Letter for my mother who accused me of giving the troops no credit

[TroglodyteScholar]

Mother,

I go to work every day on the Base to do my best at keeping the jets maintained and constantly improved. If I didn't support the troops, do you think I'd have ANY hand in this disgusting chapter of American history? I think the troops have gotten the rawest deal of all. They're sent to a place that doesn't want them...to do a job that can't be accomplished. Is that fair? I'd say I support the troops a lot more than someone who'd keep them over there indefinitely. I support them so much, I want them to stop dying for a so-called cause that can only be defined by abstractions that nobody really understands.

You Republicans need to learn that President Bush is NOT interchangeable with the troops. For one thing, like most of the Republican leadership, he's never seen even one day of combat. But he IS the military's Commander-in-Chief...and he's failing them every day that he leaves them in Iraq. Seriously, what is the FIRST thing you do when planning a mission? You set an OBJECTIVE. So what is the definition of victory in our current Iraq conflict? "When the Iraqis stand up, we'll stand down." BRILLIANT speechwriting. It really evokes a vision of the young patriots fighting for OUR country's independence from unjust rule. Except that the Iraqis only seem to want to stand up against the MILITARY PRESENCE that is fast transforming their country into a pile of rubble. You don't spread freedom or democracy by keeping a population prisoner in their own homes. That's how you stir up resentment and resistance. That's how you display for the whole world that you didn't put much thought into the war beyond Shock & Awe™. That's how you reveal your nation to be much more akin to King George's Britain than to George Washington's United States.

Republican pundits like to put the anti-war folks on the spot by asking, "Would you rather Saddam remain in power?" For the first year or two of the Iraq war (which I was against from the start), that question even gave me some pause. But now, at this point, I can say clearly and proudly that YES, I would rather see Saddam in power than see more than 2600 American families destroyed (not to mention over 40,000 Iraqi families -- they're brown, so they don't count) for a mission which has FAILED because the civilian leadership never even defined a goal -- and refuses to to do so TO THIS DAY. Adding insult to injury, the administration has openly shown their complete contempt for accountability of any kind -- $9 billion in Pentagon funds un-accounted-for by the year 2005 (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5763483/).Wouldn't a responsible administration be DEMANDING answers about NINE BILLION dollars that had gone missing? And wouldn't a responsible media be doing everything it could to expose the widespread FRAUD that allowed this to happen and continue to this day? Odd...the TV constantly tells me who is sleeping with whom in Hollywood, but I can't seem to find the nasty liberal news channel that's investigating where all that taxpayer money went -- not to mention all the stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons that could have been launched on the USA in 45 minutes' time. I can't BELIEVE the media is so tough on Bush and his administration! Poor, poor!

How can anyone (even if it's just 35%) still believe anything this administration says? Remember when we were going to be greeted as liberators? I do. Remeber when Iraqi oil revenues were going to pay for the whole conflict? I do. Remember when Rumsfeld said "it could last a day...a week...a month...i doubt six months..."? I do. Remember when, according to Vice President Cheney, the insurgency was in its last throes? I remember when that was the case -- May of 2005. Golly, rigor mortis sure is slow setting in. You've seen Bush repeat "stay the course" until even HE has to be sick of hearing it. But now that election season comes around, he sends Ken Mehlman to the Sunday talk shows to say that the administration's policy isn't "stay the course," but rather "adapt to win." Well, I must've had something in my ears for the past 3 years, because I've heard "stay the course" every day and seen absolutely NO adaptation. Just plenty of sleazy politicians (on both sides -- a lot of spineless Dems supported this fiasco, too) denying the reality of the situation in order to save face. Good for them.

You know, Mom...you and Dad always prefer not to talk about such matters...as though it's harmful to discuss them. That kind of attitude works very well for an administration as bumbling and incompetent as this one. As long as we STOP OURSELVES making use of the 1st Amendment, they don't have to think up ways to convince us we don't need it. Instead, they can focus on the terrible threat of marriage between loving gay adults...or immigrants who come here to pick fruit and clean hotel rooms because they can't bear any longer watching their families live in dirt and shit in buckets. THOSE are the real threats we face as a nation -- fags and darkies. Other human beings who have hearts, and dreams, and families. I have to keep talking about these things, and I'm sorry you don't want to hear them -- because you're of the group who needs to hear them the most.

I could go on all night with this, but I need to be fresh for the Unit Compliance Inspection tomorrow. I just want to say again that I was very hurt and disappointed that you'd stoop low enough to pull an O'Rielly and tell me I don't give the troops any credit. That's either a dishonest or entirely misguided thing to say, just like when you accused Heath of anti-Semitism simply because he doesn't agree with everything Israel does in regards to the Palestinians. I hope maybe you just went on conservative autopilot and didn't really mean those things.

Could it simply be the goodness and hope in your heart that shields you from seeing this administration's profane levels of cynicism and contempt for the average person? I truly hope so, becasue I can't think of any other explanation that would allow for you to be the same kind and loving person who raised me to think like I do.

With much love,

[meisje]

1. I don't discuss politics with family members

[TroglodyteScholar]

2. If your family is as wrong as mine....

...what the hell are you waiting for?

[I_Make_Mistakes]

4. I know how you feel. My dad was a traveling salesman who

told stupid jokes, most of them ethnically degrading and would defend his position as it's only a joke. I would tell him that it was insensitive and really not appropriate.

When he moved up in neighborhoods, he made a remark about his neighbor being black (there goes the neighborhood).

I, said to him, in this neighborhood, I wouldn't worry about the neighbor, and how the hell did I turn out the way I did with such an asshole raising me! He was really floored, he knew I hated any kind of slur, but I had never called him an asshole for it.

He was very careful after that what he said, until one time he slipped, and I said "As a business owner you could be sued for saying that garbage". He said, "I know, your uncle told me that too!".

That's what it took, the friggin thought of losing money to have any kind of moral substance, yep, you guessed it, I now call him a Republican asshole. It seems like another civil war is brewing in this country parent vs.child, bro. vs. sis. etc.

[TroglodyteScholar]

5. I know...

My folks are so deeply entrenched in rightwing nonsense, though, that Cheney could come to their house and personally rob them blind...and I think they'd applaud him as he walked out the door. Some things really are just impossible to understand.

[neebob]

17. My mom is completely incapable of associating

what happened to her retirement account with anything that Bush did after taking office. It's all Clinton's fault. George W. Goodpersonbush is trying to fix things. And, ya know, Gordon B. Wrinckley sez things are gonna get really bad, so that's why it isn't working.

[MadMaddie]

3. Great letter...but it will bounce off as if it never happened

I have come to the conclusion that it will take something catastrophic to make this mind set realize that we are no safer than we were pre 9/11.

[TroglodyteScholar]

10. New Republican motto.....

"No revolution until starvation"

They need to really FEEL the hurt before they come around.

[MadMaddie]

11. Yup....it's a shame it will eventually come to that!

[patrice]

6. This is a good letter because it expresses how hard you are trying

and how much you want her to help her understand. I think she will see that. I especially like how you closed by reminding her of her better nature.

But - Don't expect too much. Don't be disappointed if you don't see any change.

I hope you don't give up. Keep loving her and keep speaking the truth.

God bless you both.

[TroglodyteScholar]

7. Thanks for the sentiment....

I don't expect any change...but I just feel like you should be able to talk about ANYTHING with family. And the only reason this nation hasn't already fought these issues out internally is because we all feel so strongly and none of us wants to hurt our loved ones. Well, the longer I go with out hurting my loved ones, the more deeply they get sucked into Fox News and the new American lie. I just can't handle that any more.

[patrice]

9. That's exactly right.

There's an awful lot about our troubles in general that comes from the fact that there's so much we DON'T talk about, noe even in our families.

The power of ordinary people talking to one another about important issues is one of the greatest powers there is.

[bluethruandthru]

8. Great letter!

My family is like this too. They listen to Rush and O'reilly all day and they can spout that crap non-stop.
What really bothers me is that most of them have a bit of intelligence...but they don't want to hear the truth. It wouldn't matter how much evidence you piled in front of them, I doubt they would change.
I applaud your efforts and your beautifully written letter. I hope it does some good!

[neebob]

12. I have 20 pages of unsent letters

that I've written to my super Fox-watching wingnutty Mo-mom in the past three years. I start a new one after every big stupid upsetting argument I'm unable to head off at the pass, but I'm getting better at it and the big stupid upsetting arguments are becoming less frequent. I've learned to say things like, "Dick Cheney? What's not to like?" and "I think it's important to be ethical" (when she proposed sending mercenaries to beat the tar out of those boys and find out what happened to Natalee Holloway).

[TroglodyteScholar]

13. How is it that so many rightwigners end up with lefty children?

I don't hold my beliefs out of spite or resentment. My folks literally taught me to think the way I do. And now they sigh and shake their heads when I display what an effective job they did. I just don't get it...

[neebob]

16. I don't know, but mine certainly weren't trying.

I think in my case it was a combination of oppression - which made me feel resentful, and that led to questioning, and I just kept noticing how nothing bad happened if I thought/said/did this, that, or the other thing I wasn't supposed to, which led to more questioning - and external role models.

[lies and propaganda]

19. because its wrong at its very core.

Money over People.

very nice letter. If i was your mom, i think that would bring me to tears.

[Breeze54]

14. I hope she listens and votes a Democratic ticket, next time around.

:kick: & recommended.... because I also support the troops.
They are in a quagmire, a shit pile with no traction.
And a fucking asshole pretending to be a 'leader'...:grr:

[yasmina27]

15. That is an awesome letter!

With some modifications (doing away with personal references) and your permission, that could be turned into a fabulous e-mail response to some of the horrid e-mails the repukes like to send around.

Your mom sounds much like mine, except my mom doesn't like to argue about anything. So when she and I disagree on something, it usually simmers in my brain gathering steam until I finally play the diplomat and generally twist it around in discussion to sound like a compromise.

My dad was always a great one to talk to. He may not have agreed with you, but he always let you give your side. Sometimes he would egg you on just for fun :). He was always a loyal union democrat, so it was incredible to me in 2002 when he said e thought Monkey-boy was doing a good job. To be honest, I just got interested in politics after 9/11, so when he said that, I didn't have a good response ready for him beyond "you've got to be kidding!"

Just 2 weeks before the 04 elections, he sincerely asked me why I liked John Kerry, that he wasn't crazy about Shrub, but didn't know what JK believed (which IMHO said something not only about my dad, but also the Kerry campaign - don't get me wrong - I loved JK and the thought of Teresa - a woman with real balls - in the WH thrilled me. I just think the Kerry campaign screwed up big time on getting out their messages).

Anyway, I proceeded for about 15 minutes to tell him how Shrub had screwed up AND what Kerry stood for on the same topic. We talked about issues such as Iraq, Soc. Sec., education (I'm a teacher, so this was a big one to me), and so on.

I'm proud to say that our conversation added another vote for Kerry in PA (which even though Kerry won in PA, it was closer than it should have been). Too bad he won't be with us in 08 (he passed last Dec.), but maybe he'll add some influence from the great beyond!

[TroglodyteScholar]

18. Thanks for reading....

My mom doesn't really like to argue either. She'd prefer we never talk about anything important.

As for your dad, I'm sorry for your loss. Sounds ilke he was a good guy.

Peace...