Rick, we are in Iraq for the same reasons Bill Clinton cited in 1996, Al Gore cited in 1996 and 1998, and what most people were thinking since 1992! And in wars, people die. I'm in the Navy, and most of my involvement is way back in the rear, but then so was the USS Cole, and we weren't even at "war" then. We weren't at war when Khobar Towers was bombed. We weren't at war when we had two embassies blown up in one day. We weren't even at war when terrorists crashed four airliners into three buildings, and a field. But we finally decided to take those responsible and their fellow travelers to task! Letting Saddam ride, even though he never complied fully with the agreement that brought about the cease fire destroyed our credibility and made any threat of retribution seem hollow. This emboldened our enemies to take greater and greater liberties with our safety and our freedoms. Now the time has come, as Yamamoto once stated for the "Sleeping giant to wake"! I am sorry for the loss of not only this young man, but for all my brothers in arms who have fallen. I think that for anyone to try to make a political power play to try and force the premature end to what is being done, would cause his death, and the other 524 Mr. Breslin mentions to have died totally in vain. I would take that as a personal insult.
