« "If you really want to fight al Qaeda, you stay in Iraq." | Main | Duty, Honor, Country »
May 27, 2007
John Edwards - Inappropriate Actions for Memorial Day
Of the three front runners for the Democratic party's nomination for president, there are two I can tolerate, and one I cannot.
I like Barak Obama. He seems to be a genuinely nice guy and decent fellow. He's the type of person I can imagine going out for a beer with. If we talked about politics we'd disagree about virtually everything, but it'd be a conversation without acrimony. He might turn out to be an empty suit policy wise, but I can very much understand why people are attracted to him.
Hillary is someone I could never imagine socializing with. Any conversation with her would be stilted and awkward. Her domestic policy is just about socialist. I don't care for her much at all, in fact. But of all the Democrats she is the one who would do the best job fighting the jihadists. I do think that if Iran got seriously out of line she'd have no problem bombing them back to the stone age. I want our enemies to fear our president, and she may well fit that bill.
The final front runner is John Edwards, and at this point I have nothing but contempt for him.
John Edwards, you see, wants his followers to use this Memorial Day to protest the war in Iraq.
Really.
Here he is, if you can stand to watch it
(h/t NRO
He's got this absurdity posted on a website of his called Support the troops. End the War. I kid you not. Here's their message Each of us has a responsibility to act, a duty to our troops and to each other. Support the troops. End the war.This Memorial Day weekend, we will all take responsibility for the country we love and the men and women who protect it. We will volunteer, we will pray, and we will speak out. In the days leading up to Memorial Day, we will take action to support our troops, end the war, and bring them home to the heroes' welcome they deserve. And on Memorial Day, we will honor and remember all those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.
Farther down, under the heading "Reclaiming Patriotism", they list "10 Things You Can Do Over Memorial Weekend to Support the Troops and End the War" Among them is this
Gather in public. On Memorial Day weekend, get your friends, kids, co-workers, neighbors, aunts, uncles, grandfathers, grandmothers, and anyone and everyone you know together to publicly support the troops and end the war. If you hold an event on Memorial Day itself, please make sure that everyone you gather knows it is a day for honoring the fallen only. Be sure to check with your local authority for any permits you need for public gatherings. Contact local media to publicize your event. Before you get started, please take a moment of silence to honor the fallen. And during your event, make sure you conduct yourself respectfully—both for those serving in Iraq and the memory of the brave servicemen and women that Memorial Day honors.
If this isn't a recipe for an anti-war protest I don't know what is.
There are appropriate and inappropriate ways to observe Memorial Day. There are many things one might do that are appropriate; gather with friends and family, visit a military cemetary, and attend a local memorial service come to mind.
What would be inappropriate would be to use a day meant to honor military veterans as a day to stage a war protest. Lie and call it a "vigil", "raising awareness", or whatever you want, but a war protest is a war protest, and it is flat out wrong to hold one on Memorial Day.
For John Edwards to encourage war protests on Memorial Day is disgraceful.
Likewise, it is also inappropriate to hold a war protest outside of a military hospital (more here).
Tomorrow I'll have something posted here that's much more appropriate for Memorial Day.
Finally, in case this whole thing doesn't creep you out about Edwards, this story will.
Posted by Tom at May 27, 2007 8:06 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.theredhunter.com/mt/refer.cgi/906
