The Highway.com

When I heard of the tragedy, the senseless loss of life at the hands of fundamentalist extremist terrorists, I first cried then was outraged. How could somebody do this to innocent people? When you spoke to the nation shortly afterward, I felt a little better, believing that we would get through this, find the people responsible, and see to it nothing like this would ever happen again. I fully supported your plan, “A war on terrorism”, convinced it was the best way to insure peace for all people like me in the world.

Then came Afghanistan.

You told me who was responsible, Osama Bin Ladin and Al Quaeda, and where they were. You gave me a world map showing the sixty six countries they called home. You told me the ring leader was the guest of the Taliban, the ruling body in Afghanistan. You cautioned me that this would not be a short war like the last one we fought, but you promised me in the end peace loving people of the world would prevail.

I believed you.

In the meantime, our economy has gone down the tubes, I am lucky to be working half the hours I normally do, worry about my safety, my family’s welfare. The modest house needs repairs, but the money is not there to do it, and if it gets much worse it will be taken from me. Everywhere I go people seem afraid, not sure of what tomorrow can bring, yet you tell us to be confident. How can I remain confident when all the security I have known is vanishing before my eyes? Still, however, as a loyal American, I trusted that this too shall pass. Things will get better and soon.

Then came homeland security.

People were getting picked up. I read an article that said you supported my neighbor spying on me, another saying my government could bug a private conversation with my lawyer. My days became yellow alerts and now orange. People are buying duct tape and plastic, left right and center. My tax dollars funds a new office that is supposed to make me feel more at ease in my life, my government seeing to it that I would get back the safety I lost. Why then do I feel less secure than ever before?

Then came Iraq.

I have been listening to the news daily now as more and more troops are being sent to attack another country in the Middle East. I am being told they have “weapons of mass destruction” and their leader is an “evildoer.” I watch my government trying to start a war, a pre-emptive defense of my country, yet until just two weeks ago, I really did not know many of the details. So are you are telling me is that it would have been ok to “nuke” Hiroshima, because the Japanese might bomb Pearl Harbor. . . to invade Germany because Hitler might invade Poland? You told me it was a matter of national security; you said the same to the rest of the world. Now I see the United Nations locked in heated debate, NATO dividing, over Saddam Hussein and Iraq.

“Whatever happened to Osama Bin Ladin?”

“What about the sixty six countries where his organization operates?”

“What about 9/11?”

“Why do I feel as if World War III and the end of everything is just around the corner?”

“Why am I living day to day, unable to tell my children things are going to get better?”

“When did a war on terrorism become a war on Iraq, an alliance of the willing in defiance of the will of the rest of the world?”

I don’t understand what is going on. The only words that seemed to make any sense to me were originally in French. I looked at the charts, saw the evidence Colin Powell revealed, but I was not convinced. And we still keep sending troops! I have seen your support among your own people fall,and the only ones I know personally that still strongly support you are also waiting for the Rapture.

“I feel confused, helpless, frightened and not represented.”

“Am I not a part of this country?”

“Do I not deserve answers when I ask?”

I really want to be able to support you in this, but I can’t. In the humble opinion of a middle class blue collar citizen who loves his country, as the President of the United States of America you need to convince me before you do anything. You need to convince all those like me, whose numbers are steadily growing, and until you do, my voice and conscience must speak loud and clear.

No war. . . no pre-emptive defense. This is not what my country has ever been about, and I hope it never will.

And bring our troops poised to invade Iraq, home where they belong.