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I am a soldier who is deployed overseas, and I would like to thank the people who have put so much time and effort into the Hometown Proud calender. I can safely speak on behalf of my fellow soldiers when I say that it is quite appreciated. I'd [also] like to comment on the current situation in Iraq. Everyone is aware that David Kay's report indicated that stockpiles of WMD have not yet been found in Iraq. Few people seem to be aware that the very same report showed that the WMD programs were in place, and that David Kay said that he felt they might have been even more dangerous then we originally thought.
I will be the first to celebrate if future investigations prove that all of Saddam's secret labs were dedicated to finding the cure to cancer, but for some reason, I doubt that will happen. Saddam was a dangerous man. We are all better off with him behind bars. I have personally seen some of the atrocities he committed on his own people. I don't think that there is very much that could convince me that we are doing the wrong thing in Iraq.
Last year at this time, if an Iraqi spoke openly about their government, they would have their tongue cut out, or worse. This year, they are publicly gathering to debate the future of their country. If you could be here to feel the rush of excitement, and the joy for freedom that a culture feels when it is pulled out from the oppression of a brutal madman, then you might understand how important this is. Things probably won't go perfectly in Iraq. They definitely live in a dangerous neighborhood. But to the people here, the important thing is that they have a chance. It's a chance that they never really expected to get, and only hoped for in their wildest dreams.
Trust me when I say that witnessing the realization of that chance is better then any Fourth of July barbecue I have ever been at back in the States.
SPC Dan Franck
Posted by Ted at February 13, 2004 11:30 AM