The U.S. should consider giving peace a chance in Iraq

There are some people that aren’t going to like my column this week. Actually, I hope no one likes reading my column this week—there’s just no way this is a happy subject.

The fourth anniversary has past since the U.S. invaded Iraq, and obviously, despite having deposed and executed Saddam Hussein, we’re still there. And now, we’re about to send more troops, including some from the local area.

That’s about as personal as it gets, when family and friends are asked to bid goodbye, perhaps forever, to those they love that have pledged themselves to the defense of our nation.

But this is no longer about any form of defense. It never was. The lies that led our nation into this mess prove that.

In the land of the free, you’d think we’d have some sort of accurate picture of what is actually happening in Iraq. But unless you’re an Internet research freak with a lot of time to burn, if you’re an average member of the American public, you really don’t have a clue what’s going on over there and how bad the situation is.

I admit, running The Easton News, my time for such in-depth international research is limited. And, it’s horrible, heartbreaking, sad, depressing stuff. So I know I don’t have the entire picture. But I’ve got a lot more than you’re going to see on Fox News.

It’s estimated that the average American child will see more than 10,000 murders and other graphically depicted acts of violence on television before their 18th birthday. But it’s rare to see even a draped coffin arriving home when a soldier is killed on network. And until the scandal with Walter Reed, you never saw American troops with major injuries. (Unless, of course, they were being shown off, like Jessica Lynch. Remember her?)

Why? Because the draped coffin is just too much of a reminder of the grim, inescapable reality of the situation—that this is a horrible war where people are getting maimed and killed.

And, lest the American public feel any remorse towards the Iraqi people, we aren’t shown any real picture of their lives either.

At most, we see optimistic diplomats or angry young men in the street or, occasionally, someone who looks rather poor and dirty. Not really a very good representation of the Iraqi people. In fact, with such a limited, and mostly negative view, it’s pretty good at reinforcing a stereotype.

But casualties in Iraq are so extensive that, combined with a shattered, practically non-existent day-to-day infrastructure, no one really knows how many civilians have been killed. And civilian injury tallies went out the window a very long time ago.

It is being reported that the rate of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is incredibly high among our troops in Iraq, both when they come home and, for some, while they continue on active duty right now. And while the good news is that we can and do save a higher percentage of wounded soldiers than any other war, many, many more of them will live with major disabilities for the rest of their lives.

The best way we can support our troops is by pressuring our leaders to bring them home. The best way we can keep our nation safe is to end this war and try to rebuild the international goodwill that this administration has squandered so carelessly.

(Originally published in The Easton News, March 22, 2007)