Tribute to the Military

Friday, December 02, 2005

In Defense of Murtha

While listening to Kirby, who is filling in for Tony Snow's Radio Show from 9am-12 noon EST, Col. Cowan made a point which I believe to be valid. While the Col. does not agree with what Murtha has stated about removing our troops, he does believe Murtha may have hit the edge.

Murtha has been very strong on the Armed Forces, and he is the first VietNam Vet to enter Congress after the war. He has been visiting OUR wounded men at Walter Reid frequently. The Col., who is also a VietNam Vet., stated that even he could not bear to go into Walter Reid due to his memories of war.

The Col. has a son who has served in Afghanistan and Iraq, and he will probably go back again. The Col.'s point is simple. Maybe it just got to him. It happens. It's understandable. Maybe we shouldn't be so harsh until we know the facts.

Do I agree with Murtha? You must not read this site that often! NO! That is about as unequivicle as I can be. Do I know what happens when Murtha visits those men? How could I? I was not in Nam. I don't have the nightmares.

Does that mean he gets a pass? Yes and no. Yes, he deserves my thanks, welcome home, and respect. No, because he is wrong. Being a Soldier is one occupation and being a politician is a completely different one. It is possible to be very good at one without being the best at the other.

Just something that we ought to think about before we string people up. Wouldn't we want the same kind of deference? Something to think about...

4 comments:

Rosemary Welch said...

I understand you point. I'm kind of torn. The arguement the Col. was making sounded clear, but it sounded as if Murtha may have broken.

If that is all it takes to braek him, come to think of it. we are in more trouble than I realized.

You make very good points. My point, before I listened to this Col., was simple. We do not have 536 presidents!

Every word spoken gets printed or aired in al Jazeera. I call that sedition, but then again, with these republicans, I do not expect them to kill a mosquito, let alone stand up for our principles and the president!

Bos'un said...

Murtha is doing a dis-service to the United States Military. I respect his service 30 years ago, but, I do not respect his service today.

He has been bad mouthing since 2003. He is not the hawk that the media has protrayed. He was basically a non descript congressman who was known as a pork barrel democrat for years. He got pushed to the forefront and the Nancy Pelosi group I am sure are now trying to run damage control from him. Murtha should retire. And the military should get the job done. We are not worn out as Murtha alludes. I gotta side with SeniorD about this one.

We need to continue to be fair and balanced and present both sides when we can. What has made Fox News a valuable tool is fair and balanced reporting and presenting both sides. I sometimes am shocked at positions Fox News reporters take and can laugh and cry with them or against the. Rosemary, Thanks for your article. The Murtha thing is not over yet, I am sure. Lets see what the days will bring. Pray for our troops in harms way.

Rosemary Welch said...

I always do pray for our troops!

The way I look at this is he was in the service. I honor him for that.

Politicians are a different animal. If you want to be a politician, you have to take what comes with it.

All I was suggesting was maybe, just maybe, he was reliving his days in Nam. I was thinking he finally cracked up. Does that not come through?

THAT is what I was trying to portray! It is sad. We are not in Nam and btw, we were winning that war when they pulled us out. That is why we have to stop them NOW before they do any more real damage.

Anonymous said...

Rosemary,

This country has the ability to end the war in literally seconds. However, I don't think we need to 'destroy Iraq to save it' to paraphrase a popular meme from Vietnam.

I concur with The Bos'un in his characterization of the 'Dis'-Honorable Murtha as a money grubing career politician who is milking his 15 minutes of fame.

The real question needs to be answered by his constituents. Are they sufficiently embarassed by his behavior to boot him out before he 'retires' or will they keep sucking on the teat of his Federal largesse?

This question actually begs another, how can a individual, elected to represent a Congressional District retire? I didn't realize Congress Critters became Federal Employees upon election.