Some say that World War III is already upon us. Others call it “perpetual war” - a war that basically will never end and has no clear definition of victory. The news certainly seems to be pointing that way.
The battle in Afghanistan rages on. The generals now tell us that war in Iraq might lead to a full fledged civil war. Israel vs. Lebanon fighting continues while people look for a UN resolution to fix the problem, ignoring the fact that it was passed years ago. Senator Joe Lieberman, Vice Presidential candidate in 2000 is betrayed by his own party – mostly for an anti Bush, anti war statement. As we draw near to the 5th anniversary of 9/11/2001, terrorists have been caught plotting to blow up ten planes from the UK to the US.
What are we to do as a nation? What are we to do as individuals?
First we must remember that whatever you call this war, we are at war. And there is nothing civil, nice, or pleasant about it. You can not vote, protest, or debate it away. You can not ignore it and hope it goes away. You can not fight a war with political correctness. Until you inflict enough damage on your enemy, he will not be willing to negotiate for peace. And some may never want to negotiate because they have no interest in peace.
We need to leave Iraq as soon as possible. We have a lot of skill to attack nations. We don’t do so well rebuilding them. Talk to the generals; speed up the timetable; but don’t set an arbitrary date just to make people happy. Stop the “cut and run” or “surrender” talk. We fought and won our war. If we stay and sit, we fight their war, on their turf. And if we are now the catalyst for violence, leaving takes out one more excuse to fight. If a civil war happens when we leave, it will be up to the Iraqi people to deal with. They must be reminded that if any such civil war happens, they will be vulnerable to (another) attack by Iran.
We need to realize that Israel and the United States are linked whether we like it or not. Israel is currently taking the blows and doing the dirty work for us. If there was no Israel, the mid-East would not suddenly become a happy, cheerful place. They would just be able to focus all their energy on ridding the world of the “Great Satan” of the United States of America. Give up land for peace – tried that. Send in UN peacekeepers – they are already there in Lebanon. Tell Lebanon to enforce the border and disarm Hezbollah – that’s what UN resolution 1559 said two years ago. UN resolutions mean nothing when they are consistently ignored in Iraq or Lebanon. Let the French go in as they wish, but be sure to disarm Hezbollah or the French will be in their Vietnam, part II. (Lest anyone forget, they were in Vietnam before the U.S.)
Terrorism is probably the hardest war to fight because the enemy is unseen and potentially among us. We must do what we can and realize that we will never be 100% safe. Secure the borders and ports. Realize that shoe bombs and liquid bombs are yesterday’s news and try to think one step ahead. Give the government agencies and military all needed authority inside our country and out to deal with the problem. It’s very simple, if you attack the tools that the good guys have, the bad guys win. Stay on the offensive to pursue terrorists wherever they are and anyone who supports them. If we put them on the defensive, they will not have time to attack us.
Thomas Jefferson said, “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.” The bottom line in “perpetual war” is we must never lose that vigilance, never lose the will to win, and never hamper those who are able to attack the enemy and defend us. When you vote, when you discuss these matters with your friends, when you listen to the spin of the media, ask yourself if this is a war you are willing to win… and think of the cost if we do not.
Steve Adams was born and raised in Ohio, graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a Computer Science degree in 1988, and subsequently moved to Lexington KY. He has worked at Lexmark International since 1989 and has been a Part Time Local Pastor at St. Luke UMC since 2004. He is married with two children. He is not politically correct, but is politically active. He is a registered Republican, married to a registered Democrat, and running for President of the United States as a write-in candidate on the independent ticket. No joke. You can read all about it on www.PresidentAdams.com or e-mail Steve directly at Steve@PresidentAdams.com.PresidentAdams
