war was a mistake

Re: Today's debate ...war was a mistake
USA TODAY November 16, 2005

War in Iraq and against terror a mistake?

It is disappointing to see how USA TODAY caved-in to the propaganda machine of the left-leaning news media, by joining the partisan political dispute undermining the efforts in Iraq and the war against terror. The reckless mindset of the media blatantly caters to Bush haters, anti-war activists, and the partisan hammering of Democrats.

The only reason President Bush fell in the polls was because of the relentless negative reporting the American people read and see in the press and entertainment establishment... demonizing the Bush administration. Repeatedly one-sided and distorted often enough, it seems like the truth. Unfotrunately, most people haven't time or inclination to look behind the propaganda for the whole truth, simply because they are too busy struggling with their own lives.

Terrorists thrive on our political vulnerabilities and our short attention span. Their attacks on us and our interests leading to 9/11 have been paced that way. Beating us in Iraq is their current goal and they can keep it up because they don't have anything else to do. What they want is to control Middle East oil so they can ruin our economy and destroy our way of life. Lest we forget, Saddam Hussein's lust for power focused taking over all of his oil-rich neighbors by whatever means necessary.

The truth is, if we buy the mistake deal, pull out of Iraq and abandon the Iraqi people, the country will surely fall into a bloody civil war and into the hands of fanatical powers... worse than Saddam Hussein, and under the influence of Iran. The threat to other oil-producing nations in the region would grow and it would completely destabilize Middle East. Surely, the consequences would be the rise of weapons of mass destruction and the collapse of our economy.

Clearly, our course of action is exactly what we are doing. Freedom and democracy for Iraq. We must maintain our presence and influence to stabilize the region and ensure the peaceful flow of oil. We must go after terrorists wherever they are and prevent them from obtaining and using weapons of mass destruction. Keeping the battlefront there instead of here will surely result in reasonable people throughout the region rejecting them for who and what they are. Murderous fanatics who don't care who they kill.

Less dependency on foreign oil and alternative forms of energy will come in time. Meanwhile, we will depend heavily on oil imports for the foreseeable future. Certainly, we can't afford to cut off our nose to spite our face.

Daniel B. Jeffs, founder
DDC