A Word and a Quote: Diapason; Anger

Diapason (Dyuh-PAY-zon) - noun
-A full, rich outpouring of sound.

I like this word. It is fun to say, and makes me think of the chills you would get in an old cathedral when the choir and accompaniment bring your favorite song home. There are some potential metaphors there that could transform an entire paragraph.

The original Latin/Greek means "through all the notes". Technically, the original meaning came from Pythagoras' work applied to music, and the "dia" comes from tuning Pythagorean intervals using an interval of 2:1 to get diapason, and then breaking it down from there to fifths, etc. So the diapason would be like hitting every string on a tuned guitar.


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“Anger is like gasoline. If you spray it around and somebody lights a match, you've got an inferno. [But] if we can put our anger inside an engine, it can drive us forward.”
–Scilla Elworthy

This quote is great for me because I tend to react with anger first, and find myself frustrated more than the people around me (which tends to make me even more frustrated and angry.) My anger isn't very dangerous because I have it under control, but it is my natural state. I keep an eye on it because I know it could easily get out of control and then would be hard to reign in.

However, I also see controlled anger as beneficial. Emotional investment in a problem or idea tends to help us manufacture the energy, creativity, and endurance required to solve a problem or accomplish a great achievement. My frustration in the Marine Corps at obstacles or at periods of high stress could have turned into dejected surrender but instead I used it to push through and conquer the impossible. While working for my undergrad and my MBA, I was often driven by anger at leaders who I felt were ignorant and should be working for me. I knew I could never get to their level without solid credentials that begin with a degree.

My kids make me angry, and that is where the fine tuning is crucial. If I didn't feel the anger, then I may not care enough to keep coaching them on being better people. Of course, with kids almost any amount of anger expressed can be devastating. So I have to keep coaching them and never give up, but I can't relate to them in the same way that my drill instructors related to me. At least not yet... :)

There is a bumper sticker that says "If you aren't angry, you aren't paying attention." It has been applied politically to both the left and right wings, as if their perspective should be obvious to everyone. This quote reminds me that they're both right, but add the caution that could prevent either side from diving off the deep end. Anger can empower us, and sometimes people choose not to be angry out of laziness or fear. Anger can get out of hand, cloud our judgement, and lead good people to make bad decisions.

You can layer your emotions and motivations by focusing more on some and less on others. Emotions like anger are hard to ignore and need to be factored in even if they seem undesirable, but you can limit their affect on your thinking and actions by focusing more on another emotion. For example, when my kids do something that they know is wrong, my immediate reaction is anger. But at all times, I feel love, pride, nostalgia, and other emotions. I let those positive actions be the filter and funnel that my anger has to pass through.

The end result is a spike in blood pressure, a stern look, a mental desire to impart a lesson, and carefully measured words that express disappointment, a clear expectation, and a loving reminder that I know they will one day may better decisions. I have good kids who commit very minor offenses (annoying the sibling, leaving messes, and playing games when they're supposed to be folding laundry) and voluntarily hug me when I least expect it, so it seems to be a system that works.

As we approach November 7th in a election year, I find politics to be on my mind continuously. But this year, I am more concerned with how to bring the two sides closer together rather than the validity of my own convictions. I think that what makes the Tea Party so nutty is the fact that they long ago let anger cloud their judgement, and that makes rational conversations difficult. However, their anger also inspired like-minded individuals and enables them to keep fighting for their convictions with vigor and tenacity. I think the only solution is to tap into the anger of the middle, but we need to find a stronger and more attractive emotion than anger which will sway the less nutty members of the right and will contain an engine within which to contain that anger and turn it into fuel (and keep it away from the steering wheel.) I know there are enough people who love this country and are angry at both the domestic and foreign extremists who threaten this country. If we can find that right mix of emotional appeal, it would allow me to use the diapason metaphor I am searching for in this sentence.

WikiLeaks and the Accused Leaker

Bradley Manning is the U.S. Army private who is accused of leaking information to the website Wikileaks. I have been sorting out my feelings on the Wikileaks controversy, torn between a desire for openness and freedom versus a desire for America's Government to be able to operate securely and effectively. I have quickly begun to lean in favor of prosecuting the guilty and shutting down Wikileaks. Considering the story of Bradley Manning led me in this direction.

First of all, I will concede that I do not know Manning and can not make any judgements about him. With that assumption, I can still justify an angry sense of ethical indignation against anyone who would take classified information and release it to total strangers. What he did was steal, and he stole something that belongs to every American, despite the fact that few of us can access it. Whomever revealed this information, they did so as a selfish act. They had no right to make that decision on their own, when so many other Americans were laboring tirelessly to secure that information and add value to it. This is a democracy where we make decisions through group consensus; the leaker of this information acted like a dictator when he made this decision without consulting a larger group of stakeholders.

Now what if Manning is guilty as charged? Assuming that most of what is written about him is true, Manning had a frustrating childhood, is socially awkward, and is gay. That leads me to believe that he is less a martyr for the cause, and more of an unstable personality using this opportunity to lash out at a world that never met his desires to belong and be accepted. If the stories of Manning's personal life are true, then I sympathize with him and wish that humans put a higher value on treating each other with mutual respect. However, that does not justify his actions anymore than it justified Jeffery Dahmer or Timothy McVeigh.

Leaking these videos and documents puts lives at risk, damages the reputation of a great nation, and diminishes or even nullifies the efforts of hundreds of dedicated professionals working for the causes of freedom and American interests. If he had a document that exposed a blatant act such as those that occurred at My Lai or Abu Graib, then this would be a very different conversation. In the case of Wikileaks, we just have a dump of data, the contents of which are unknown and the ramifications unconsidered. That is more than just unethical. That is treasonous.

The Marines are Winning in Iraq (and so is everyone else).

In October, 1992, I began my training as a United States Marine at Marine Recruit Depot San Diego, California. I then attended Marine Combat Training and Rifleman training at the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton, California. I then reported to Marine Corps Base Hawaii (then Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station) for service as an infantry grunt in 2 platoon, India Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines, 3rd Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Expeditionary Brigade.

From October, 1992 to October, 1996 I was wholly devoted to war. I studied how to kill as a team and how to kill as an individual. I studied how to kill with indirect fire, volume of fire, controlled bursts, and single shots. I studied the use of aircraft, motorized vehicles, artillery, mortar, missiles, heavy arms, and small arms. I studied how to treat myself and others who have been hit with conventional, nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. We learned how to control civilians, prisoners, and other uniformed services, how to respond to terrorist incidents, how to operate in snow, jungle, desert, urban terrain, and on the open sea.

It was a four-year, advanced education that I will never use. We came awfully close, but from 1992 to 1996 we were never called on by our nation to respond to a combat situation. I was prepared and enthusiastic about war, but I am also thankful I never had to go.

I miss the Marine Corps and a part of me wishes I was in Iraq. I also enjoy my civilian freedoms and love coming home to my family every day. It is a minor, inner turmoil for me. I have my ways of supporting my Marines in Iraq. One way is by following the 3rd Marine Regimental units as they rotate in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Each Battalion has its own web page. On this page, the Commanding Officers communicate important information monthly to the families, they post photos of smiling Marines in theatre, they celebrate promotions and awards, and they post a memorial to the Marines who have fallen in service to their country.

This last item is something that affects me the most. As the units begin to lose men, I feel it--even though they are all total strangers. Each one of these guys look like guys I served with, or they look like me. They are fathers, sons, boyfriends, husbands, friends, bunkmates, and drinking-buddies.

It used to be that while a battalion was in Iraq, they would update their site every month with all of the above, but most notably with several fallen Marines. I always winced when I clicked on the link for Fallen Marines every month, but I had to do it. It reminded me of who the real heroes in this world are, and they deserve to be remembered by as many people as possible. The people of Iraq should be erecting a gold statue to each and every American who falls in their country.

Lately, I wince when I click on the links and I am usually pleasantly surprised to find that the roster of fallen Marines has not grown. I have also noticed that the daily news is not continuously reporting that a roadside bomb or sniper killed another soldier, sailor, or Marine. It seems the tide has turned in Iraq.

I want to make sure that this is said more often. Even though the news is not full of death tolls, it is still very negative about Iraq. There seems to be a lot of people who want Iraq and Vietnam to be synonymous. They are not; Iraq and Vietnam have huge differences between them. The biggest difference is that we have already won in Iraq, now we are just cleaning up. Victory was never so clear in Vietnam.

Last night, I finally had an evening to be a vegetable for a while; life has been incredibly busy lately. I intended to sit down and laugh at something mindless; I selected NBC's The Office from the menu. It was preempted by a message from President George W. Bush. The one time I have to relax, and my opportunity is thwarted by a president with whom I have several issues and disappointments.

It isn't often that our President broadcasts live so I listened rather than raged. I heard him say that we are winning, that the situation is improving, that the commanders have recommendations that he is following, and that he is interested in limiting our role, rather than maintaining or expanding our presence.

That matches up with my independent observation. It was sickening to see how our men and women were piling up for several years. It is motivating and encouraging to see that we now have the upper hand. My only concern now is whether the Iraqis can keep the upper hand as we send Americans home.

I think many people are not convinced that we are winning in Iraq. I think most of these people are unwilling to believe that we are capable of winning. These people are either hung up on memories of Vietnam, hung up on their hatred of Bush, or are simply dedicated to pacifism. All three states are understandable, but none of them are based on reality.

President Bush pointed out how we are winning in Anbar province. I had noticed that too. Anbar is the largest and most difficult area to control; however, through focus and intelligent strategy, our military heroes are accomplishing the impossible mission. The Shiites and Sunnis may not be skipping through the streets holding hands, but at least the killing has been curbed and the cooperation with Americans and Iraqis has become safer and more common. They are progressing and reaping the benefits.

Has anyone heard of Fallujah? The first time I remember hearing of Fallujah was when several civilian contractors took a wrong turn going through Fallujah. They were ambushed, burned, shot, beaten, dragged, and hung from a bridge. The next time I heard of it was when we warned every civilian to leave the town and then swept through with several units, including the Marine units 1/3 and 3/5, of whom I have knowledge, history, and interest in.

I have read a little bit about Fallujah from numerous sources since then. By all accounts, Fallujah was always known as a place for crazies, even among Iraqis. If we were going to have trouble anywhere in Iraq, Fallujah would be the first place for it. It was expected that we would never have an easy time in Fallujah.

Recently, my battalion and America's Battalion, 3/3, arrived at Camp Fallujah and began operations. They are on patrol on foot, in vehicles, and on Helos. That knowledge made me wince; India 3/3 at the heart of Crazy Central. However, it appears that Fallujah is a very different place today. Here is what the Battalion Commander, LtCol Nate Nastase , has to say about the feeling in Fallujah:

Engaging the Iraqi Populace: While we discussed and trained hard for this aspect of the counter-insurgency fight during our pre-deployment work-up, nothing could have prepared us for the dramatic sea change we inherited upon our arrival. To put it simply, the local Iraqis have “come out of the woodwork” to join us in defeating the terrorists. For those of us who have been here before, this is a dramatic turn of events for the better. ... After years of murder and intimidation at the hands of the terrorists, the average Iraqis have said “Enough’s enough.” Our common goals have converged in a way that leaves little room for the insurgency to continue. And the attitude of “America’s Battalion” is contributing to the overall success of the mission.

When I read columns from the New York Times, I get the mental image of a melancholy foot patrol dragging their rifles behind them as they dejectedly wait to meet their inevitable fate. Or I get the image of men who put on a stoic face for the camera and then when the cameras are put away they bash Bush and wish they had never been tricked into joining the military for college money. If any single veteran (or parent of a veteran) speaks out against the war, their face is soon filled with microphones. Yet if any of the hundreds of thousands of men and women who have served in Iraq want to explain why they think the mission is important and winnable, they are usually left alone with crickets chirping.

Not enough people who control our national message are willing to portray a positive message regarding Iraq. I am tired of it. I want to win. I want to think positive. I want to be proud of my country. I want to face a future of peace and prosperity. Do we really need to skew the message to make it doom and gloom, with America as the oppressive loser? Do we really need to force a loss so that Obama or Clinton-2 can get elected?

I want to post the September message from India Company's Commanding Officer, Captain John Allsup, in its entirety. His messages are well written and organized, succinct, and gives a feeling that the Marines and Sailors under his command are proud volunteers who are willingly and enthusiastically accomplishing their mission. Every message from commanders in Iraq will necessarily be upbeat and optimistic; what kind of fruitcake would write home to his subordinates' families with doom and gloom? Even so, it is hard to fake sincerity, and word choice is important. If you go to the 3rd Marine Regiment's website and read the messages from all the commanders, you will find them all upbeat. However, you will not hear the same message. Each commander has written his own personal message; this is not a directed effort containing the same key phrases and vocabulary.

After several years of following individual units through their deployments, I have concluded that the commanding officer's message is a better measurement of the attitude in Iraq than the 9 o'clock news. I do not subscribe to the Liberal Media Bias Conspiracy Theory but I do get the feeling that we are getting more politics than news when it comes to Iraq.

Capt Jessup's Message:

Greetings from Camp Fallujah Iraq to all the friends and family members of India Company’s Marines and Sailors,

The company is currently conducting Civil Military Operations in our area of operations southeast of the city of Fallujah. Things are pretty quiet in our area and the Marines and Sailors have accomplished much in providing the citizens here with security, basic essential services (power, water, sewage, etc.), schools and a governing body. What our company is accomplishing here is the end state of all Coalition Forces in Iraq: to help the Iraqi people achieve independence from relying on Coalition Forces. Once the people here can provide their own security they can begin rebuilding their nation. Your Marines and Sailors are performing magnificently and each man is helping to achieve these things.

Since getting here we have been extremely busy. We are nearing the end of our first month and the Marines and Sailors have adapted to the environment and the separation from their families without any major complications. It is regularly greater than 120 degrees so everyone is looking forward to cooler days in the fall. I am happy to report that no one in the company has been injured or seriously ill. A few cases of heat rash and some heat exhaustion have been the greatest extent of our injuries. I am confident that because of their training and attitude this will remain the case throughout the remainder of our deployment. My compliments to all of our junior leaders and corpsmen who have done so much to ensure everyone stays healthy.

Many of the wives and girlfriends have been asking exactly what it is that we are doing day to day over here. I mentioned in the beginning of this newsletter what the mission of the company is, but I did not talk about the tasks that the Marines and Sailors are accomplishing. Without getting too specific I can report that the Marines and Sailors are doing a lot of foot patrols with many various missions (the heat and heavy gear make this extremely difficult). Many of the patrols, as mentioned earlier, are helping the population of our area rebuild their communities. Your Marines and Sailors here love the children. It makes me proud to watch them with big goofy smiles on their faces handing out toys, soccer balls, books, crayons and candy to a group of children. Then five minutes later they are all business - grim faces constantly alert for any sign of danger. Our Marines understand their mission here. “The Iraqi people are not our enemy but our enemy hides among them.” They balance friendliness and watchfulness with magnificent maturity. They are the true protectors and friends of a group of people who have endured countless years of terror and strife. I am so proud of each and every one of them – you should be too. Regardless of what you see and hear on the news, know that your Marines and Sailors are succeeding here. They are winning. They are making a difference.

Many families are asking what they can send in care packages. In case you did not know, we have a PX here so many of the basic necessities are available. Batteries, toiletries, snacks, and even electronics can be found in abundance. However, packages are always nice to receive so I am sure anything you send will be much appreciated. It typically takes 10 days for mail to reach us, but there is an alternative for letters and pictures. If you have access to the internet, go to Google and search for “Moto Mail,” go to the web site, create an account, and you can type letters and even include pictures which will reach your Marine or Sailor within 24-48 hours. Unfortunately it does not work from us to you. As the Marines spend most of their time out in the community and do not have access to e-mail this may be the best way of dropping them a line.

I am extremely pleased with the teamwork, camaraderie, mental toughness, bravery, and self-discipline the Marines and Sailors have been displaying during these past few weeks. Their aggressive warrior-spirit feeds off of the confidence they received from outstanding training, and has transformed them into disciplined professionals. During the long months ahead, this very spirit is what will sustain them and drive them to accomplish great things for each other, for the Iraqi people, and for all of you. In my last newsletter I stated that your Marines and Sailors will make a significant impact on the current world situation and as such theirs is the greatest of responsibilities. This has held true and will continue to hold true in the months to come. They are the finest fighting men in the world – they are highly trained, truly motivated, and dedicated to a higher cause of world citizenship. They are the defenders of the weak, the helpless, and the abused. I could not be prouder of them as men, as citizens, or as Marines. I am truly honored to serve them and I hope that you are as proud of their character and accomplishments.

I have written a few of you letters and I will be sending more as time permits. Please do not hesitate to contact me directly (snail mail or e-mail) with any questions or concerns you may have. I am here to serve your Marines and I will never be too busy to address any concerns their families may have. I also want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your overwhelming support of the company and everything you have done for your Marines, Sailors and for the unit as a whole. Being a family man myself I know how difficult this deployment is for all of you. My thoughts and prayers will continue to be with you and the Marines and Sailors of the company. God Bless and Semper Fidelis.

Capt John Allsup

India Company, 3/3

Last updated 6 September 2007

The Most Important Thing I Ever Learned

The most important thing that I have ever learned was the concept of freedom; this one discovery has shaped my intellectual life ever since. The American concept of political and economic freedom has been the central theme of my thoughts and actions; the issues and items that cause the greatest stress for me are the ones that limit freedom in any way, shape or form.

Issues regarding taxes which restrict my economic freedom are on my mind often, as are the other fees and expenses of life which limit how much power and pleasure I can purchase, the choices I can make, and the future freedom of choices that I and my children will face.

There have been several periods of my life where I experienced intense inner struggle though outwardly my life carried on as usual; that internal struggle revolved around freedom. I joined the Marine Corps partly because of a patriotic notion of protecting liberty. However, a Marine does not get to enjoy half of the freedoms that he or she protects, and that was a constant source of turmoil while I served. When my alcoholism took a turn for the worst, what motivated me to save myself was the promise of freedom in sobriety. That notion of freedom keeps me sober today. What has lead me to seek treatment for depression and ADD has been their effects on my freedom. The increased freedom of employment prospects caused me to persevere through ten years of college, despite many setbacks and struggles.

I discovered freedom in fifth grade. I also discovered the arch-nemesis of freedom: injustice. I think both discoveries were made on the same day. In fifth grade, I was in Mrs. Davis’ class at Woodland Elementary School in Grayslake, Illinois. The Bears would almost go undefeated that year, and would win the Superbowl. I remember Mrs Davis reading to us, but I am not sure what books she read. I remember we attempted to write out the number 1 google (a 1 followed by 100 zeroes). That is all I remember from 1985, except that one defining moment when my life paradigm was formed.

We studied U.S. history that year. In the previous years, we had heard of Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin, and the Declaration of Independence to some extent. We especially learned to love the freedom fighters George Washington and Abraham Lincoln because they earned us a day of freedom from school each year. Somehow, whether by design or by accident, all the fundamental political concepts of the American Revolution were put together in such a way that year that I understood it for the first time: Some people were free and some people were oppressed, but as an American I received the birthright of freedom.

Later, I discussed this concept with my mother; probably on the same day that it sunk in. This moment is burned into my memory; I can see the car we were riding in and the landscape going by. Until this conversation, my understanding was more of a Libertarian or Anarchist view of freedom; unrestricted freedom. My mom burst my bubble by explaining that not only was there limits to freedom in general but as an eleven year-old in her house, I enjoyed few freedoms. There was a promise that, “one day, when you’re an adult” I would taste the freedoms that America had to offer. Until then, I would suffer the despotic regime of Mr. and Mrs. Slobodzian.

The idea that there was the possibility of total freedom in theory, and somewhat unrestricted freedom to adults, but little or no freedom for fifth-graders introduced me to the concept of political injustice. I am sure that, like most kids, I learned to say, “It’s not fair!” at a young age; my four year-old says it daily, though I have no idea where he learned it. Even so, I didn’t really have a concept of true injustice, the type that affects groups of people. I knew when something unjustly affected me, but after this enlightening conversation with my mother I began to see that there was societal injustice, oppression that affected large or small groups of people.

Since then, I have analyzed systems and made decisions based on freedom. I have thought extensively about freedom and injustice, from many angles and in many applications. For the rest of my life, the cause of freedom for myself, for my children, for my sphere of influence, and for the world at large, will guide my thoughts and actions.

Some people shape their value system around a religion or a philosophy, some shape their value system on concepts of struggle or contest. My value system is based on freedom vs. injustice. If I have an ethical decision to make, I try to seek these two poles to help decide the issue: which decision grants freedom and which decision creates or sustains injustice.

A New Series: Freedom and Corporate Social Responsibility

I have wanted to write a concise post about my political philosophy ever since I created this blog. It was a major reason why I was excited about the blog in the first place. My political beliefs are something that I have been developing and thinking about for years. I have also wanted to write about a concept that is of growing interest me: that of Corporate Social Responsibility. However, these two concepts are so large, and I have so many thoughts about them, that every attempt at either subject has resulted in frustration and a feeling of being overwhelmed.

As they twist and turn through my neurological fun house, they have begun to run into each other and merge. I now believe that that they are so intertwined that they could only be described together. This is exciting for me, because I am starting to put some thoughts together that I think will lead to something creative and important. On the other hand, this has only made the dream of a “concise” post become even more impossible.

I think that instead, I will “chunk” the information into smaller pieces over the next several days (or months, or years, whatever it takes.) In the next posting, I will talk about the concept that shapes almost every thought in my head and is the basis of my value system. This will lead to a discussion of how I view American Politics and where I stand. I will then discuss how my political world-view and my overriding value of freedom makes Corporate Social Responsibility such an important issue for our future.

Dear Mr. President,

When the 2000 primaries rolled around, I voted for you only because I didn’t trust Senator McCain and I liked your energy. By the time November appeared, I was excited about the tax cut, the education initiatives, the possibility of school vouchers, and everything else that came with you. When you chose your cabinet, it was magic. I thought you had a dream team: it was full of experience, diversity, and connections. At that time, I knew for sure that America was in for a great eight years.

When September 11, 2001 occurred, I could not think of a time in my history when I had been more proud of anyone as I was proud of you. I went to sleep that night knowing who my president was, and who his cabinet was, and I slept soundly. Though I was laid off in October of that year, I did not panic or sell out my retirement account; I knew that my president would right this ship.

I could not wait for the United States to invade Iraq. I left the Marine Corps reserve in 2000, but I considered re-enlisting to support this war. I always thought President Clinton would send us to Iraq (as you may know, he almost did several times) and I was ready. If I hadn’t had new family responsibilities, I absolutely would have re-enlisted. It was high-time that we chase down this Osama bin-Laden in Afghanistan, and end the Taliban’s brutal regime. It was past time for Saddam, Uday, and Qusay to be held accountable for a long list of atrocities. Moreover, it was an ideal time for more people in the Middle East to begin to experience some stability and freedom, and the opportunities that accompany them.

In 2004, I defended you. I put a sign for you in my yard, and replaced it when a sophomoric democrat stole it. I argued with the people around me that you rivaled Presidents Reagan and Kennedy in many ways. Though your lack of speaking ability was notorious, you were able to convey your message and instill national faith and pride almost as well as both of those presidents. Your actions often spoke louder than your words. When you flew into Iraq to visit the troops over Thanksgiving, I grinned from ear to ear with pride. That was a great move, and it sent a message to the entire planet: the President is strong, fearless, supportive, in control, and loved by his military.

In addition, you sometimes exceeded Reagan and Kennedy’s ability to bring the nation together on task, especially on the tax cuts and the initial invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. After the 2004 election, when you said you had political capital to spend, I thought you were right. You had a clear mandate from the American people to keep on the path that you were blazing. I was especially supportive of your strategy to give the democrats all the rope they wanted to hang themselves with.

Unfortunately, you have been snagged several times in that rope as you let it out. For instance, what were you thinking when you nominated Harriet Meiers to the Supreme Court? I absolutely agree that she has achieved much in her career, and I am sure you could see values in her that we, at our distance, could not. However, she did not bear the credentials of a judge on the highest court in the land. Not only did you make a poor choice, you did a terrible job defending the decision. If I was Ms. Meiers, I would have found that humiliating, and I am not sure I would have forgiven you so easily.

You know I cannot forget the Dubai port deal either. You and I both know that the UAE is an important ally, and a fairly liberal country as far as Arab nations go. However, you should have known that America is not ready to trust its ports to an Arab nation or company. What a bad idea. Don’t you have that voice in your head that warns you about these things? If someone had come to me and suggested we hired an Arab country to manage our ports, the first thing I would have thought is “That will never fly in the media, in the leftist labor camp, nor among the rabid right-wingers who believe all Arabs are terrorists. This is not a battle worth fighting.”

But I am not writing you to nit-pick. We’d be here all day. And if we were to nit-pick your presidency compared to some others (Carter, Truman), you would do all right over the long-haul. The facts I have mentioned so far merely caused me to re-think my support of you. They allowed me to remove the blinders which shielded my true thoughts in Iraq. Now I can see the future, and read the history books, and agree with their summation of your presidency: you squandered your political capital, you squandered the fantastic allies you began with, and you squandered the lives of thousands of Americans who did not need to die.

How could you let a man like Colin Powell get away? I have read his books and I have seen his leadership record in the military, in the state department, and as a civilian. The man is smart, strong, calculated, patient, and a born leader. You are lucky he is also loyal, or he could throw you under the bus anytime he wishes. I am sure that he left you because he could not condone the decisions that were being made nor the methods that were used to make them. If Bob Woodward is to be believed, you also probably have a serious problem with prioritizing your advisers. And Powell is just the first on a distinguished list of people, groups, and nations whom you have driven away with your policies and actions.

What angers me the most is how you and your Generals have treated our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and most importantly Marines, as if they are little more than cannon fodder. How could you ask those men and women to drive down the same roads every day in the same unarmored Humvees? What good does this tactic accomplish? Did you not realize the transition from war to insurgency? I get so angry just thinking about you and your family, safe and sound and privileged. Meanwhile, a Marine in Dress Blues pulls into another driveway to tell a mother that the son whom she invested all her time, money and love in would never come home. Or he has to tell a wife that her toddler will have to grow up without a father.

I can hear your reaction now: “But that is war! People die in war, and those brave service members volunteered to fight and die for their country.” As a former enlisted Marine, I agree. If you had sent me to war between 1992-2000, I would have gladly stormed any beach or hill, and paid with my blood if need be. But we don’t always have to die to achieve an objective, especially in 21^st century warfare. Patrolling the streets and waiting for a bullet or bomb is a stupid strategy - that is what Stalin would have done (He’s the Russian guy with the funny moustache who said “We have many people.”)

If I were president, I would have done some thinking, listened to some smart people whose careers were not on the line (independent advisors have good ideas too, you know), and changed my strategy. If I were president, I would have had my Generals changing their strategy when they changed their socks, just as the insurgents do. I would have insisted that we be two steps ahead of the insurgents, not one step behind. I would have rounded up a bunch of Iraqis, conscripted them, and put them on foot patrol. My men and women would have been patrolling the sand leading to Iran and Syria. At the two year mark, I would have thrown a closed-door temper-tantrum and insisted that this had gone on long enough, and someone better get their poop in a group!

I also would have done more to improve our image in the Arab world. Instead of hostility to Al Jazeera, you should have befriended them. You should have made sure that the faces of Bush, Rumsfeld, Rice, General Vincent, et al, were on Arab TVs everyday delivering a counter message to the crap from the anti-American lunatics who are so prevalent. (This idea is from Josh Rushing, who left the Marine Corps to work for Al Jazeera. He is another ally you squandered, though to you he was just some Captain. You would do well to skim his book, Mission Al Jazeera.)

The reality is that my president squinted into the camera and talked about how concerned he was, and then he went fishing. My president went to sleep as another unarmored patrol set out, and came back with fewer men than they left with. He laughed it up as another insurgent planted another IED, knowing full well that some Americans would come by soon, he would recognize them when they did, he would be able to kill some and damage their vehicles, and his explosion would be played on billions of TV’s that night.

President Bush, I do not oppose war, and especially not in Iraq. I do not oppose your privilege nor am I jealous of your family’s success. I do not have anything against your informal demeanor, your early bedtime, or your difficulty in speaking publicly. What I do have a problem with is your complete disregard for the American people, and for the wisdom of the common man. We all could have told you how to avoid many of the mistakes you made. Moreover, your cavalier attitude in Iraq, acting like thousands of lives lost is no reason to change our tactic, is criminal.

If we are going to continue to lose lives, let us do it like we did when we took Fallujah: let’s bomb and bulldoze the bad guys in every neighborhood, and force the Iraqi people to decide that they have had enough of Al Qaeda. Let’s level Baghdad and force the survivors to relocate their capital. Let’s send one more message to the impotent government of Iraq: not one more drop of American blood will be spent until you cowards step up and secure your country!

Driving or walking around in 120 degree heat waiting to be shot is a crappy life, Mr. President. Our men and women deserve much better. Take off the leash, turn them loose (pull out the damn imbedded reporters, while you are at it—this is a war, not a spectator sport!), and insist that if we hear a shot from a house or mosque, we flatten the whole block.

Quit screwing around and kick some ass, George! Either that or send the troops home. Quit squandering my tax dollars, not to mention the blood of my generation and the parents of the next generation. Make a decision one way or another, because the insurgents already have.

Sincerely,

Larry Slobodzian, Lifelong Republican, Former Bush Supporter.