19^th of November, and I have yet to see if our faithful letter writers were hard on me. Sure held my boots up to the space heater last issue, and I am thankful for it. I am very pleased that the newspaper can still draw a strong response from its supporters and deriders alike. I’ll only say that I wrote it during a particularly bad mood, and it shows. I blame the Neo-Cons, for whom I am not thankful.

Speaking of Neo-Cons, the Republican congress just gave its self a pay raise and cut taxes for the upper class. The Administration also threatened to veto a bill increasing taxes on oil companies. As if supporting torture were not bad enough. They already struck down an increase in the current minimum wage. I have lived on minimum wage. It is not easy, and the winters are colder than I can tell you. So thanks Republicans. Another slice of the pie is on the Democrat’s plate for 2006. Warm, steaming, Impeachment Pie.

As for Democrats, I am thankful the party of quiet dissent is finally getting around to unfinished business, albeit three years too late. By the time you read this, I am certain you will have been exposed to at least five misrepresentations of Democrat John Murtha’s recent suggestion on Iraq. First of all, Murtha is a veteran of the Marine Corps. He gave 37 years of his life in service to this country. After fighting in Vietnam, he was awarded a bronze star, two purple hearts and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. Without knowing anything else of this man, he draws immense respect from everyone, and rightfully so. I am thankful for his service, and the service of all our veterans and soldiers.

I am not happy to see the smear machine wind up once again. I am just waiting for Rove to screw up again and accidentally reveal confidential information in an attempt to crush Murtha. He did the same thing to Joe Wilson, a man Bush Sr. called a “hero.” The trend of smear, I believe, is to misrepresent the other side’s argument to cement people against something, rather than being for something. This is rampant on both sides of the isle.

John Murtha relies on the realistic leadership of our military commanders on the ground in Iraq. “General Casey said in a September 2005 Hearing, "the perception of occupation in Iraq is a major driving force behind the insurgency,’” explained Murtha. “General Abizaid said on the same date, ‘Reducing the size and visibility of the coalition forces in Iraq is a part of our counterinsurgency strategy.’” Diplomacy, he says, and international involvement will bring Iraq the democracy and peace it deserves.

So, if what Murtha has called for is what the armed forces are already doing, why all the outrage? Because of the Republican bill demanding an immediate withdraw of our presence in Iraq. Murtha suggests the president bring 160,000 soldiers home “at the earliest predictable date.” The Republicans then rushed out legislation which offered another alternative, that “the deployment of United States forces in Iraq be terminated immediately.” The bill was struck down, and for good reason. It was intended to be.

Political opportunism is an ugly thing. It has long been a pastime of Republicans and Democrats. Regardless, Murtha is a man of honor, intelligence and experience who deserves to have his opinion seriously considered. He is not the “coward” that Ohio Republican Jean Schmidt said he is. While Cheney waited for confirmation of his five deferments, and Bush was AWOL from the Texas Air National Guard working on a political campaign of all things, Murtha was staring the horror of man’s folly in the face.

Meanwhile, the only people affected by this war are the soldiers and their families. As George Washington said, "To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace." Okay, so Murtha said that too. But they were both right. And Bush was wrong. Still is. I am thankful for John Murtha’s dissent.

Most of all, I am thankful for those I love. Particularly my beautiful fiancée Alison, who made it possible for me to be here today.

Mahalo.

Posted by The Gonzo Muckraker on Saturday, November 19, 2005 at Saturday, November 19, 2005 | Permalink