Support the troops...not their CIC

CIC: Commander in Chief. The U.S. Armed Services answers to a civilian; a public official elected (sort of) by the populace. Dubya is our Armed Services CIC. It's one title to which he's officially referred. Another is Slom-king, but I digress.

Soldiers don't have the liberty of questioning their orders from the CIC. They need to take the orders and execute them - period. It's a tough, but rewarding job to be a soldier because you're actively taking a role in providing for the defense of your country...or in Dubya's case: you have to serve your country's political agenda by invading another country. My opinion.

One such selfless individual was Army 2nd Lt. Mark Jennings Daily. He was deployed in Iraq in October 2006. You can check out one of the myriad articles on the full details, but essentially, he was an outstanding soldier: brains, heart, morals, and courage. He was not one of the idiots who embarrassed the U.S. in the Abu Ghraib fiasco. He was killed on a security detail in January 2007.

I salute his convictions about confronting the tyrannical organizations like the Taliban or Saddam's reign in Iraq. He was committed to taking action instead of remaining safely stateside because, to use his words, it was pointless to engage in "...philosophical masturbation that prevent people from ever taking any kind of effective action against men like Saddam Hussein."

He is not the only soldier like this. He will not be the only one to fall in this conflict. I'll say nothing to tarnish his life and the ideals for which he stood.

I will say that as soon as we get more Senators' and Congresspersons' kids dying in Iraq, I'm sure we'll find some ways to bring back these bright jewels back so they can continue to shine in our lives and enrich the world, but not left to fade in our memories. I'm sure we'll find more civilized ways to confront adversity rather than dole out death. Going to war is easy. Working for peace is hard, but I think you'll find that things that are hard to accomplish are usually much more important.

Jenna and Barbara are ready to go into Iraq and fight, George. Why not embed them in the front lines? We'll see how you fare should they pay the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of your administration's goals. Are you ready to earn more political and partisan capital at the cost of your flesh and blood? Is the war in Iraq(n) worth that much? When do we "win the war on terrorism": newsflash - we can't. It's like winning a war on rhetoric. Read: your bullshit, which is at least something we get to moult in 2008. Praise God for term limits.