I talk to veterans every single day. They've changed the way I think of War, and this war in particular (not to mention life in general). I never once claimed that any death was "glorious" and "wonderful". I find it amusing how you constantly insult my arguing style, but feel no qualms about putting words in my mouth. The death of anyone is a horrible thing, especially of someone doing a civil service. But we currently have an all volunteer army, which is one of the things that makes it as effective as it is. When kids sign up to be in the armed forces, they are taking the risk that they will see combat and they will die. Its a price they are willing to pay, no matter what their personal reasons are. I don't pity any soldier who dies in combat, I don't blame it on any one but the soldier in question. Pity is reserved for people I don't respect (such as yourself), and every soldier in the US Armed Forces knows the job they are doing and the risks associated with it.

HOWEVER. Whether you agree with the reasons for war or not, if you think Iraqis and the world in general were better off with Saddam in power, you're an even bigger moron than I thought. And if you think that we could pull out now and everything would be A-OK, you're ignorant bordering on mentally handicapped. If we leave Iraq now, it will be a nation ran by terrorists, it will be a haven for them, and it will seriously endanger Americans everywhere. This war isn't a war for the Iraqi people, it isn't a war for oil, it isnt a war for national security, it isnt a war for stability in the middle east... its a war for ALL of those things combined. And though I may wish we'd never gotten involved in the first place, we ARE now and the only logical course is to see it through to completion, or we wont only be hated by the rest of the world as people who start senseless wars, we'll be hated as people who start senseless wars, then bail at the first sign of difficulty.

We are 3 years into this conflict. Compare the numbers of casualties we have to what we had 3 years into Vietnam. This is a difficult fight, but its one that can be won. If only the people of this ignorant fucking nation could realize it.