Winds of change

Well its official - congress is heading for change in leadership and composition

The new members will no doubt bring in their idealist concepts and better plan for making all American's happy. A lot of placation was in the offering in the election slogans... seemingly overnight everyone wants us out of Iraq.

The sad thing is that our press has convinced us that we can't possibly win in Iraq. Somehow the 2800 lives lost were all the result of a deception at the executive level without American consent. Well, thats not entirely honest.

When I went to Iraq to serve in 2004 - 2005, there was an honest desire to serve my country, do my duty and succeed in the plan to change the country and in time the region. I was there to see the true excitement in the Iraqi citizen's eyes when they voted - we could go nowhere without seeing the purple thumbs waving. We were making a difference, but the press was already downplaying our success.

Now the accepted attitude visible in election results, voiced with increased furvor is that we must exit or find a way out of the war in Iraq.

Sure, everything got complicated with the Civil Strife. It is a slow process evident in the Iraqi government assumption of security in their own country. There is a continued regrettable loss of life from other patriots that are serving in Iraq today. Reports of ethnic strife get more press life than ever before as a testament to a failed democracy.

I go on record now as stating - we do need to move the Iraqis to increase their gait toward the responsible government necessary for a fractured country, but we can't do that from this shore. We must find effective tools to aid these new legislators in Iraq to do what is best in their country just as we expect of our own freshman legislators. We don't do it here by leaving our congressmen on uncontrolled warzone streets with no assistance. We have a sound law and order structure established to make it easy for transition in the US.

If our new congressional leaders consider the task at hand and focus effective efforts at transitioning the country of Iraq rather than abandoning the new Iraqi legislators our soldier's and countries sacrifice will amount to something we will be proud of.