At the press conference announcing Ahnuld’s endorsement of McCain, a reporter asked him the standard, “Why are our people dying in Iraq?!” question. Wouldn’t a good answer be, “If you’re so curious, why don’t you ask a soldier? They take a lot of pride in what they’re doing, and I’m sure they’d be happy to explain it to you.”
I really hate questions that are patronizing to those serving in the military and paints them as victims. I know if you ask my brother, Lt. Joe foo’ the Marine, he can explain the purpose of the military pretty well.
Except, of course, it’s kinda hard to ask since he’s in Iraq.
Answer .. for the normal reasons. They stop breathing, or thier heart stops pumping, or thier brains cease electrical activity. Same as here in the states…
The purpose of the Military is to kill people and break things.
Semper Fi,
Marines are created to assault the enemy and crush them. We do good work, too!
“Guns don’t kill people. Helicopter pilots with guns kill people!”
God bless your brother Frank, and all those who wear/wore the uniform. Thank him for all of us, and often. Prayers go up daily for their safe return (after completing the mission, of course).
I love how all the Democrats “Support our Troops” but they don’t give a damn what the troops want. I’ll bet the vast majority of troops want to finish the job and not tuck-tail and return home. I know all the troops want to come home, but they want to come home with honor and victory, not shame and defeat.
Now Clay, Democrats support the troops. They’ve just never said which troops…
I really hate questions that are patronizing to those serving in the military and paints them as victims.
Frank,
They don’t know people who serve and would only associate with the guys that come back and trash the war and our efforts. I was a post commander for my local VFW for a couple years. We had a reported write about our post and it was the mot muddle-headed piece I’d seen in some time. No cohesion. I really couldn’t figure the guy’s point. I didn’t know the guy, but he wrote about the mood of my post. That’s what passes for journalism. Write a story about a business or organzation, but never bother to interview or contact anyone in it to get their perspective or balance.
G-d bless your brother and your family. His service means a great deal to all Americans. To guys like me, your brother means we didn’t waste our efforts and that younger guys answer the call with honor and distinction.
Easy answer to the question:
“Because we are killing the bad guys, the bad guys are killing the good guys (though not nearly as well) and also civilians, and you guys are whining about the whole thing and completely undermining the effort despite the amazing success of the Surge.”
Though, in principle, the question is just asinine and superfluous.
Semper Fidelis
for those who don’t know, there is a great poem by a marine staff sergeant (his name escapes me) that states exactly why we’re over there… it’s on my myspace (.com/ytpockets)… and we all know how many trolls masquerade in the MSM as “patriots.” A great answer would have been,
“Because of a lack of support at home is completely demoralizing to them, and gives aid and comfort to the enemy. A follow-up question to your question… why did the U.S. government stop prosecuting treason so vigorously?”
Fred Thompson’s answer? Punch them in the face! You know you were thinking it.
What makes me really angry about this whole anti-McCain movement is the war in Iraq. His stance is clear and his character has shown that he will stand firm on his beliefs – no withdraw, no timetables and whatever it takes to create a situation in which Iraq is left stable and an ally in the war on terror. All the major polls and trends show he has the best chance to beat either Obama and Hillary, both of whom say they want some kind of withdraw.
Do conservatives and the right wing really want to win in Iraq or what?
That is exactly the reason an overwhelming majority vote for republicans. Democrats trivialize our accomplishments, patronize our losses, and they condescend our ideals. I guess it doesn’t help that we are unwilling to fall into perpetual victimhood.
Joe, that’s assuming that
1) McCain will keep his word. We’ve already seen him in action breaking his word every opportunity he gets. My chances of winning the Maryland Lottery are better than him sticking to a promise.
2) Hillary won’t suddenly have an attack of poll opinion conscience and decide to keep the troops there for ‘peacekeeping operations’ and/or ‘goodwill’. Remember: she did vote in favour of the Surge. She’d be more likely to do this than Obama, but never underestimate a liberal’s curious ability to metamorphose into hawk when it suits his/her approval polls.
The last thing to keep in mind, Joe, is that the President doesn’t even have a fraction of the significance that a sympathetic Congress and a balanced press (or at least one that isn’t openly hostile to the troops) has. While we can’t really do much about the latter other than telling them where they can shove their dead trees, there is something we can do about the former.
Take it from a vet.
People are really sick and tired of the far right in the USA. The funny thing is the “true conservatives” got their butts kicked before we even got to the actual election. A “true conservative” couldn’t even win a single primary. That just shows you how much people dislike the far right in this country.
When it comes to the military or the war in Iraq, when has McCain ever “broken a promise”? He has shown time and time again that he is willing to stick to his beliefs on this issue. When the war was being mishandled and things were going bad, he was one of the few saying out loud that there needs to be more troops to better secure the country. This was at the height of when most polls and almost every politician was saying there should be some kind of time table or outright withdrawl. He doesn’t care about the changing opinions about how the situation is going, he cares about getting it done right.
And a President has plenty of control over what happens in this situation. They’re the one that overall decides what action is taken. All congress can do it cut funding for the war, and the Democrats already proved they don’t have the balls to do it.
If you want to win in Iraq, back McCain.
Yeah, I totally have those wingnuts sucking up and voting for McCain! They’re so stupid, all you have to do is say you’re a conservative or someone else is or you’ve been a “lifelong Republican” and they’ll totally believe you! And since they only care about BUSH’S LIEK TOTALY ILEGAL WAR, just keep reapeating over and over about how McCain’s the only one who can win the war. Then those wingers will be dumb enough to vote for McCain, and then Obama or even Hillary will win! Easy!
Oh, and I also have another sockpuppet where I keep making up a whole lot of bullshit about polls and how “everyone’s sick of the Far Right” LIEK OMG! I mean, it’s bullshit now, but it can happen, right? If we wish real hard and keep repeating our TRUFAX that aren’t really all that true but lying’s really OK because it’s all for TEH CAUSE!
Oh shit…you mean this ISN’T DailyKos?
Hey, I only care about two things. Winning in Iraq and dead terrorists. Think Romney can handle that well?
Since when did the war on terror not become the #1 cause anyway?
I’d probably end up voting for McCain, solely because of the war. Given that whether or not we win this war quickley determines the lives of thousands of people, I consider it to be the more important of the campaign issues. And McCain seems like he’s most dependable on that one.
Iraq going well? Not really. The Bush administration needs to stop lying to us. Most Americans know going into Iraq = the big stupid. Our troops are dying to keep the peace between two cults. That isn’t worth their lives. That’s why the vast majority of Americans want them to come home. It’s really up to the president not this blogger’s brave and honorable brother to decide when they troops come home. I think McCain or Hillary can be trusted on this issue to take a close look at the situation and decide the best outcome for America. He can also be trusted to fight global warming which is a much bigger threat than some stupid terrorists that live in caves.
Oh, and I forgot. Pot makes you think good. It really does!
I think McCain or Hillary can be trusted
“Hillary can be trusted”
Well, your credibility as good while it lasted. Did you even think about that sentence before you wrote it?
Since when did the war on terror not become the #1 cause anyway?
Since there have been constant issues long before Iraq, such as the First and Second Amendments, abortion, illegal immigration, (won’t do us a lick of good if we win the war over there only to lose it on our own soil. Brilliant!) the economy…
And you’ve still not provided how electing McCain would suddenly and magically win the War. Clicking your heels three times isn’t going to work, Dorothy. Even with all that Kool-Aid.
McCain won’t “magically” win the war, he’ll just handle it better then anyone else. Period.
And if you think abortion or immigration is more important then fighting Islamic Jihadists you’re not a real conservative.
I would put illegal immigration on par with fighting jihadists. Neglecting our borders only makes it easier for jihdists to get in and cause trouble. Border security is much more important than you seem to understand. Abortion… not as much, but it still sucks.