The Uncomfortable Truth

Today is a milestone in the war against Iraq. Today, the war has lasted longer than WWII.
Unlike WWII, this war has lasted 1,324 days since the President told us the mission was accomplished. Now he’s telling us that we’ll stay until the mission is completed. That’s funny, I’ve always thought that accomplished and completed were synonymous.
Who could’ve foreseen that Iraq would become a quagmire? The millions of people protesting a month before the war started, that’s who.
Recently, the Iraq Study Group has released a report on what to do now. Right-wing-hate-radio has been describing the document as a “surrender document.‿ They say that victory isn’t even mentioned in the report. Could that be because victory is not possible at this point? Could it be that the “experts‿ have finally figured out what’s been obvious from the start?
The conflicts between the Shia branch of Islam and the Sunni branch go back to shortly after the death of The Prophet (peace be upon him) in the 7th century. As powerful as the US military is, does anyone believe they can resolve a conflict that goes back 1,400 years?
Instead of beer-bonging his way through college, the President would’ve done well to study his history. It has happened repeatedly: remove a strongman from power, and the country will disintegrate into factional violence. Had he studied harder, the president would’ve known that bringing down Saddam would unleash decades of pent-up violence—just as happened in Yugoslavia not too long ago.
OK, so Saddam “Killed his own people.‿ Well, not really.
Saddam did gas the Kurds, but Saddam is not a Kurd. Saddam killed a bunch of Shiites, but Saddam is not a Shiite.
Saying that Saddam “killed his own people‿ is like saying that every US President of the nineteenth century killed their own people when they were slaughtering Native Americans—it just won’t wash.
Iraq did not attack us. Iraq did not have any significant amount of WMDs. Saddam did not kill his own people. A “War on Terror‿ would necessarily include sealing our borders, so that’s not what this is either. Our boys and girls can’t be dying for “freedom,‿ as so much of that has been taken away since 9/11. In short, there was no reason at all for this war.
But we’re going to stay.
We’re going to stay because it takes a great deal of courage to admit when you’re wrong, and our President is about as brave as he is smart.

Posted by Quentin Colgan at 09:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (20)

I heard this week that the “Christmas War" is over. What that means is that it is now OK to say “Merry Christmas" to strangers again. Retailers as well are succumbing to this backlash against political correctness. We may again expect to hear the greeting of my youth was we partake in the unholy spectacle that is Christmas shopping.
A few years ago, retailers started wishing customers a generic “Happy Holidays." This upset a number of religious posers, who organized boycotts of some stores.
The aforementioned posers are pleased as can be because now the stores are sending the message that this orgy of shopping is about the birth of Christ.
Oh.
Is that what it’s about?
It’s been said that God gave the world the gift of His Son, so giving gifts is the right thing to do. I almost agree with that.
But, is spending over a week’s wages for a box to play “Gears of War" an appropriate way to honor the arrival of mankind’s savior?
Does running up thousands of dollars in credit card debt pay proper homage to God and His gift?
Does pushing and shoving one’s way through the stores so one can be the first to take advantage of the work of some underpaid employee in a foreign land, in what can only be described as a wretched excess of Godless capitalism, bring one closer to the spirit of the season?
Hmmmm.
I believe that God gave His Son to redeem us, so that our sins would be forgiven. Without Jesus, those charlatans who collect money in Jesus’ name and live high on the hog would be damned for eternity. As would those who judge others. Without Jesus, what would happen to those who shun the homeless, the least of Jesus’ brothers? What would happen to all those posers?
The gift of Christmas is the gift of forgiveness. Try it. Jesus taught that if you needed to reconcile with someone, do it first. See how much better you’ll feel.
God’s gift of His Son brought a new way of thinking, along with a challenge to live as Christ lived. Jesus said to feed the poor. Giving a sandwich to a homeless person is a lot cheaper than a Barbie doll, and is a far greater gift. “Loving your enemies‿ isn’t easy, but it’s free. Treating everybody as you would want to be treated is nearly impossible, but it won’t cost you a thing, and it is a gift that truly reflects the season.
This year, save your money. Give the gifts that keep on giving.
Merry Christmas.

Posted by Quentin Colgan at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)