Thank you for clarifying, and I think you've touched on a point I've been made aware of by being where I am now. Before I left, there were a lot of folks that thought we should just nuke the entire middle east and get rid of all the rotten apples. At the time, it seemed like an expedient solution to an obvious problem that has since gotten worse, which is that there are a lot of idiots over here who, for one reason or another, believe that killing innocent people is a perfectly acceptable act. I say a lot of people, but I do not imply by any measure that they are the majority. In fact, they are proportionately a small minority using the most extreme methods available to try and oppress a nation of decent, honest, loving people. That there faith differs from ours does not matter so much, after all, that is the basis upon which our country was created. That they are being slaughtered wholesale without the means to combat these thugs (over 25,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed since the start of the war, most by terrorist activity) is gut wrenching. That these people are dying because they are cooperating with us and thus keeping the majority of the conflict from reaching Americans, especially back home, ought to be motivation enough for all of us "Yanks" to get behind them and support them through the thick and thin of it all. Right or wrong, we brought this confrontation to their doorsteps, and we've made some serious mistakes that have cost these people dearly. We can correct some of the mistakes, and help make their sacrifices worthwhile, but only if we understand these people, and accept them as a nation that deserves our support. We created a vacuum here that the terrorists filled, and now we have to deal with that, together, or this mess will eventually end up in our backyards. Anyone who doesn't think that possible needs to spend a day across the border from Nogales.

I'm telling you, regardless of what you think our government is here in Iraq for, we need to make this place a big success or our children will pay a heavy price for our reluctance.

So when someone generalizes about some other group, well, you can understand my sensitivity. You can't really judge someone unless you know them. I didn't used to think that way, but I do now.

I am going to have to post something more along these lines this morning. I am feeling just too darned patriotic.