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Post by Elle Rush on Mar 18, 2003 9:30:01 GMT -5
Well, it is official: we are at war.  I don't want to get too political here just yet (lol, might scare you!) but just to say that my thoughts & meditations are with the US troops, their families, and also with the innocent civilians living in Iraq. May PEACE be a part of our future! |
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Post by Randacello (MirandaRae) on Mar 20, 2003 6:30:34 GMT -5
Peace is always much better than war and it saddens me war is coming.
I think Saddam Hussein is a soulless tyrant, a threat to the entire world and an especially brutal threat to his own people. At the same time I do not agree with how the Bush administration has handled things. I believe this war is, in reality, more about oil than the government will admit publicly; won't be good spin, ya know.
Though I disagree with my government on this I absolutely positively will support the soldiers no matter what. I am not against them at all; they are protecting us and our freedoms, doing their job, and getting paid far less than what they should for doing it.
Miranda
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Post by Elle Rush on Mar 20, 2003 10:53:57 GMT -5
Manders, we are so on the same page with this--- I feel the same. I am at odds with the means in which we got to where we are, but I love my country and I support our troops and their families-- they are heros in my book! Let's meditate for a peaceful end to the conflict and a safe return of our men & women.  |
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Post by Randacello (MirandaRae) on Mar 21, 2003 1:52:11 GMT -5
There were a lot of very sad and upset people at school today. You've heard me mention Charlotte; I've never seen her so upset! Her eyes were puffy and she looked like she'd been crying all night; when she said she had been I wasn't surprised. She shares our feelings and opinions about the situation, and she is also very scared this is going to turn into another Vietnam (which she remembers vividly). She doesn't want to see the kind of turmoil and divisiveness that she saw in the US during the late sixties and early seventies. She also doesn't want these soldiers to be treated as shabbily as the Vietnam vets were when they came home.
Yes, much much much meditation is needed now. Lots and lots of LOVING KINDNESS!
Miranda
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Post by RamirezGhost on Mar 21, 2003 12:01:30 GMT -5
I support the troops and in doing so support their actions, thus supporting the war. The only thing that gets a rise out of me are these damn protesters. A majority of them are teens who just want something to do and a reason to smoke pot. They want to be hippies, want to give this generation a "voice". To hell with them. Put their relatives in a crash-bound plane and see if they protest war, use sarin gas on their loved ones and see whose flag they burn.
Alright, enough of my tangent. And no, this post is not an invitation for debate, just my thoughts.
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Post by Elle Rush on Mar 21, 2003 15:19:13 GMT -5
Hey! LOL I'm a real-deal hippy, Mr. ;D
My Mom was an activist, my Dad served in Vietnam... but it was different with there being a draft enstated, though my Dad volunteered because he said he wanted to end the conflict before he had kids that could have grown up in that. They couldn't see an and for years and years. I have so much respect for our military, being all voluntary now, it says a lot about them as people to me. I do believe, however, that it is possible to be both at odds with the conflict and still be supportive of the men and women that are just doing their jobs. I don't like this war, but I am a patriot.
Dissention is good-- we all respect one another, honest opinions and discussion not only help, but also lend to seeing other sides, if we're open to that.
My biggest hope right now is that it is a brief conflict with minimal loss of life.
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Post by RamirezGhost on Mar 23, 2003 2:09:47 GMT -5
The Vietnam-era hippies were real. These folks...ha.
I have alot of confidence in our military. They'll go in, do what they do, and its done. We've lost more men in accidents over there than in combat. Hell, an entire Iraqi division surrendered when we showed up...lol
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Roadpan
Avid Muse
The Essential Pegasus
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Post by Roadpan on Mar 26, 2003 13:58:47 GMT -5
I disagree with the war. I disagree with America.
I love where I live. I loathe it.
We’re a country of hypocrites. A girl turns her back to the flag. A veteran runs to shove one in her face. I guess he forgot what he fought for. And if he thought she didn’t appreciate it … who cares, she’s allowed. The guy in the mall who was wearing the “peace on earth” shirt was escorted out and placed (temporarily) in a cell for refusing to remove it? Oh, cause it was private property.
We blacklisting actors again for being communists too?
We’re a country of freedom. Is that only for the rich?
Race doesn’t matter. Why can you still buy confederate flags? Do they have another meaning?
Humanitarian aid? For Iraq? 1.35 million children in the United States are homeless every year. 600,000 men, women, and children go homeless each night in the US. Iraq? I could care less about humanitarian aid for Iraq.
Most of this has nothing to do with the war, which is exactly my point. We once again find ourselves cleaning our neighbor’s yard, while our own remains cluttered.
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Roadpan
Avid Muse
The Essential Pegasus
Posts: 111
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Post by Roadpan on Mar 26, 2003 14:01:17 GMT -5
None of that has to do with supporting the troops. I do.
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Post by Elle Rush on Mar 26, 2003 14:27:53 GMT -5
I agree with much/most of how you feel, Todd.
There are so many facets to this thing, that is impossible to be all one way about it.
Our civil liberties and freedoms are going down the drain in the name of security--- (scary) and Americans are so fearful, they aren't paying attention to that aspect of things. We would do anything to feel safe...
the problem is that we aren't safe and the sad thing is that we never will be again.
The world has changed before our eyes. We (the United States) have much to do with that.
I support our troops, I love my country. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. But, this is not the America I was born to.
I believe in defending our country--- my problem is that I do not believe this was has much at all to do with defense. I don't like knowing that we are now offensively going after other countries. (there is a list of "terrorism supporting states" that we will also pursue once this war is finished. Iran, Syria, etc. )
I am concerned that the US is positioned similiarly to Russia when they tried to invade Afghanastan (under false pretenses, also) It's a catch 22 becuz if you do not agree 100% with what is going on, you are viewed by some as a traitor... that is so wrong. I believe it the
true patriots are the ones asking questions and going back to the beliefs this country was founded on.
I am very concerned about the way the rest of the world views us after all of this.
I wonder what Jefferson or Washington would have to say about all of this? If only we could ask them!
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Roadpan
Avid Muse
The Essential Pegasus
Posts: 111
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Post by Roadpan on Mar 27, 2003 2:07:07 GMT -5
We never learn from our past. Vietnam was a disaster.
To believe that Iraq is simply going to roll over and die is a mistake. To believe it’s going to end quickly is a mistake. America is what, not even 250 yrs old? They’ve been fighting over there since before Christ was born. We have the audacity to call it “shock and awe,” when the best advice given to us is to duct tape our windows? (We better get the iodine and red wine ready, too). Come on, those are some of the oldest parts of the world.
America has a way of pulling together, but I’m not sure it works when, as you say, we’re on the offensive.
I have problems with the sincerity of some people living here. 911 was terrible, there’s no doubt about that. The thing that irritates me is the rush to buy American flags afterward. Where was that at before? It took tragedy for people to find honor and pride in their country? The perfect example is that irritating commercial with the row of houses and then it flashes forward and each one has a flag hanging from it. If you had convictions and honor and pride and belief before 911, then you should probably be saluted as a true American. I find nothing but hypocrisy in the rear window flag stickers and USA bumper stickers and everything else. It’s pure commercialism, even if those who buy them are doing so with the utmost respect, dignity and intentions. But the corporations don’t give a flying leap about America, just lining their pockets with dollar bills.
Again, I see no good end. Do we win even if we win?
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Post by Elle Rush on Mar 27, 2003 11:10:40 GMT -5
No matter what the outcome, there is extreme damage in relations between the US & our traditional allies- hell, with most of the rest of the world. And there is also damage between those that feel their voices did not matter in this crisis.. there are still a lot of people that aren't for this war, that feel that this war was planned, and nothing anyone did was going to stop it.
It is hard not to believe that this does have to do with Israel- though they deny it adamantly. That is a situation where we may have been useful...Why and how can the Israeli/ Palestinian conflict continue without interference from anyone, a situation where someone needs to step in and say "okay, people. You cannot drive your tanks and open fire on domestic homes in Palestinian territories- it's wrong. It's sickening, it's against the geneva convention. It is a crime against humanity" But, the US nor anyone else in the world has handled that crisis at all.... no one wants to piss Israel (the Holy land) off.
and North Korea- what the heck are we doing in Iraq, a country that they admitted was 3 years away from having nuclear capabilities, when North Korea already has them and we know they could hit the west coast, yet we don't think that a big enough threat to retaliate when they have threatened us? Something is amiss there.
I am sure there is so much that we do not know.. and I am not a politician,(don't have the stomach or patience for that) nor do I know all about foreign affairs. The information that I have on the surface and from exploring a bit deeper than some may have (I watch news from Europe, news from Germany, and news from the middle east- though much of that is state controlled) the way I see it, the truth is somewhere in the middle of their story and ours.
The one thing I do believe, sadly.. is that our foreign policies are the reason for much of many of these animosities and conflicts.
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