War in Iraq

Dear Mr. Obama...

Gary Gore — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:43:04 -0400

Never let it be said that grassroots, on the ground political activism cannot make a difference!

Joe Cook, who is now getting tagged with the moniker of "Joe the Vet", created this short and simple video as a means to let Barack Obama know exactly how he feels about the statements the Illinois Senator has been making throughout this election campaign about what our fine young men and woman are doing in Iraq.

FoxNews.com has a great synopsis of the story today:

John McCain's most powerful ad -- an open letter to Barack Obama in which an Iraq War veteran criticizes his stand on the war -- didn't cost the Republican candidate a dime.

In "Dear Mr. Obama," army veteran Joe Cook stands in front of the camera and scolds the Democratic presidential candidate for calling the Iraq war a mistake. The two-minute video, which was posted on YouTube, has gotten more than 11 million hits and is the most popular election video on the site.

In the video, Cook tells Obama why he disagrees with his Iraq war policies and says he's supporting McCain. At the end, he walks away from the camera, revealing that he has a prosthetic leg.

Cook, 23, was wounded in Iraq in June and returned home to Wauconda, Ill., to recover. He said he enlisted three years ago because of his family's dedication to serving their country. His parents were both marines, and he has two brothers in the military.

Almost as inspiring as his enlistment in the military and his service to his country in Iraq is his decision to make certain his powerful voice is heard during this crucial political season; the simple act of telling his personal story and standing up to Barack Obama, refusing to allow his anti-military rhetoric stand!

The article goes on to discuss how the project came about:

Video director Michael Brown, who teamed up with Cook to create the video, said he was inspired to make the video because he wanted to share the experiences of soldiers that aren't reported in the media and to lend support to McCain for his position on the war.

"Obama has been squealing since 2002 that Iraq is a mistake," Brown said. "He's using the military as pawns, he has not brought our troops home and he has not done any good. When he says it's a mistake, he's disrespecting our guys."

"I'm not connected with any campaign," Brown said. "In fact, what's interesting is, before this the only thing I've ever done politically is put a sign in my yard."

Brown said he contacted Cook about making the video after meeting him at a parade the town held in Cook's honor in July. He said he thinks the video's effectiveness comes from its simplicity.

"Joe collaborated on the script to ensure its authenticity and truthfulness, which was important," he said. "That's what works so well."

You never know what kind of results can come about from your decision to get up and to get involved in the political process in America! As seen in this story, you just may surprise yourself with how strong your voice is when the decision is made to actually use it!

Both Cook and Brown are surprised by the popularity of the video.

"Obviously we didn't think it was going to get up to 11 million hits," Cook said. "It's a little crazy, but anything I can do to help. I think it's a good way to express what I felt and I thought it was good. I thought Mike Brown did a phenomenal job."

This story should be a great inspiration and example to us all this political season! We can make a difference!

Looks Like Obama May Have One Less Issue to Run On

Gary Gore — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:18:31 -0400

According to a report in The Washington Times, it seems that the United States and Iraq may be getting close to reaching a deal that would call for all U.S. combat troops to leave Iraq by late 2010 and all remaining U.S. forces to leave the country three years later.

Two Iraqi officials say the U.S. and Iraq are close to a deal under which all American combat troops would leave by October 2010 with remaining U.S. forces gone about three years later.

Personally, I'm not sold on the idea that announcing an arbitrary timetable is the best of ideas. It seems that the decision to show our hand in Iraq could cause more problems in the long-term well-being of the country's security, than would be worth any short-term goodwill that could come from the gesture.

Regardless, the article goes on to claim that one of the big conditions in coming to agreement on this seems to hinge on the issue of granting legal immunity to our military servicemen. If that is the case, I don't see the negotiations process having much of a need to last much longer. Except for the purposes of token, political consumption for the Iraqi people, the leadership in Iraq likely has no intentions of holding our servicemen legally accountable for the rare combat situation where there were questions about the rules of engagement.

A timetable is part of a security agreement being negotiated by U.S. and Iraqi officials. Both sides stress the deal is not final and could fall apart over the issue of legal immunity for American troops.

One of the U.S. officials said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had a long and "very difficult" telephone conversation Wednesday in which she pressed the Iraqi leader for more flexibility, particularly on immunity.

The thing that would be most interesting to take note of - if this agreement does actually come to fruition - is Barack Obama's response once this paramount issue of his whole candidacy is no longer at question. It was Iraq that was once the cornerstone issue of the entire presidential race, of course, before the economy and energy became the focus. Once Iraq is further taken out of the public debate, where will he turn? What issues and causes does Barack Obama then move on to?

Would he simply try to run on his desire to raise our taxes? Would he make a stronger effort to push his agenda of checking our tire pressure to solve our national energy crisis? How about a platform calling for The Club steering wheel locks in every car - as part of his national security policy, of course!

As rudderless as Obama's campaign has been thus far, imagine how greatly thrown for a loop they would be if they were tossed this curve ball before November!

Where Does Obama Stand on Iraq?

Gary Gore — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:04:51 -0400

Where does Barack Obama stand on Iraq? Well, we could just ask him. But, make sure you take note of the date, time and wind direction if you do!

This great video submission to Youtube.com reminds me so much of the famous quote by John Adams (often paraphrased by Ronald Reagan, as well):

Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.

John Adams - 'Argument in Defense of the Soldiers in the Boston Massacre Trials,' December 1770

These multiple statements comically presented in the video should be weighed against the comments made in an interview with CBS News' Laura Logan on Sunday's Face the Nation where he stated he has absolutely no doubts about his foreign policy and Commander-in-chief bona fides.

Logan: Do you have any doubts?

Obama: Never.

Well... If after looking at the Youtube video of Obama's swings on Iraq policy, you're just as confused as I am about his positions, I really don't think you're alone. At least Obama is certain of his foreign policy stances... as of 2:30 PM, July 21st, 2008.

My Frustration With Todays Media

theworldthrumyeyes — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 16:36:00 -0400

I am writing this blog out of frustration. I understand that this war is un-like any war our country has ever fought, I truly understand this. I still have frustration with the media, frustration with our government leaders, and frustration with many, not all, but many of my fellow Americans. I was at the YMCA the other day, the television was on and I heard a news reporter say “Congress votes today to end the war with Iraq”… War with Iraq! We are not at war with Iraq!! It’s a little play with words like this that misleads the general public. Government officials are so afraid of being politically correct that they are afraid to tell it how it is. So many people take the nightly news, an article in the local newspaper, or a cover story of a magazine as fact.

Once again, we are not at war WITH Iraq! We are at war in Iraq with insurgents who are Islamic fascists. What are insurgents? An insurgent is somebody who rebels against authority, non-military combatants, they don’t wear a uniform, they don’t have an organized chain of command, and they are rebels, bottom line. Why is this concept so difficult for people to accept?

I have a friend who has served 2 tours in Iraq he was actually in Ramadi, Iraq for both tours, if you are familiar at all with this war you know that Ramadi is one, if not the most dangerous locations in Iraq, he said that the majority of insurgents are not Iraqi. This is how he put it… “If you have 10 insurgents 2 of them are from Iraq, 2 are from Iran, 2 are from Palestine, 1 is from Syria, 1 is from Pakistan, 1 is from Saudi Arabia, and 1 is from Indonesia. Only 2 out of 10 insurgents are Iraqi.” I was amazed that this wasn’t being reported. I decided to do my own research and I contacted the New York Times and well I was told that they did report this last year on page 26, in a 1 paragraph long article , and buried in the paper but it was printed. Did you hear about it?

Our government officials are fighting a polite war, they are so afraid of criticism, from our media. Those who do speak out only get media attention if what they are saying fits into the media’s agenda. Why else would Cindy Sheehan get more media attention than Mark Crowley? They both lost a child in this war. Cindy Sheehan is willing to critcize the war efforts and Mr. Crowley supports the war against Islamic fascists. However Cindy’s name is the only name that you recognize. That is just one example of the mainstream media’s political agenda.

I want my fellow Americans to do their own research; don’t take the news at face value. Realize that there is a real threat out there against our way of life. Do you realize that there are Muslims extremists out there… NOT ALL Muslims… but Muslim extremists that want to kill all infidels. In the Quran (the Muslim bible) it clearly states that a non-believer of Islam is an Infidel and all infidels should and must be killed. That’s me and most of you. According to the Quran, killing an Infidel is the only guaranteed way to assure ones place in heaven. (So much for a religion of love.) We have Muslim extremists here in our wonderful country, we have cells of terrorist organizations and they must be identified!

I hear celebrities defending Iran and terrorists everyday… celebrities like Rosie O’Donnell who constantly put our government down and put Islamic fascists on pedestals, doesn’t she realize that being a gay woman she would be one of the first “Infidels” that would be killed because of her sexual orientation. I don’t understand the ignorance and irresponsibility that our celebrities are showing.

I understand that this sounds extreme, I myself didn’t believe that our way of life was under attack, but the more I research the more I realize how truly blessed we are to live in this great country, but far too many of us take our freedom, our safety, and our way of life for granted. I am not easily hood-winked I question everything, I always have and I was scared to death for a long time, I am still frightened but speaking out and causing awareness and researching is the way that I deal with it, along with lots of prayer, because I can.

Please do your own research, realize that we as westerners are under attack and we must stand up and fight for our freedom. We can not leave Iraq; we must save this country from its neighbors. Our livelihood depends on it .I know how easy it is to get caught up in daily life but Jahadists will succeed if democracy doesn’t.

Believe what you will, I am just pleading with you just do a little research on your own, don’t be a kool-aid-drinker and don’t believe that everything that the mainstream media says is fact; because it’s not. A great man once said "with freedom comes responsibility." We have the responsibility as Americans to seek out the truth. Peace, love and above all God bless!