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October 15, 2007 · 12:23 am

Iraq Improves, Surveillance a Necessity

I read Michael Cook’s letter-to-the-editor (“Bogged down in Iraq, under surveillance in U.S. – October 8th) with both interest and disbelief.

I can always count on Mr. Cook to reveal a wide assortment of illusions that the Far Left wants the rest of us to believe.

He would have us believe that the war is a disaster – “quagmire” is his term. No mention is made of the recent optimistic report from General Petraeus. No hint that a world without Saddam Hussein is a better place for a whole lot of people.

This part was expected. The disbelief part kicked in when Mr. Cook suggested that he and his political associates are the real supporters of the military not the President. That’s laughable.

These people fool no one with their opportunistic interest in patriotism, least of all the military itself. A survey taken in 2004 among active duty personnel showed Bush favored over Kerry 73-18 per cent. I wonder what the poll results today would be with the same group if Hillary/Obama/Edwards were matched against Bush. Mr. Cook might not want to know.

The desire for peace by Mr. Cook and his friends is admirable. The problem is the price they’re willing to pay to achieve it. They are not willing to fight for peace. To them Pearl Harbor happened because of a misunderstanding with Japan. To them 9-11 was our fault. They never seem to want to accept the idea that evil exists and that we have options as to where and when we will deal with it so that peace can result.

Mr. Cook finds fault with the way we are fighting the terrorists. What he doesn’t mention is that if it were up to him and his friends we would flee the Middle East entirely. He has no concern whatsoever for what such an exit would cause to happen in the Middle East. That our early withdrawal from Vietnam was a travesty for our friends in and around that country appears to be unimportant to him.

Another source of disbelief for me was Mr. Cook’s suggestion that our government goes too far in gathering information about people traveling overseas. Oblivious to evil, Mr. Cook cannot comprehend the necessity of such action. I’ll bet he has complete trust in the millions of illegals in this country as well.

Mr. Cook closes by saying that, “soon I’ll be back in the rain forest.” I think that a better place for him might be the desert. There he could resume burying his head in the sand. Those periodic burials have apparently caused him to have missed the lessons of history and prevented him from having any sense of the real world the rest of us live in.

( Appeared in the Newburyport Daily News – October 15, 2007 )

Iraq Talking Points or Walking Points?

Iraq Talking Points? Probably ought to retitle it, “Iraq Walking Points.” The Nike’s are laced up and as Jackie Gleason used to say, “Let’s hear a little traveling music!”

I sensed from Mr. Henry Precht’s article in the Bridgton News (July 21, 2005) that he apparently is not one to be counted on for support for his country and its troops when the going gets tough.

Made me think about the young folks in the water around here who can’t swim. They’re in the water thrashing about in an uncoordinated fashion. I could hear Mr. Precht on the shore assuring one and all that we never should have come to the beach and the child in the water is in danger and its time to get them out of the water and home on the porch. Fortunately, there are other parents who offer encouragement to the young splashers and ultimately things get much smoother in the water. It might not happen in one visit but with support things usually get better.

Let me quote writer Dennis Prager on what I think folks like Mr. Precht would say to our troops: “You troops may think you are winning; you may think you are doing good and moral things in Iraq; you may believe you are fighting the worst human beings of our age and protecting us against the scourge of Islamic terror. But we on the Left believe none of that. We believe this war is being fought for oil and for Halliburton and other corporations; we believe you are waging a war that is both illegal and immoral; we believe you have invaded a country for no good reason and have killed a hundred thousand Iraqis for no good reason; but, hey, we sure do support you.”

Mr. Precht could you live with the following as motivation for invading Iraq? “It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons. Should he succeed in that endeavor, he could alter the political and security landscape of the Middle East, which as we know all too well affects American security.” Before you say, “There goes that rascal George Bush making up stuff,” understand that this quote was from your candidate in 2008, Hillary Rodham Clinton on October 8, 2002.

There are people in this world, Mr. Precht, who are intent on doing us harm. They can’t be reasoned with. If you show weakness they will take advantage of you. They have to be engaged. The stakes are high and there is no time-table. Do you want them dealt with in Bridgton or Baghdad?

It would help if you stayed away from the New York Times, Boston Globe, and Washington Post. Use the clicker and get away from CNN as well. Trust me, Mr. Precht, our troops are doing great things in Iraq and support from home will make their stay in harm’s way a lot easier to take. Don’t turn your back on them now.