Why I oppose the war

Let me explain some of the reasons I am opposed to the Bush administration and the Iraq war. For one thing, during high school I had congressional appointments to the Air Force and Coast Guard academies and an NROTC scholarship. The Air Force turned me down because I couldn’t broad jump far enough and the Coast Guard because I had too much acne on my back. I thought these were B.S. reasons probably so some rich kid could get my place, turned down the NROTC and went to college on a no-strings-attached engineering scholarship for one year until I dropped out. Then when they tried to draft me for what I learned was an unjust war in Vietnam, I managed to dodge the draft and protested that war. I wasn’t about to be cannon fodder for a corrupt lying government.

I prefer peaceful means of ending conflict whenever possible for a variety of religious, moral, ethical and practical reasons.

Now, my son (22) is in the 6th year of his Army National Guard duty. He enlisted partly to rebel against his mother and I. He has already spent seven months in Egypt disrupting his college education. We hope he will not be called up again for active duty again during this last year of enlistment. This was not what he signed up for. The game has changed in mid-course.

When I consider all the U.S. and coalition soldiers who are dying and being wounded needlessly over there due to the political and economic agendas of our leaders and the untold needless suffering of the Iraqi people who I question whether they are actually better off today, I have to say, “Is it really worth it?” What is really worth the sacrifice of so many lives? What could possibly be worth it? Anything we are willing to sacrifice our children for is idolitry.

Even though I don’t completely support Kerry, esp. his vote to go to war with Iraq, I do respect that even though from a wealthy family, he served with distinction in Vietnam and then came back and protested the war. He is a much better choice as a leader than the deserter Bush who now sends our children to slaughter.

May there be peace,

Steve

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