Can I just say that the endless war in the Middle East is destroying our country? Much like

[CajunBlazer]

28. You guys need to get a grip.

1. The majority of Americans, including me, believed that the war in Afghanistan was necessary because the Taliban government was giving free rein and encouragement to a guy named Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. They had just flown two Airlines filled with innocent people into the World Trade Center in New York which was filled with a lot more innocent people. Over 3,000 people died that day. Worst yet ben Laden vowed to continue his attacks on our country in every way possible. When the Taliban government of Afghanistan refused to quit giving safe harbor to al-Qaeda, we had little choice but to go after them ourselves. Otherwise al-Qaeda would have grown in strength in its safe refuge and we would would still be dealing with multiple cases of having our civilians killed on our streets.

2. As the rhetoric of the Bush administration increased in volume and we started to build up troops in Kuwait, I preached endlessly that an invasion of Iraq was unnecessary and unwise. I compared the overthrow of Saddam to removing an evil stopper from a bottle filled with very evil liquid which, once released, could not be contained. But the American people believed the administration's lies and we went to war again - one of the biggest mistakes in our history.

3) Bush compounded his huge mistake of invading Iraq with three more momentous blunders. The invasion diverted our attention away from a potentially volatile situation in Afghanistan allowing that situation to continue to simmer uncontrolled. In Iraq Rumsfeld and Chaney planned the invasion "on the cheap" failing to account for the insurrections would inevitably erupt once the evil stopper was removed. They also agreed to the dismantling of the Iraqi army, the only force other than American soldiers capable of enforcing the peace in the aftermath to the invasion.

4) Everything which has since unfolded in that part of the world, including the rise of ISIS in Iraq is the direct result of the stupidity of the Bush administration. I am sick and tired of so call "liberals" blaming President Obama for the aftermath of both wars. In doing so they imply that President Obama has made a couple of horrible situations worse and that is simply not the case. He is simply trying to clean up the messes left to him by his predecessor as best he can while placing as few Americans in harms way as possible. Anyone who cannot see that simply lacks proper vision.

5) I am also sick and tired of people who believe that any use of our military is some kind of horrible mistake. I would love to live in a world where a military is not even necessary, where countries or groups never attack anyone else and where all disputes are resolved by negotiations. Wake up folks, that is not the world we live in! And yes, we can all sit around and blame our government's past policies and mistakes for the fact that are a number of people in the world who consider us their enemies and are trying to settle old scores, but that won't change the fact that we live in a dangerous world. If you think it is wise to totally disengage and allow ISIS run wild in Syria and Iraq to form their Caliphate, you are not as bright as I give you credit for being. Once ISIS has secured in their conquered territory, and have raped, murdered, subjected the local populations to their hearts content, they will turn their eyes outward towards the Great Satan. We can either deal with that situation now or later, but we will have to deal with it.

If you to pretend that we can ignore threats like ISIS and believe that any use of our military is an abomination, by all means do so. But remember you are part of a very small minority and you are alive and free to maintain your beliefs only because other Americans are willing to shoulder your burdens.