In Iraq, we must fight for our goal

I’m so stinking tired of hearing Congress go on and on about steroids when everyone knows it’s just an cheap election-year tactic to shift attention away from Iraq and on to something that doesn’t amount to a hill of beans.

All you hear nowadays is Congress holding hearings to get to the bottom of the steroid issue. Did Barry Bonds use steroids? Was wrestler Chris Benoit geeked on steroids when he killed his family? What sports starters have been using steroids to get the edge on their competition?

The last time I looked, Congress was not a primary law enforcement agency, yet they want to go around like Bobby Kennedy back in the 1960s when he was gunning for the Mafia and Jimmy Hoffa. We already have an agency which can address the illegal distribution of steroids. It’s called the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

After all, the distribution of steroids without a prescription is already a crime, therefore it should be addressed by law enforcement, not Congress. If there wasn’t a law then I could understand their involvement since they are the legislative branch. However, there’s already mechanisms for attacking such illegal distribution. So why does Congress persist? One word. Iraq. That’s what this column is really about.

Whether they want to admit it or not, most, and yes I say most, members of Congress voted to go to war in Iraq back in 2003. And most, yes most, are still voting to fund the war, otherwise we wouldn’t still be there no matter how bad President Bush wants to ‘stay the course.’

It’s Congress that controls the purse strings, and to fight a war, you have to have money, and in Iraq it’s to the tune of tens of billions every year. So, how does Congress explain this when Iraq will be the battleground in the 2008 elections? How can they point the finger when they are just as responsible as the person they are pointing at?

As a matter of fact, while I’m on the subject, no matter how indignant you are about the war in Iraq, over 70 percent of Americans were behind it when we first went in. We are just fickle here in America where if something doesn’t go our way overnight, we’re ready to throw in the towel. We have no commitment to the ultimate goal anymore, ready to use the word Vietnam if there’s any resistance. And guess what? The rest of the world knows this. Why don’t we get the respect we used to even though we are the most powerful military force in the history of the world?

It’s because the rest of the world knows we have no stomach for a prolonged fight, that we won’t stay the course and we’ll always bring the boys home before the job is done. All they have to do is be patient and detonate some car bombs. If you don’t believe me, just listen to your television tonight. All you will hear is about getting out of Iraq.

The bad part is the folks who seek our destruction are hearing the same things, likely funding agencies which support our quick departure from Iraq. Hey, if I were one of the bad guys and had all that Saudi and Iranian money being secretly funneled to my cause, I’d be laying down some cash to support instability in America and what better way to do that than an organization which advocates not staying the course in Iraq?

So, when you turn on your TV and hear about the latest congressional investigation into steroids tonight, just remember, it’s not about the drugs, it’s about the war.

Duane Sherrill is a reporter for the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].