Why Liberals Hate War
I’m an excellent multitasker, and often times I do some of my best thinking when I’m doing four things at once. Such was the case the other day at work, the day of the Iraqi elections. Like everyone else I had been reading the news reports, and also the naysaying coming from the Democrats. I was amazed at how a party could be so unified in its contempt for George W. Bush that they could work feverishly to downplay one of the most significant accomplishments of any president since the collapse of the Soviet Union. I mean, politics is politics, and the elections are coming up next year, but this is different. What could their motivation be? And then it hit me.
The last major war the United States was involved in was Vietnam. The modern Democratic Party leadership all came of age during that war, as did most of the editorial staff in the manistream media. It wasn’t just a defining moment in the modern American left, it was the defining moment, the prism through which the left would view the world from that moment on. Vietnam was justification for every pacifist tendency that every liberal has ever had. When they said that war didn’t solve anything, they could point to Vietnam. When they wanted to show the consequences of war, they could point to Vietnam. When they wanted to show the failure of military force as a tool for political change, they could point to Vietnam. It was the last major war this country was ever involved in. Sure we’ve had military operations, from Grenada to the Gulf War to the Balkans, but Vietnam our last big one, and it was a war we ended up losing. Vietnam has been their de facto answer for everything for the past 30 years.
Iraq threatens their entire belief system.
Look at it from their point of view. We now face an enemy such as this country has never faced before. There have been and will continue to be legitimate differences of opinion on how to prosecute that war. Shortly after 9/11, when the United States went into Afghanistan, the left immediately hauled out all their old Vietnam-era anti-war slogans and rhetoric. And why not? The last big war was a loss in large part due to the political activism of the American left. These were tried-and-true methods of getting out the left-wing message. Then, when the controversial decision was made to go into Iraq, the anti-war left was at a fever pitch. How many stickers on how many cars have we seen the last few years saying “War is NOT the answer!” Think about that for a minute. It doesn’t say that this particular war is not the answer in this particular instance, it makes a blanket condemnation of war under any circumstances. This position is only tenable because our last full-scale military conflict, Vietnam, was a loser. 58,000 Americans lost their lives for nothing, which they feel is a strong argument towards their proposition that war doesn’t solve anything. The Korean war was a draw, and WWII was a winner, but only our grandparents and great grandparents were around to experience that one. Vietnam is all the left has in their corner.
Let’s assume that this election is, indeed, a crossroads for Iraq. That from here on, with a constitution of their own design an a government of their own choosing, and a military capable of defending that government and the Iraqi people from Islamist forces, Iraq will surely grow bigger and stronger and more independent. In short, from the ruin of an authoritarian regime comes the font of democracy, and a new nation is born. I mean, think about this for a second. If someone had come to you in the mid 1990s and says that a decade from now there was going to be a functioning democracy in the Middle East, you would have laughed in their face. Not only a democracy, mind you, but an Arab democracy comprising three main ethnic and religious groups. One where women have the right of the vote. It sounds like a dream, doesn’t it? What an amazing achievement.
The Democrats can see the writing on the wall. They know that if we stick around and maintain our will there is no way we can lose this conflict. We shall prevail! And that idea is terrifying to the Democrats and the rest of the American left. Why? Because it shows that war CAN solve problems. That with our overwhelming technical skill we can invade and secure just about any other country in the world, and not only that, but we can get a democratically elected government in place within just a few years.
War never solved anything? My fat ass it didn’t. In the last four years two wars have liberated two countries, and we are in the process of getting those countries on their way to prosperity and self-sufficience. In terms of the cost of life, especially when you look at the numbers for previous wars, we have suffered quite a low number. While the death of any man or woman is tragic, they should be honored to the fullest for their sacrifice to this nation, and to the people of Iraq.
The Democrats and the left cannot have this. The US has been in the “lose” column for so long now, That’s been one of their main sources of political strength. They must prevent, at all costs, the US from getting to a point where this was can be chalked up as a win. If we get a win then we negate the rallying cry of Vietnam. The next time a war is proposed and someone mentions Vietnam, we can point to Iraq as an example of just how many legitimate problems war can solve. Conversely, if they can get Iraq declared a loss, then they’ll have a patten. “We’re two for two!” So the next time someone proposes military force, the lefties will get to pull out Iraq and Vietnam. Their message will get new life breathed into it for the next forty years.
This is why they will stop at nothing to prevent President Bush from winning this war. A win in Iraq means that their whole “War Solves Nothing” argument becomes virtually worthless, a relic of a bygone era. And that terrifies them.
Iraq must be a loss at all costs. The future of left-wing political activism is at stake
