Anti-War, or Anti-Iraqi?

In an astonishing... unbelievable... Okay, just plain stupid protest of the War in Iraq, Cindy Sheehan has camped outside President Bush's Texas ranch following the death of her son Casey in Iraq. Mrs. Sheehan has become the face of the anti-war movement in America, even though it is about to cost her her marriage, and her family has allegedly issued a statement requesting that she end her protest out of respect for her slain son's "good name and reputation."

Reports from unnamed sources claim that the Islamic militants who killed her son also appreciate her protests, which are meant to urge the President to pull American troops out of Iraq. In a statement issued by the Baathist Party of Iraq, an "insurgent" spoke these words of gratitude:

"We in the Baathist Party of Iraq would like to commend and thank Cindy Sheehan for her outstanding work behind enemy lines. Her support for our cause has been noted, and we are confident that her work has gotten us one step closer to our goal of vanquishing the freedom-mongering Americans from Iraq. Thanks to Mrs. Sheehan and her band of supporters, we in Iraq have been able to move our focus to other goals, such as re-instating the Baathist regime in Iraq and torturing all dissenters. We are grateful for Mrs. Sheehan's continued support, and we pledge to honor her cause by killing the sons of more American women. Long live Saddam Hussein!"

The Baathists' report made no direct statement regarding Mrs. Sheehan's slain son.

Sometimes I wonder about people like Cindy... Do they realize what they're doing? Is she actually in her right mind?

Sure, let's remove all American soldiers from a fledgling democracy in the Middle East. That'll bring peace! No more American troops will have to die for the cause of freedom then!

But how much is freedom worth? To bring about democracy in a place like Iraq will undoubtedly cost lives (since dictators and jihadists will not give up their power without a fight), but is that any reason to tuck our tail between our legs and run home? Our own liberty was given to us, won by the blood of men who never even saw the freedom they fought for, so can we not spill some of our own blood for another nation's freedom?

I respect our soldiers, and I pray for them. I admire their courage in serving our country in this war, and I want them to be safe. However, I believe that people like Cindy Sheehan are doing them no favors by calling for America to pull out of Iraq. If we left Iraq now, then everything that our soldiers, including her own son, have fought and died for would be in vain. The country would fall to the terrorists, and the freedom that we paid for in blood would be entirely lost.

Have people like Cindy been spoiled by their own freedom, so much that they can't fathom giving it to anyone else? Or is the problem perhaps selfishness? Or even racism?

Could it be that the real reason these people fight tooth and nail against the Iraq War is simply a kind of racism? Could the real reason for their opposition of freedom be that they simply are bigoted toward Iraqis? I mean, the anti-war folks are advocating a pullout from Iraq, because it's just not worth our effort. So are the Iraqis just not worth the effort, or is it everyone? Are these people just bigoted toward Iraqis, or are they equal-opportunity discriminators?

Whether they're racists, cowards, selfish, insane, or just short-sighted, they don't seem to understand the problems that would be caused by an American pullout from Iraq. They don't understand that the terrorists will perceive such an action as a weakness, and simply push harder. They don't understand that we'd dishonor our armed forces by abandoning all they've fought for. They probably don't even understand that we'd actually lose what gains we've made. All they see is big, ugly war, and they want the war to stop (even if that won't make the killing stop).

Let's honor our troops by distancing ourselves from voices like Cindy's. Let's support the troops, and encourage them, and pray for their safety. Let's encourage our representatives to cut pork spending and use the money to fund safety precautions for our armed forces. The anti-war crowd's motivation, whether it is cowardice, selfishness or bigotry, will fix nothing. We must carry out our plans and help build a free Iraq if we truly want to do our slain soldiers justice. That is the way to honor them.

God bless our soldiers, and keep them safe.



UPDATE: Here's what Mark Steyn has to say about Mrs. Sheehan's antics.