It was four years ago yesterday when President George W. Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, declaring that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”, while the banner touting “Mission Accomplished” hung behind him. Since that point, thousands of US service men and women have lost their lives in the war that was declared over.
It was just yesterday that President George W. Bush vetoed a war funding bill that outlined specific dates for withdrawing troops from the war he declared over four years ago.
Mr. Bush, has the mission truly been accomplished? If so, why are our friends, family, sons and daughters still running the streets of that far away land, a land populated with a people whom had never attacked on American soil?
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Really?
Please tell that to the family of Jesse Halling, who was killed on June 3, 2003, a little more than a month after your declaration that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”. Private Halling was just 19 years old, killed near Tikrit by hostile fire, even though “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the family of Charles H. Buehring, who was killed by hostile fire on October 26, 2003, more than five months after “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”. Please tell that to his two young sons, tell them that their daddy died “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the families of Trevor Wine (22), Joshua Ladd (20), Oscar Vargas-Medina (32), Ramon Ojeda (22), all killed by hostile fire one year to the day from your declaration that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the family of Jessica Housby, who was killed when a roadside bomb exploded near her convoy in February of 2005, nearly two years after “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”. She was just 23 years old.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the family of Tenzin Dengkhim, killed April 5, 2005, again nearly two years after “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”. He was just 19 years old, his whole life still ahead of him until that April day.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the family of Derrick Lutters, who was killed by a car bomb on the second anniversary of your little aircraft carrier publicity stunt. He was just 24 years old.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the family of Michael Parrott (49), who was killed by sniper fire on November 10, 2005.
“My husband and I both loath and despise the war,” she said. “He was under no illusion about this war.”
He didn’t believe the Bush administration’s reasons for the war, but Parrott believed he could do some good, Corwin (Parrot’s wife) said.
“Mike went over there because he really had this notion … his experience might actually save some young kid’s life and he also wanted to feel that he was useful and a part of something,” Corwin said.
For his upcoming 50th birthday in December, she had planned to send him an iPod filled with his favorite music, including Nanci Griffith and Steve Earle.
“He sort of walked sideways on the crossbeam of life,” Corwin said. “He never walked it straight. “He promised me. He said `I won’t get hurt.”‘ source
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the families of Christopher Vanderhorn (37) and Jason Bishop (31), who were both killed by hostile fire on January 1, 2006, nearly three years after “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”.
Christopher Vanderhorn left behind his wife and two very young children. Bishop left behind three children.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
Please tell that to the families of Robbie Light and Robert Moscillo, both killed on May 1, 2006 in “combat operations”, three years to the day that it was announced that “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”.
“MAJOR COMBAT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ HAVE ENDED” – George W. Bush May 1, 2003
And now, Mr. “President”, please tell that to the family of Travis Manion (26), who was killed on Sunday April 29, 2007, just two days before you vetoed the bill that would have laid the foundation for bringing home our soldiers.
“He was a kid with a big heart, never had a bad word for anyone. He was all heart; that is who he was,” Tom Manion said. “We’ve had calls from all over the country, from people who said they loved him like a brother; he really touched people like that.” source
Unlike the other names listed above, which were selected randomly from the thousands of names of those killed since Bush’s 2003 speech, Travis Manion’s passing hits a bit closer to home. Travis was a lacrosse player at LaSalle College High School, where my brother in law Tom played along side him.
We received an email from Tom this morning, linking to an article about Manion’s death. Reading the story about another life ended for this war, a war in which, according to “President” Bush, “major combat operations in Iraq have ended” four years ago, a war that he insists on perpetuating, is what led me to this diary today, to reading about so many lives, so many families left hurting.
I hope our leaders in Congress, those we chose last November to change the course of our nation, have the strength to do just that, the strength to finally bring our troops home.
Peace,
Darrell
