Posted on April 19, 2007
Americans sure love trends. Whatever is “in” or fashionable or mainstream is at the top of our list. But the current fad among much of the American public, as well as many of our elected leaders, is much more disturbing than the resurfacing of popped-collars. There seems to be a trend of defeatism in this country, and not only is it fairly uncharacteristic of this nation, it’s extremely dangerous as well.
This country is known for its resilience and for its ability to make the best of a bad situation. Most recently, we bounced back after 9/11, when we turned one of the largest tragedies in U.S. history into a chance to unify across lines of politics, religion and race. Now we have a chance to demonstrate our resilience with the situation in Iraq. No doubt the circumstances are anything but ideal, but all hope is not lost — and neither is the war. That is, unless we allow that to occur.
Certainly America is facing a difficult struggle against powerful insurgency and terrorism in Iraq (more difficult than originally anticipated). But that is precisely the reason we cannot give up the fight. John McCain superbly stated the reality of the situation during his speech at VMI last Wednesday, saying “…whether or not al Qaeda terrorists were a present danger in Iraq before the war, there is no disputing they are there now, and their leaders recognize Iraq as the main battleground in the war on terror.” Did American presence in Iraq draw terrorists into the country? Perhaps. But American presence in our own nation drew terrorists into America. Extremists hate us whether we’re in Baghdad or Boston.
Once again, McCain hit the nail on the head: “In Iraq today, terrorists have resorted to levels of barbarism that shock the world, and we should not be so naive as to believe their intentions are limited solely to the borders of that country. We Americans are their primary enemy, and we Americans are their ultimate target.”
So do we just give up? Do we just throw our hands in the air, call Bush a lying idiot and foam at the mouth at the thought of the 2008 elections? I suppose we could, and that’s what many citizens and members of Congress have chosen to do. However, such behavior commits an injustice against the Iraqis who desire freedom and democracy, the American soldiers who have dedicated themselves to this cause, and our nation as a whole.
A good percentage of Americans believe we are losing in Iraq, and that implies that someone else is winning. Who is that someone else? The terrorists. Let me say that again: if the US is losing in Iraq, that means the terrorists are winning. If we lose all hope and determination now, we forfeit the game. We allow extremists to create another stronghold from which to attack the United States. When did it become mainstream to accept such an outcome?
It is not the American spirit to surrender a worthy goal. Perhaps this war was not begun legitimately, but we’re not fighting in the past—we’re fighting in the present. And right now there is much at stake in Iraq. Withholding funding from our troops in an attempt to “wind things down” doesn’t support their original mission; it negates their efforts by quitting before their job is completed. Demanding timetables for withdrawal demonstrates half-hearted determination: we’ll hang around for a while, but if the terrorists just won’t give up, oh well. We tried.
Let us not forget that it’s impossible to win anything — whether it’s a war or a basketball game — if you’re expecting to lose. I don’t know when it became fashionable to expect defeat and hope for surrender, but I pray this unflattering American trend doesn’t last long.
Kathryn Manning is a junior history and political science major.
