Monday, November 12, 2007

A fallen hero

By Libby

I don't really remember the media frenzy the Marlboro Marine photo originally inspired but reading about the ultimate fate of James Blake Miller saddened and disturbed me this morning. It seems emblematic of what lies at the core of my anger against people who give lip service to 'supporting the troops' while ignoring the disastrous personal effects of their service in this misbegotten occupation they relentlessly cheer on.

I was finding it difficult to form a coherent summation in response but fortunately Steve Audio posting at Corrente wasn't suffering from the same writer's block and articulated my uncomfortable thoughts well. The money quote:

That is the price many pay. Do the Right-wingers who yearn for “victory in Mesopotamia” care about Miller? Do the administration hacks who sold us this debacle? Do the National Review writers who still prattle on about “exporting democracy”?

Absolutely not. They will claim it’s all worth it. It’s for the greater good, for whatever tortured ideological fever-dream they wake to every day. But their dreams are nothing compared to James Blake Miller’s. He has lived your dream, people. You own him and his story, every second of it. His crisis of psyche is yours.

Anyone who still thinks it's worth spending one more day of our troops'blood and our national treasure in this ill-fated occupation, should read the whole post.

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