These are strange days for us.  As we sit and watch the war unfold on television (I can even watch it on my PC at work!) and listen to former generals tell us what’s next (is that really wise?), my mind wanders to the interview that I saw recently with an aged WWII veteran.  Imagine a war where you didn’t know who was going to win.  Unfathomable, eh?  Can you imagine not knowing if your enemy was going to take over?  Not knowing if they were going to “win”?  Can you imagine if we were losing thousands (thousands!) of soldiers in warfare?  Today, we basically know the final results of any of the “wars” that we engage in long before we set foot on foreign soil.  Which is, I’m sure, why we won’t let North Korea egg us into a fight, try as they may.  We know going into battle these days, that we may lose several soldiers to enemy fire.  Several more in mishaps (helicopter crashes, friendly fire, etc).  And we know that some unknown hundreds of enemy soldiers will die.  We also know that we won’t “lose the war”.  There’s no chance of that.  We are shooting tomahawk missiles at rock throwers.  Does the fact that it is an unfair fight mean that we should not engage an enemy?  No, of course not.  I would much rather do it this way than attack N. Korea’s million man army.  So would you.  I’m just saying that these are strange days indeed.

By the way, whether you approve of the actions we are taking in Iraq or not, support our troops.  Wish them health and Godspeed.  Exercise your freedom of speech but exercise it responsibly and in the right direction.  Our soldiers are doing what they must.  Don’t let your hatred or disgust of an administration turn you against our soldiers.  This is not their fault.  Those soldiers are over there for you.  Respect that.

I hate talking about war.

Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events.
Sir Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)