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Wednesday, March 19, 2003 Page: 7A
OPINION
THIS IS NEVER easy, this going to war.
People were anxious when the United States responded to the attack by a
recognizable, sovereign country as in World War II. There was concern in
holding back the tide of communism, as in Korea or Southeast Asia. There is
fear even when the opposition is dwarfed by the resources of the greatest
fighting force, as in Grenada, Panama or Kuwait.
The latter seems to hold true for the war that has begun now. President
Bush has warned that armed forces of the United States will be unleashed on
targets in Iraq at any time now. But it would be hubris of the worst sort to
expect the outcome now to be like the last conflict in the Persian Gulf. No
war is like the last one.
But one thing remains the same. In a world where people die every day, many
more will likely die now. Many will wear the uniforms and fight under the flag
of Iraq. Some will surely be civilians, guilty only of having been born in
that country. Some will die fighting under the American flag.
The people have been told by President Bush that this war is on one prong
of the “axis of evil,” that this is a war on the terrorism that was brought
to the United States on Sept. 11, 2001.
That connection is clear to many in the United States, invisible to many
others. And that’s what makes this conflict, this war, harder still. Clearly
Hussein is a dangerous tyrant, but the lack of world support is unnerving. The
willingness of the Bush administration to proceed alone is daunting.
The goal is a safer world, purged of terrorism, but cleaving this foe in
this fashion may just yield many others.
With the justifications and outcome still clouded, the public should
continue to debate the motivation and timing of this attack. At the same time
it should continue to support the hundreds of thousands of members of the
armed forces facing a wily, desperate enemy. Our concern should also be with
the families of service members, with diplomats, tourists, business people
abroad, with our allies and the damage this conflict could do to our
relationships.
People should be committed to improving the standing of the United States
in the world community and we should continue to lead the way to a safer
world, guided by peace and not by our fear or by might.
History will judge the decisions that have led the world to this day. Let
it judge well our behavior from this day on.