A Colleague's Son is in this Brogade

With all the yelling to the right and left, few have paid much attention to the men on the ground. As it happens two of my friends are .. well .. rather patriotic . Their homes are conservative enough to have sons who feel drawn patriotically to serve in Iraq. One son is in country now. This article is about his brigade.

G.I.’s in Iraq Ready for Rest, but Hardly at Ease - New York Times: "This is Iraq for the 3,300 soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division’s Second Brigade, and many have come to the unfortunate realization that it now feels more like home than home. No brigade in the Army has spent more days deployed since Sept. 11, 2001, and with only a few weeks to go before ending their 15-month tour, the soldiers here are eager to go. But they are also nervous about what their minds will carry back, given the psychic toll of war day after day and the prospect of additional tours."

What strikes me is the basic goodness of the brigade. I developed the same feeling of respect for the military when I served in the USN. These good people deserve a better leader. Once more, what strikes me about our Republican leaders is, to be blunt, a lack of patriotism. They KNOW that Bush is incompetent. They know that these soldiers are being misused. They MUST have heard the silence when General Petraeus was asked if he knew the long term strategy his country was following or whether the presence in Iraq was making the US safer. General Petraeus is an admirable leader in a horrid position.

Recently, Hillary and Barak have given wise answers to the question of whether US troops would be in Iraq 4 years from now. I won't repeat their comments other than to say these two leaders say that we can not know and will not begin to know until new leadership takes over in 2009 what CAN be done. In its own way, this statement is as sad as the testimony of Ge, Petraeus. How can we wait a year and half while our men suffer? The leading Republicans are worse. They know damn well that Bush's goal, a democratic and friendly Iraq , is a fantasy. Romney, Giuliani, and McCain seem to me to be patriots. If so, they should join their Democratic rivals and begin NOW the debate on a rational Iraq strategy. The men and women in the 10th Mountain Division’s Second Brigade deserve better!