Raindrops Falling

Raindrops on Step
Originally uploaded by csquard

I've had my space heater on all day drying my toes and Birks while my head has remained damp.

Today is the fifth anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq. President George W. Bush had this to say today: "Five years into this battle, there is an understandable debate over whether the war was worth fighting, whether the fight is worth winning, and whether we can win it. The answers are clear to me: Removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision -- and this is a fight America can and must win."

I won't use this day to comment on our President, the decision to invade, and the aftermath. There have been too many men and women who have died or been physically and mentally harmed to use this as a time to get on a soapbox and answer President Bush's questions.

My summary: we won the war, we didn't understand that we'd invaded a sovereign nation, we've not won the occupation, and the next decade for Iraq, the Middle East, and the US won't be simple or straightforward for anyone involved. That starts with us.

I'd like to ask everyone to take a couple minutes this afternoon and evening just to think about those we know and the nameless, faceless kids from our high school and neighborhoods growing up who would now be in Iraq if this had happened in 1979-1984. Or 1988-1993. Or 1995-2000.