Iran / Afghanistan??? When did we go to war with Iran?

EDITOR’S NOTE: Oops, sorry … not until the next neo-con president.

If it makes a difference, that was IraQ, not IraN.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Yes it does, which is why we corrected it.

Unfortunately, we also corrected it in anticipation of some future neo-con administration’s “adventure” into Iran for which the casualty count will need to be separately identified.

Editor, I’m surprised that you inserted two partisan comments into a Memorial Day post.

Let’s not forget that the war in Iraq was bipartisan, not neo-con. Forty percent of Democratic Representatives and 58% of Democratic Senators voted for the resolution. See here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_Resolution

EDITOR’S NOTE: They weren’t inserted into the post, they were responses to comments.

The neo-cons conceived of the Iraq War, and the vast majority of the sheep in Congress – including 40% of the Dem. reps and 58% of the Dem sens. – went along with it. Almost as bad as that abortion ridiculously named The Patriot Act.

PD:

This is one of those moments I have to agree with you PD. In fact this is one of those very rare moments where it is not even a nuanced agreement, rather a full throated stand and cheer type agreement!! Your comments about the neo-cons are spot on.

All I can add is that the best way to pay tribute to those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice, as well as living veterans and current military, is to be damn sure that we have goals, plans and an end game for any war we go into. Put another way, we do not honor those who serve by putting today’s soldiers in harms way for “questionable” reasons.

Folks, it’s a tribute to Memorial Day with the facts that PD posted. Put differences and/or mistaken posts aside and memorialize our fallen and pray for those active protecting our freedom.

EDITOR’S NOTE: “I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity.” Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana

Thanks for the quote from Ike. He was the one who accurately coined the phrase, “military-industrial complex” for the money interests that keep wars so damn profitable for so few, despite the brutality, futility and stupidity for the vast majority. Last year at this time you rebuked me for bringing up what we owe injured vets; saying that was a subject for Veterans’ Day. Now that recent headlines have “revealed” what some of us always knew since Vietnam, that more than a few of the memorialized warriors have died stateside for lack of promised care, perhaps we can go there. If we want to make this a meaningful holiday, not just a BBQ on a Monday, FUND VETERANS’ SERVICES 150% AS THEY DID THEIR SERVICE TO US.

EDITOR’S NOTE: If this were a military operation you’d be guilty of “mission creep.” The dead are the dead, whether from a grenade in the field or an infection at a VA hospital due to inadequate care. And it’s the dead who are what Memorial Day is about.

If you want to use a particular day to rally support for our LIVING veterans, try…wait for it…VETERANS DAY, Tuesday, November 11, 2014.

Or, better yet, make improving the lives and services provided to veterans better EVERY DAY. But there’s no need to fund anything 150% when 100% will do just fine so long as it is dependable and done right.

Viva mission creep. (No, not you.) It’s how we roll. I’m just saying that it would be nice if Memorial Day didn’t have to memorialize those who made it home, only to suffer the ultimate loss from our nation’s indifference. Remember,values and funding are connected. What you fund IS what you value.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Just like “priorities.” And neither a Dem-controlled Senate nor a Rep-controlled House have 100% vet benefit funding as one of them.