Defending Independence

[thedrifter]

Defending Independence

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Common Sense by Oliver North



Jul 4, 2003


As Americans celebrate our 227th Independence Day, we do so with more than 150,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen, guardsmen and Marines in Iraq, over 10,000 in Afghanistan, 6,000 in the Balkans, tens of thousands at sea around the world in warships and several thousand more now poised for deployment to Liberia. For all of them, any fireworks they observe on the Fourth of July are more likely to be deadly than celebratory. And, if we are to believe the polls, while they stand in harm's way around the globe, an increasing number of Americans here at home are becoming war weary.

This past week, both Fox News and the Gallup organization sampled American public opinion regarding the ongoing military action in Iraq. Both polls show that since May 1, when President Bush declared major combat operations in Iraq to have ended, there has been a precipitous drop in public approval for staying the course. Dr. Frank Newport, the Gallup organization's editor in chief, told my radio audience that the 56 percent of Americans who now say they support military action in Iraq is down from a high of 76 percent in April -- a 20-point drop in exactly two months. When I asked him "Why?" he responded that, "the fact that we continue to take casualties and the failure to find any weapons of mass destruction are the primary reasons" Americans have changed their minds.

We have taken casualties. As of this writing, 26 Americans have been killed by enemy action in Iraq since May 1. And no stores of nerve agents, bio-toxins or nuclear weapons have yet been found in Saddam's treasure trove of armaments. Throw in the fact that we have yet to find either Saddam or Osama. Does this explain such a drastic softening of resolve in a nation that less than 22 months ago suffered 2,790 killed at the hands of Islamic terrorists?

Or is something else happening here? Has the mind-numbing, hyperbolic blather of Senator Robert Byrd finally taken effect? Have we succumbed to the globalist-pacifist rant from John Kerry and Howard Dean as they chase each other to the left in their quest for a presidential nomination? Or are we simply paying too much attention to the quagmire commentaries of the negative nannies in the Democrat party?

On July 2, when asked to comment on the killing of a Marine in Iraq, President Bush replied, "there are some who feel that the conditions are such that they can attack us there ... Bring 'em on! ... Our forces are ready." This prompted New Jersey Democrat Senator Frank Lautenberg to jump for the nearest microphone and proclaim that he was shaking his head "in disbelief." He then sputtered that when he was in World War II he had "never heard any military commander -- let alone the commander in chief -- invite enemies to attack U.S. troops." Mr. Lautenberg must think that at Bastogne, General Anthony McAuliffe was asking the Germans for hors d'oeuvres when he replied to their surrender demand with, "Nuts."

After hearing Senator Lautenberg and the explanations of the pollsters, I decided to conduct my own informal, admittedly unscientific sampling of American public opinion to see how deeply this sense of national dyspepsia was being felt. I called a military recruiter.

"The polls say Americans are growing disheartened," I told him. "Are you seeing any drop off in volunteers?" "Not here. We have all the high-school graduates we need for the next two months," he replied, knowing that he is one of those responsible for enlisting 185,000 new recruits this year.

The conversation reminded me of one I had on-air with a young lance corporal just east of Baghdad in early April. The New York Times had reported that morning that the Marines had outrun their supply lines and were out of food, water, fuel and ammo. I stood next to the youthful Leatherneck, told him about the story, stuck the microphone in his face and asked, "Are you hungry?"

"No, sir."

"Thirsty?"

"No, sir."

"Are you short on ammo?"

"No, sir."

"Well, what do you need?" I pressed.

"Just send more enemy, sir."

Bravado? Sure. But it's real -- right from the lips of one of those who stand in harm's way defending us -- and offering the hope of freedom to others.

It was that same kind of audacity that inspired 56 patriots to gather in a hot hall in Philadelphia that July of 1776 and stick it in King George's eye. They knew it was going to be a rough go -- but they didn't shirk and whine. They signed on to the notion that we are endowed by our Creator "with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." As we celebrate that event this year we might do well to remember that enjoying "the blessings of Liberty" sometimes requires us to cinch up our belts, suck it up and get on with the business of protecting ourselves.


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A central figure in world events during the past several years, retired Marine Lt. Col. Oliver L. North has provoked great controversy while gaining the respect of the vast majority of Americans. Born in San Antonio, Texas, North was raised in upstate New York. When he graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1968, he was commissioned in the U.S. Marines and shortly thereafter was assigned as a Marine rifle platoon commander in the Republic of Vietnam.


? 2003 Creators Syndicate, Inc.


http://www.washingtondispatch.com/article_6005.shtml


Sempers,

Roger

[VIETNAM 1968]

When the prospect of hostilities in Iraq became a very real possibility, I predicted that if the upcoming War, and subsequent Occupation, of Iraq were to go on for an extended length of time; Most Americans would lose the strong desire to see the conflict through to it's conclusion.

In fact, I even compared it to Vietnam. Some of my acquaintances just laughed and stated that Vietnam and Iraq were like Apples and Oranges. The two could not be compared in any way. Well hindsight is now starting to prove me correct.

Some Americans have long forgotten just what forced us to engage in hostilities in Iraq in the first place. In the beginning, most everyone supported our decision to engage Iraq in armed conflict. As time went on however, some Americans started to become disenchanted and questioned just why we ever became involved in hostilities with Iraq in the first place.

For those of us that were old enough to remember the start of the Vietnam conflict and participated in it directly; The feelings of the majority of Americans supported our involvement. As time went on however, the few opposed to the War were able to sway most Americans to their type of thinking. As a result the Vietnam War lost most public support and we Servicemen then became the brunt of their dissatisfaction. With enough public support against our involvement, the United States Government was then forced to end that direct involvement. As a result the South Vietnamese Government finally could not carry on the War effort themselves and Vietnam then fell to Communist control.

I believe that History just might REPEAT ITSELF, if the United States does not find a way to quickly disengage itself from Iraq. Public support will continue to erode and we will then be forced to abandon all that we attempted to accomplish in that country as well. The very forces that we attempted to ouster will then be free to reestablish control and Iraq will then revert back to just what we were attempting to prevent in the first place.

The last time the American People were willing to support a long conflict was World War II. Then we had a determination to see the war through to it's logical conclusion, regardless of the time it took to win. Now, all the majority of Americans are willing to endure are swift conflicts that quickly result in victory. If the cost of that victory then becomes too high, and the time required to achieve the goal, becomes too long, the vocal minority are then able to sway the majority of other Americans to their way of thinking.


To all my Vietnam Veteran Brothers and Sisters I want to state:


WELCOME HOME:


Vietnam 1968