Campaign Ads I'd Like To See, part . . . .whatever
[onscreen General Tommie Franks, or some similarly decorated and recognized American war hero]
You've heard a lot lately in the news and from Democrats about the Tet Offensive.
Just to refresh your memory: the Tet Offensive was an attack launched by the VietCong, in January of 1968. The attack went on for the better part of a year, even though the VietCong achieved no--zero--military objectives.
During the course of that battle, about 4,300 allied soldiers were killed, including 1,100 Americans. By contrast, estimates of VietCong dead range from 45,000 to 60,000--more than a 10 to one kill ratio, during which the VietCong achieved absolutely nothing.
Unfortunately, that is not the story the American people heard. Thanks to Walter Cronkite and the rest of the media, the American people heard about a devestating campaign that "mired us in a stalemate". After that, the Congress started to de-fund the war effort, and a military effort with noble intent became an inglorious episode in American history. Eventually, after we had to completely abandon the South Vietnamese, literally millions were killed by the Communists and Pol Pot.
The reason I'm going through this history with you, is because I believe in the maxim that "those who don't learn history are doomed to repeat it."
The battle for Iraq has not been pretty, nor has it been without its setbacks. But while we've been building hospitals and schools and rebuilding a power grid, shepherding through three free elections and trying to bring that country into the 21st century, the American media has relentlessly hyped the ugly side of the war, turning "Abu Graib" into a household name while refusing to show the brutal, barbaric killings our enemies have regularly engaged in.
Now you have Democratic candidates for Congress like Ed Perlmutter talking about a "new direction in Iraq." He doesn't say what that direction is, he doesn't put forward any actual ideas, he just wants something else, something easier. Some in the Democratic leadership have called for a pull out from Iraq in the next eight weeks.
Well, I've heard this before. This sounds all too familiar to me, and I'm here to urge you to not to lose your spirit or your courage. The consequence of declaring defeat and running away from Iraq now would be dire--for Iraqis, for the region, and for the world. What the terrorists in Iraq have that the VietCong never did is the ability to strike at America from across the ocean.
We should have learned THAT lesson on September 11th. Let's remember all of our history, and choose to elect to Congress people who will give our troops the support and the time they need to get the job done. | |
