America Has
Fallen from Grace

As the proud son of a proud WWII Veteran who saw the sacrifices of his generation as the right fight, I am disgusted and shocked at the macabre fairyland that Bush, Cheney and McCain have built and continue to live in.

Bush recently stated that America must stay to make sure that the lives of those who died in the war, "was not in vain" and McCain genuflects. Last week, Dick Cheney went to Iraq and remarked that the war was a "successful endeavor" that has been "well worth the effort," and McCain genuflects.

Where is the admission of guilt? Not heard because it is still covered by arrogance. The underlying question is why?

Their obvious election strategy is to continue to deny:

• The outrageous deception that led to this disaster;

• The escalating death tallies (both US & Iraqi) and cost of the war;

• That this entire debacle has undermined our ability to attain real security.

Their twisted logic tries to obscure the parallels between Vietnam and Iraq. In Vietnam we interfered in a civil war and ultimately had to abandon the country to its own internal struggle. In Iraq we created the conditions for a civil war and ultimately when we leave, hopefully sooner rather than later, the Iraqis will need to struggle among themselves to decide the fate of the country. Safe exit strategies from civil war interventions are simply "smoke and mirrors".

We are a long, long way from the honor earned by the men and women who went ashore on Normandy, participated in the liberation of Nazi concentration camps and built goodwill over most of the world. Without leadership based in integrity, we have fallen far from grace and have been truly adrift for decades. Hopefully, the majority of us have learned enough to change direction soon; the fate of humanity depends on it.

Mark Furnari

South Burlington