The Sad Stories are the Only Stories From This War
Issue date: 2/15/07
Section: Editorial
This is what it has come to: Stories from peers, lives forever changed, after returning from a tour of duty in Iraq. Peers with family or friends stationed overseas with no sense of when they will return. Politicians on both sides of the aisle decreeing our mission too vague, our goals too lofty, our hope all but gone.
Still, yellow ribbons hang from front doors and car bumpers to show support for our troops, though our support does little good.
What would it take for an end? What is the threshold or the final headcount that leads to a withdrawal? Is it 4,000? 5,000? How will we know success and will we ever be so inclined to declare it?
Our losses can be counted in lives: 3132. Our victory, as claimed by those who support the war, is the absence of terror. But for those who believe this war has thwarted terror, talk to those left wondering every day when their loved one(s) will return. Dare say they are not terrorized by these thoughts.
By the end of the week, the House of Representatives will sign a nonbinding measure that voices disapproval of President George W. Bush's decision to send 21,500 more American troops in what's been called a "surge." While this is encouraging in that it's a labored attempt to alter Bush's vision and goals for the war, it's not enough.
As a publication, we would much rather write about the happy-endings; the war stories that remind us of our purpose for being involved. But this war will know only one happy ending, and for all those missing family or friends, may it come sooner than later.
Still, yellow ribbons hang from front doors and car bumpers to show support for our troops, though our support does little good.
What would it take for an end? What is the threshold or the final headcount that leads to a withdrawal? Is it 4,000? 5,000? How will we know success and will we ever be so inclined to declare it?
Our losses can be counted in lives: 3132. Our victory, as claimed by those who support the war, is the absence of terror. But for those who believe this war has thwarted terror, talk to those left wondering every day when their loved one(s) will return. Dare say they are not terrorized by these thoughts.
By the end of the week, the House of Representatives will sign a nonbinding measure that voices disapproval of President George W. Bush's decision to send 21,500 more American troops in what's been called a "surge." While this is encouraging in that it's a labored attempt to alter Bush's vision and goals for the war, it's not enough.
As a publication, we would much rather write about the happy-endings; the war stories that remind us of our purpose for being involved. But this war will know only one happy ending, and for all those missing family or friends, may it come sooner than later.
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