Why NOT Declare Victory in Iraq?

Bloggers across America declare 22 NOV 08 as Victory in Iraq Day - http://www.zombietime.com/vi_day/

The metrics by which we have measured success in Iraq are truly taking form.
- The freely elected Iraqi government established itself as a mostly independent entity, capable of holding the peace and defeating Al Quaeda and insurgent forces (still needs our help for communications/coordinations/intel)
- Al Quaeda in Iraq continues to be ineffective in disrupting the establishment of a normative political state
- The death rate of American Servicemen is so low now that the Pentagon is noticing more Servicemen die on Motorcycle Accidents than in Iraq.
- Most provinces in Iraq are controlled by Iraqi forces with American support only.
- Status of Forces Agreement is nearly completed with Iraqi government, which would allow the US to operate with Iraq as a partner/coequal - similar to our agreements with NATO countries (where we have bases, I might add).

So, my viewpoint is WHY NOT declare Victory? Obama's election is a perfect time for us to transition our relationship with Iraq as he will seek to withdraw troops and move them to Afghanistan to complete the Victory there. Our nation will have a declarative time by which to reassess our reasons for joining with Coalition Forces to defeat Saddam Hussein and end his programs of WMD. The press also will be more inclined to report on the good news in Iraq now that Obama is President as well.

Lastly, it will be a chance to truly congratulate and celebrate the American Military for fighting and winning the most efficient and effective war in American History. The statistics are staggering when compared to other wars we have fought:
- Lowest death rate
- Amazing recovery from injury
- Minimal collateral damage
- Speed by which we toppled Saddam's government
- WMD programs and facilities found and destroyed or removed
- Logistical dominance of moving such a large force so quickly
- Technological advances in unmanned vehicles, communications and real-time data sharing on the battlefield

Why I can't Vote for Obama

Obama/Biden vs. McCain/Palin (vs. Barr vs. Nader?!)

- Life - McCain/Palin's strong emphasis on allowing unborn children a right to life vs. Obama/Biden's rejection of any attempt to allow even an aborted fetus's a chance to live (like the BAIPA)..Obama said "The first thing I'd do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act" - this is the most important issue anyone who cares about children should consider in this election.

- Judicial Nominations Obama stated he would never have nominated Alito, Thomas, Roberts and Scalia - In my opinion, these are the ones who are keeping our Constitution from being completely re-written by the court system (that's what Amendments are for!)

- Iraq War victory- McCain is one of the FEW who called for more military to finish the job of defeating Saddam, defeating Al Quaeda and securing a functioning Democracy in Iraq. He and Petraeus and Bush deserve all the credit for sticking with our committments and national interest by pushing to establish security instead of pulling out in defeat, as most Democrats and Obama specifically would not have gone into Iraq (wrong call) and pulled out early, giving Al Quaeda a major victory.

• In my view, we went into Iraq with multinational support and in support of UN while Iraq was in violation of multiple agreements and fired at our aircraft and was building a chem-bio program and had plans to obtain nuclear programs...therefore we went into Iraq justifiable and won the immediate war but made some mistakes - particularly with logistics, re-establishing a working govt and relating to the governed. We also wasted way too much money - all valid critiques

- Afghanistan victory - Similar to above. Not sure if Obama would have gone to war against Taliban and set up a functioning democracy in Afghanistan. Both want a surge in military to hold security while country stabilizes and hopefully nabs OBL.

- Government Waste - McCain's 88% lifetime rating voting against Govt Waste vs. Obama's 18% and Bidens 22% (http://www.cagw.com/)

- Earmarks (McCain never earmarks, and wants to end them completely, Obama put $330M in 2007 alone!)

- Demonstrated Leadership - McCain's combat leadership vs. Obama's community organizing

- Tax Cuts (Obama will "roll back" Bush tax cuts and increase capital gains taxes, making it more expensive to sell stock...)

- Legislative record of working across party lines (McCain-Lieberman, McCain-Feingold, McCain-Kennedy) Obama never went against his own party to compromise on major bills. He says he will, but his actions don't demonstrate it.

- Expanding oil drilling now and incentivizing market for alternative energy - Obama will not allow drilling now, nor establishing more domestic energy production (which would increase jobs) - Obama only advocates future moves to alternative energy...just like every president since Nixon has said...

Thomas Jefferson Memorial and USA Godly foundations

Couldn't help but chuckle when I went on a field trip with the triplets yesterday to the Lincoln, Jefferson, Washington, WWII, Korean memorials...

Panel Two of the Jefferson Memorial states:

"Almighty God hath created the mind free. All attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens . . . are a departure from the plan of the Holy Author of our religion . . . No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship or ministry or shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but all men shall be free to profess and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion. I know but one code of morality for men whether acting singly or collectively."

Panel Three:

"God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that his justice cannot sleep forever. Commerce between master and slave is despotism. Nothing is more certainly written in the book of fate than that these people are to be free. Establish a law for educating the common people. This it is the business of the state and on a general plan."

I realize these are excerpts, and the full text is not provided on the monument walls, but these certainly portray Jefferson's perspective of liberty and governance with a full awareness of God. If he believed in denying any reference to God in the State, he wouldn't have so eloquently described His role in defining our rights and bestowing righteous motivations.

So, anytime I doubt the people in the halls of Congress or the White House or the Supreme Court, all I have to do is take a walk around those white marble statues and stones and read the inscriptions of those who founded and led this great country. They pledged their lives to God and country. They were not ashamed. They didn't squash religious freedom, they embraced it. They understood that God is the author of our freedoms, and to deny Him would only prove our own downfall.

Above quotes and their references can be found at the Thomas Jefferson website.

What is a WORLDVIEW?

Worldview

1. Construct that one view's the activities and happenings through
2. Prism or Lens by which one can interpret the world
3. Perspective based on certain assumptions that define the world, people, nature, the cosmos

Dr. James Sire states in his new book, Naming the Elephant, "A worldview is a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or entirely false) which we hold (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic makeup of our world."

(I'll get into Truth and Falsehood in a later post)

For a more definitive review of Worldview, read several titles by Dr. James Sire. He introduced me to worldview thinking when I was a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy (Yes, we actually discussed Philosophy and Religion there!).

David Naugle addresses the history of worldview, Nancy Pearcey wrote a book called Total Truth, which highlights the problem with seperating Christian Worldview from public discourse.