The completion of a task begins with setting a goal. Setting a goal is the most important part of any job, because it is the goal that will be used to judge success, and how to achieve it. Without a clearly defined goal, no amount of effort will be enough. This is why it is important to have a leader. A leader does not set a goal, but guides everyone toward one. A leader takes responsibility for the actions of the group. This means he receives acclaim when the group succeeds, and is bears the brunt of responsibility if the group fails.
A leader without clearly defined goals will not be successful. Abstract goals are great for building moral, but they are only useful when combined with concrete goals. If the CEO of a corporation walked into a board meeting and proclaimed the goal of the year was to make money without outlining any objectives or course of actions, he probably would not be employed for much longer. For a team to move forward, they have to first define what forward is.
The discussion of the Iraq war to date has been held only in the abstract. We have been told that are goal is to defeat evil. We have been told that we will not leave until the job is done. We have been told that we are fighting for democracy. As an American, I am behind those ideals. What the country needs, however, is leadership. There has been no task too great, no quest too difficult, nor mission too impossible for America. When the world predicted inevitable failure for the United States, we will built the greatest nation in the world. When John F. Kennedy stated the seemingly impossible goal of reaching the moon in nine years, the country reached it in eight. The history of America is quickly becoming the history of the world. No other region of the world can boast of as much of an impact on the world in such a short time.
The American military is unquestionably the greatest, most potent, and certainly most powerful military the world has ever seen. In its midst are honorable individuals who are second to none. They can win any battle, wage any war, defeat any enemy. What they cannot due is win a war with no goal. We have learned this lesson before. In spite of the lack of any discernable goals, the military continues to impress me with their dedication to our country. It is the leadership of the America who is charged with providing them a goal that can be accomplished. It is not enough to say they must win. We must define what a win is. We entered Iraq with the goal of ensuring America was safe from weapons of mass destruction. That issue seems to be irrelevant now.
A rising number of individuals are becoming increasingly distrustful of those in power who are not being honest with the American people. The debate over the Iraq War cannot progress because those in charge are not even letting the public know what they are attempting to accomplish. Are we striving to eliminate terrorism in its entirety? A look at the situation in Israel shows that terrorism can go on indefinitely. We are fighting them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here? It took only twelve despicable individuals to cause three thousand innocent people to lose their lives. This can certainly happen now, regardless of whether or not we are fighting in Iraq. Meanwhile, billions of dollars that could be used to defend our airports and ports are tied up in a struggle that has a debatable effect on our security.
It is time to have a reasonable debate on this topic. Only after the administration announces what their goals are for this conflict, can we begin an honest discussion over the merits. I am sure there are some very positive things being accomplished in Iraq, just as I am sure there are some negative things going on. In the face of increasing deaths and violence, it is time we take a serious look at what our goals are in the Iraq War.
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