January 22, 2007

Native soldiers die in vain

Tim Giago:  How many others will die over Iraq?The chart of those who died in Iraq places South Dakota second in the number of deaths in combat per capita. Vermont leads the list. Three Lakota have died in Iraq. The first woman to die there was a Hopi Indian woman from Arizona. Among the dead you will find several Navajo Indians and several from the Indian nations of Oklahoma. The people of Indian country have always considered themselves one, so this brings the war a little closer for all of us.

Nineteen young Americans lost their lives to this futility only last week. Sunday, a one-year anniversary memorial service was held at Kyle on the Pine Ridge Reservation for a young Lakota Marine named Brett Lundstrom who lost his life to a sniper in Iraq. Brett was young and did not consider the politics or the sectarianism of the fighting in Iraq. He was a warrior sent to Iraq to bring a new democracy to a country that did not want it. Did he die in vain? We would hope that a life lost in a cause, whether it is noble or ignoble, is not a death to be disrespected. After all, the intent of the soldier or marine sent into combat is to carry out the orders of the president of the United States of America. If the orders are wrongful, it is not the fault of the soldier.
Comment:  If the orders are wrongful enough, it's a soldier's duty to disobey them. The Nuremberg Trials established that principle pretty well.

It's not our soldiers' fault if Bush sent them to their deaths. But since we can't "win" in Iraq, they are dying in vain.

5 comments:

writerfella said...

Writerfella here --
Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq with an adamantine fist. The only terrorists in Iraq were against Saddam. Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda wanted Saddam removed. Al-Qaeda attacked the U.S. on 9/11/00 and the U.S. attacked Saddam, whose country was conquered. Saddam was deposed, captured, imprisoned, tried, and executed. The war rages on as though this meant nothing at all, with no clear objective stated, no clear objective achieved, and with no exit strategy in place. No one mentions 'weapons of mass destruction' any longer and no one shows Bush II under that 2002 banner that read, 'Mission Accomplished' any longer.
Deep into the Viet Nam War, President Nixon's answer to the failing policy of 'Vietnamization' was to send thousands more U.S. troops and billions more in economic aid to Viet Nam. Deep into Gulf War II, President Bush's answer to the failing policy of 'Iraqization' is to send thousands more U.S. troops and billions more in economic aid to Iraq. Is it just writerfella, or is there a huge echo shaking the start of the 21st Century?
The shorter version of the above is writerfella's observation that it all reminds him of a movie: BUSH WARS, EPISODE 1: THE PHANTOM MENACE...
All Best
Russ Bates
'writerfella'

Rob said...

Did you post a longer version of this under Super Diva by mistake? ;-)

Anyway, I agree with you, for once. Check out my News from a Multicultural Perspective blog for more on the subject. I must post a picture of Bush's "Mission Accomplished" banner or a cartoon about his WMD lies at least once a month there.

writerfella said...

Wrfiterfella here --
No, this is a condensed rewrite of the original post placed here, that went --POUF!-- when the Lognin and Publish button was pushed. writerfella thought it evaporated but was able to capture the flavor of the first in a shorter text. Wow, this blog has a Transporter!
All Best
Russ Bates
'writerfella'

Not a Sioux said...

I wanted to hear more about the supervillain with the adamantium fist.

writerfella said...

Writerfella here --
Well, Saddamite Hoozonfurst from planet X-Marx-D-Spaht sneaked back to earth when comet O-I-812 zoomed by in early 2003! Then he conquered the South Orkney Islands and gathered up rare adamantium ores, intent on finally defeating Palos Verdes Man south of Los Angeles! However, Saddamite had not reckoned on The Gulf Warrior and his minions in the Justusfolks League! When many bloody battles ended in stalemate, Wondaleeza Woman intervened, instituting a fragile peace overseen by Lex Halliburton.! But just then, Alien Gonzalez returned from the Kuyper Belt and collided with his nemesis, Centurion Borat Osama, allowing the Incredible Semi-Living Blot to break out of Antarctic prison!
So, don't miss the next thrill-packed issue of PROFILES IN D.N.A. COMIX from Kornografica Press, featuring the epic novella, "Hell... In A Handbasket!" Brought to you by Anderson Cooper 360 on CNN! Tonight's topic: 'George Bush -- Lame Duck Or Daffy Duck?'
All Best
Russ Bates
'writerfella'