Of Vietnam and Iraqi Wars

It was the protests against the Vietnam War that brought down the Democrats during the 1968 election, at which time Richard Nixon began the pull out of American troops.

It will be the silent protests against the occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan, misnamed the War on Terrorism, that will bring down the Republicans in 2008, at which time a Democrat president will begin the pull out of American troops, or reshuffle their assignments.

Come January 2009, President George W. Bush could very easily have been vacating the White House with a true legacy for American history books.

Once Sadam Hussein had been ousted and executed, and weapons of mass destruction were proven non-existent, a quick victory exit might have lead to committed support from Congress to address the broader goal of addressing worldwide terrorism. Perhaps events would have garnered involvement from the United Nations and NATO and we would not be alone in this Iraqi mess.

That date of triumph should have been May 1, 2003, when President Bush proclaimed "Mission Accomplished" aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. In honor of President Lincoln's legacy, it should have been a day to celebrate the "emancipation of the Iraqi people". Bush could have had a legacy of his own if only he had a mind to lay claim to the success of a conflict that was accomplished with 41 days (March 19 - May 1, 2003) compared to the 193-days (August 2, 1990 - March 3, 1991) it had taken Bush, Sr. to bring Desert Storm to an end.

Bush was too quick and too fast to do more than what could be accomplished by one nation. Today, most Americans feel he won’t be out of the Oval Office soon enough.

Regardless which political party takes residency in the Oval Office in January 2009, hopefully we will shortly see our borders secured and there will be bipartisan resolve on illegal immigration. At that point, we may also have the opportunity to regain respect from the world community, and the United Nations and NATO will be in alliance with the United States to address global terrorism. The icing on the cake (or the icecap in the Arctic Circle) would find the United States a committed member to resolve global warming without getting all heated up about it.

PARCEL POST 2008 @ www.parcelpost08.blogspot.com
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