2008 Woodie Awards
Take A Stand for Freedom
Alumni Column
Garner Simmons '65
Issue date: 9/22/05 Section: Commentary
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"...Attention! College Republicans and Others Who Are Supporting Bush's Policy in Iraq. We Are At War - College Can Wait!... Enlist Today!"
Picking up a copy of the September 2 issue of the Maroon-News, I discovered the above as part of a full-page ad. Apparently conceived and paid for by a group calling itself "Colgate Chickenhawks," this satiric attack is regrettably more cynical than funny. Clearly meant to taunt all who believe that the United States must not withdraw from Iraq before a stable government is in place, it fails to recognize the realities of the world we live in.
Let us leave history to sort out the motives behind the Whitehouse's willingness to commit US troops to remove Saddam Hussein ¬- the fact is we are there. Having already removed a demonstrably corrupt and brutal regime, we are now attempting to provide a climate in which some form of representative democracy can take root in Iraq.
Standing with us are the majority of the Iraqis, who, though they come late to the concept of fighting for one's freedom, are slowly evolving into a formidable force. Standing against us are foreign fighters and former Baathists, led by a Jordanian national named Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Al-Zarqawi pledges allegiance to al Qaida and world terrorism. We are up against brigands who, not unlike the Mafia, use violent actions to rule by fear. They are morally indefensible. Attempting to justify their actions, al-Zarqawi elects to misread the Quran, effectively allowing his followers to target innocent Iraqi civilians, including women and children, for wholesale slaughter.
Irrespective of your feelings towards former Secretary of State Colin Powell, his point is well taken: Having broken Iraq apart, we have a moral obligation to fix it. It is clear that an American withdrawal from Iraq would not stop the violence either there or here. We are dealing with a worldwide terror network whose members cheered the attacks on the World Trade Center, both in 1993 and on 9/11. Do you "Chickenhawks" honestly believe that the United States can withdraw from Iraq before a representative government is in place without being perceived as a weakening global power? Do you believe that the terrorist attacks would cease?
Picking up a copy of the September 2 issue of the Maroon-News, I discovered the above as part of a full-page ad. Apparently conceived and paid for by a group calling itself "Colgate Chickenhawks," this satiric attack is regrettably more cynical than funny. Clearly meant to taunt all who believe that the United States must not withdraw from Iraq before a stable government is in place, it fails to recognize the realities of the world we live in.
Let us leave history to sort out the motives behind the Whitehouse's willingness to commit US troops to remove Saddam Hussein ¬- the fact is we are there. Having already removed a demonstrably corrupt and brutal regime, we are now attempting to provide a climate in which some form of representative democracy can take root in Iraq.
Standing with us are the majority of the Iraqis, who, though they come late to the concept of fighting for one's freedom, are slowly evolving into a formidable force. Standing against us are foreign fighters and former Baathists, led by a Jordanian national named Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Al-Zarqawi pledges allegiance to al Qaida and world terrorism. We are up against brigands who, not unlike the Mafia, use violent actions to rule by fear. They are morally indefensible. Attempting to justify their actions, al-Zarqawi elects to misread the Quran, effectively allowing his followers to target innocent Iraqi civilians, including women and children, for wholesale slaughter.
Irrespective of your feelings towards former Secretary of State Colin Powell, his point is well taken: Having broken Iraq apart, we have a moral obligation to fix it. It is clear that an American withdrawal from Iraq would not stop the violence either there or here. We are dealing with a worldwide terror network whose members cheered the attacks on the World Trade Center, both in 1993 and on 9/11. Do you "Chickenhawks" honestly believe that the United States can withdraw from Iraq before a representative government is in place without being perceived as a weakening global power? Do you believe that the terrorist attacks would cease?