As the sixth-year anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks came and went, I took some time to look back at how much has happened since then. I watched the video of the towers crashing down and was reminded of that morning in grade school when my principal came into our room and informed us that a plane had just crashed into the World Trade Center in New York.
I remembered how my grandfather owned a small flag business in our little suburb of Buffalo, NY, and how, on the days following the attack the office was flooded with calls. He needed to enlist the help of me, my brother and my grandmother to sit at the phones and answer, as they rang every 30 seconds. We could barely keep up with the literally hundreds of orders for flags we were receiving. On TV, we had the national funeral on, watching George and Laura Bush mourning with the thousands of Americans at the cathedral in Washington.
Everywhere we went, Old Glory was flying from each house. The red, white and blue colors could not be avoided; our country mourned but felt a bond that only incredible events can bring. Our nation had been attacked; 3,000 innocent lives were the victims of a deliberate act of war. And within days, our magnificent and decisive leader, George W. Bush, was ready to show the terrorists and the world that such malfeasance will not stand.
With nearly unanimous support from Congress and the populace, Bush sent troops into Afghanistan. Bombs were dropped from the same planes as food packages; soldiers killed members of the Taliban while they assisted the Afghanis. Osama bin Laden was incapacitated and driven into exile. While he remains missing, he is most certainly no longer a threat. We had al Qaeda running.
After swift execution of the operation in Afghanistan, Bush began to reignite interest in an Iraq objective. Many were opposed: Saddam Hussein was believed to have dangerous weapons of mass destruction that, if used against our armies, would cause devastating body counts. Predictions of more than 100,000 soldiers that would be killed were commonplace from the opposition, not to mention the lack of connections between Hussein and al Qaeda. Many people did not see Iraq as a part of the War on Terror, and to this day they do not see the point in such an objective.
I supported the operation in Iraq on day one, and I have supported it every day since. Iraq has been a United States military interest for over two decades. Even Ronald Reagan, who was forced to work with Hussein during the war with Iran, wrote in his diary, “I feel [Saddam] is a no-good nut, and I do not trust him.” Granted, Iraq was not directly involved in Sept. 11, 2001, but it is unique in that the U.S. government (both Democrats and Republicans) has been calling for the ousting of Saddam Hussein for years. There could have been no better opportunity than after a war designed to root out and destroy terrorism. In 2002, when Bush requested authorization for the use of military force in Iraq, 296 Representatives and 77 Senators voted in approval.
By the end of 2003, Saddam Hussein was in prison. Baghdad was under the control of U.S. forces. The military simply faced scattered skirmishes against disorganized terrorists across the country, and the long-feared “Battle for Baghdad” was never realized. Saddam’s statue was torn down in the center of Baghdad, and Bush landed on an aircraft carrier to the backdrop of a massive red, white and blue banner reading “Mission Accomplished.” Iraqi elections were held in January 2004, despite great skepticism.
What happened? How is it that four years later there is a larger military presence there than ever? To be honest, I have no specific answer. I don’t believe there is one clear reason.
The best explanation I have heard yet was Peggy Noonan’s analysis in the Wall Street Journal: “‘Did we lose Iraq?’ .We never had Iraq. We haven’t found it.because the people of Iraq haven’t found it.” The United States set the stage, but the Iraqis did not know their lines. It all came crashing down as al Qaeda began to work the cultural differences between sects, causing national instability and a disaster for the U.S. military.
The Democrats in Congress demand change. They want a new strategy, a way out, something, anything. And let’s review: Bush has changed pretty much everything there is to change since 2003. He has a new Secretary of State and a new Secretary of Defense, a new general with a completely new strategy. He is clearly doing everything possible to win. But what have the Democrats changed? Their message of Bush-bashing and anti-war rhetoric has remained exactly the same for the past four years.
On Sept. 11, 2007, Gen. David Petraeus reported to Congress that the surge was producing results. His report stated that violence is decreasing, progress is being made and we will be below pre-surge troop levels by summer 2008. But even in the face of this incredibly good news, the Democrats still refuse to throw their weight behind our efforts against the terrorists. Cindy Sheehan’s despicable anti-American actions have prompted a letter from the terrorists thanking her for inspiring their fighting spirit. This small but sizable portion of the United States is fueling the terrorists’ drive to try to win this war.
Can you imagine how well the Iraq objective would be going if every American were behind it? If it weren’t for the political bickering and anti-American sentiment so rampant among the left, I believe that the war would be going far better. And I do not understand why this is not the case. A good example of how I believe every anti-war American should act is Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn. Lieberman is a liberal; he was Gore’s running mate in 2000 and a prominent Clinton supporter in the 1990s. He was not a supporter of military action in Iraq. But after the war began, he has been behind America 100% of the way. He became an independent in order to stay in office, but he remains a Senator nonetheless. While I have reservations about his policy, his integrity is second to none.
Nothing infuriates me more than “Support the troops: Bring them home” or “I support the troops but not the war.” This war is for the preservation of freedom and justice in the world, for the spread of democracy and righteousness. To oppose the war in Iraq is unpatriotic; there are no ifs, ands or buts. I understand any qualms with it in the beginning, but we are there now. Our courageous soldiers are fighting to protect our lives. To sabotage their efforts here on the home front is despicable and, in some extreme cases, traitorous. We are all in this together; if we were unified, it would be that much better for us, for our troops and for the world.
I want you to go onto YouTube.com and watch the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks again. Remember where you were that day and how it made you feel. Think about the images of Bush and Rudy Giuliani crying in the rubble. And remember the unity you felt when you bought your American flag and proudly flew it from your home. It is only through unity that we will get through these trying times to ensure peace and freedom for all. Join the cause, and support your country with all of your being. God bless America!
Brett Kostrzewski is a freshman in Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology.
