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1. 

   dtroutma said, 24 days ago

   Warnings Bush and Cheney ignored, John. It is also important to note that “our” memorial recognizes the troops who served, NOT the”war”. It IS the Viet Nam VETERANS Memorial.

   Maybe why so many of us despise fools?

2. 

   Ken Warren said, 24 days ago

   Very powerful, very good cartoon, but dtroutma your comment really drives it home. It is for those who died there, each name is a sacifice that someone has made that we must honor.

   War means death – sometime necessary, sometime not – let’s learn from the past or we just keep repeating the past.

3. 

   fennec said, 24 days ago

   No more to say but “Yes”…to the cartoon and to the comments.

4. 

   omQ R said, 24 days ago

   Yes, excellent point to make, dtroutma. I confess it is not what I had thought whenever I have visited memorials in the past, including this one.

5. 

   cabrobst said, 23 days ago

   Escalate in Afghanistan and it will destroy America.

6. 

   charlie555 said, 23 days ago

   Thousands of Vietnamese are living free lives in this country because of the deaths of these American soldiers. They have raised children and grandchildren, one of whom may emerge as a great leader who will return to Vietnam and help bring freedom to that nation.

   If we leave Iraq and Afghanistan without having given them freedom, the same holds true. Thousands of Iraqis and Afghanis will come to America to experience freedom for themselves, and perhaps one of their children or grandchildren will return to help the land of their fathers’ birth because of the deaths of American soldiers.

   Are the Vietnamese, the Iraqis, the Afghanis, less worthy of the blessings we enjoy? Have others died for our freedom so we could say “no” when God leaves one of these nations crying on our doorstep?

   What makes us deserving of a free ride on the wings of freedom?

   ”As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.”

   God bless our troops.

7. 

   William Wilkerson said, 23 days ago

   WAR IS STUPID

8. 

   Ken Warren said, 23 days ago

   charle555 – Well written, the Vietnamese, as with all of the emigrants who came to America and made us a better country, deserve our gratitude, but the sad truth is that we didn’t give the Vietnamse freedom.

   The people of Iraq, Afghanistan, and for that matter Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, all deserve freedom, but we are not big enough, and powerful enough to drive out the bad guys and give it to them – they may not even accept it if we offered it to them.

   What we can do is let them, and the rest of the world see what freedom is by celebrating and protecting freedoms. One of the many sad things from the last 8 years is that, instead of looking like a freedom loving country America looked like a big bully that threathened anyone who questioned us, and invaded small countries that were no threat to us.

9. 

   Corosive Frog said, 23 days ago

   Freedom is not something someone else can win for you. If it is, chances are you just changed master.

10. 

    fennec said, 22 days ago

    Exactly, CF! I agree.

11. 

    charlie555 said, 22 days ago

    Ken,

    I was trying to say: we didn’t leave Vietnam free and may not leave Iraq and Afghanistan free, but we do give freedom to individual members of these nations because war brings their emigration to America.

    Our soldiers never die in vain.

12. 

    Ken Warren said, 22 days ago

    Let us hope so!

13. 

    charlie555 said, 22 days ago

    CF:

    Like France is our master? One of only 6 foreigners granted honorary citizenship by America is the man representing the country that helped us win our Revolutionary War:

    ”Whereas … the Marquis de Lafayette … voluntarily put forth his own money and risked his life for the freedom of Americans;

    Whereas, during the Revolutionary War, General Lafayette was wounded at the Battle of Brandywine, demonstrating bravery that forever endeared him to the American soldiers;

    Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette secured the help of France to aid the United States’ colonists against Great Britain;

    Whereas, upon his death, both the House of Representatives and the Senate draped their chambers in black as a demonstration of respect and gratitude for his contribution to the independence of the United States;

    Whereas the Marquis de Lafayette gave aid to the United States in her time of need and is forever a symbol of freedom:

    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Marie Joseph
    Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, is proclaimed posthumously to be an honorary citizen of the United States of America.”

    (edited from) Public Law 107–209
    107th Congress

14. 

    dtroutma said, 22 days ago

    The Marquis was indeed a “good American”. The problem is that deGaul and his folks intent on maintaining an empire were NOT our “good friends”. Actually, in WW II, Ho Chi Minh was a better ally than the French. When calling for “backup”, it’s bad to turn and see only their backs.

    HIstory reveals oxymorons, and simple morons.

15. 

    motivemagus said, 22 days ago

    Funny how deGaulle was “the savior of his country.” Nothing about the Americans and British who fought like heck to make it happen. Let alone the fact that the French caved. Many of the Vichy were willing collaborators. The Resistance was the exception, after all.

16. 

    a.c.d said, 22 days ago

    I main issue with Afghanistan is that there would be no purpose for escalation. There is nothing to dominate there. THe only thing we can realistically control is Kabul and the rest is just villages scattered around the country.

    It worked for Iraq because Iraq was a centrally controlled country with a well developed infrastructure with roads, telephones and electricity (not to say that they were in good shape) but there was a basic foundation to work off of.

    Afghanistan on the other hand lacks even the most basic roads, making it virutally impossible to fully secure any land. It would be much wiser to pull out of the country, gain permission to use spy planes and drones to search and destroy enemy targets, along with reconstruction on the village level where people are bought off with infrastucture as long as they pledge to not take up arms. It is simplistic and certainly not fool proof, but would cost a fraction of the current budget, and is civil enough that NATO members would feel comfortable with this kind of work. EU doesnt like war and only wants to focus on rebuilding the country. Let them do it and see what happens. Stop playing into the hands of the insurgents and let them live their lives in peace and give them incentives to not shot our way.

17. 

    HUMPHRIES said, 21 days ago

    Ya know, played cards with a couple of the names on that wall. Wonder who’ll deal next.

18. 

    comYics said, 18 days ago

    “Lets get so excited about going to war, then DEMAND your sympathy” wah wah. Stop signing up for the Military tards.