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BenjieLoveless wrote:I was refering more to the possibility of the fathers guilt over his pro war stance. However I think your right that no matter who we voted for or spoke out against we all have helped to create this current climate somehow. I don't believe that it is necessary to take on collective guilt , guilt is rarely a productive emotion, but I do believe we should take RESPONSIBILITY.

It is very difficult in the face of relentless rhetoric, particularly in the U.S., for many to really understand the full picture of what is happening in Iraq. Especially when you have anchor man like Dan Rather , referring to the 20 year-old marine who was photographed smoking, saying stuff like:

Gazing lovingly at Miller, the CBS News anchor Dan Rather informed his viewers: "For me, this one's personal. This is a warrior with his eyes on the far horizon, scanning for danger. See it. Study it. Absorb it. Think about it. Then take a deep breath of pride. And if your eyes don't dampen, you're a better man or woman than I."

These sort of sentiments are wicked and manipulative. We have this sort of pernicious propaganda in Britain, but it is mostly relegated to the tabloids, rather than on television. Unfortunately tabloids like the Sun form a lot of the popular consensus here.

Like you say, the reality of the situation will lay its hands on all of us, but I fear it will be too late. Just as it is too late for all those who've already died or had lives irrevocably ruined.

Benjie--

It always seems like there's nothing appropriate to say in these situations, so I'll just say that I'm really sorry about your loss.

Greg

Benjie--

It always seems like there's nothing appropriate to say in these situations, so I'll just say that I'm really sorry about your loss.

agreed. i'm sure you heard this many times in the past week, but I'm very sorry to hear about this too. I'll definitely be praying for some peace for your family during this. take care-

Thanks to everybody. It's more my wifes grief than mine, though I feel a certain amount of loss through her and her family. I see thier pain and choose to take responsibility for it. Maybe my main reason for telling people in this sort of setting is to help bring the war(S) home to some folks who lack a personal connection to it. A name and a face attached to someone that your at least mildly acquainted with (me). Unfortunately that makes me just as guilty of being a propagandist as the local media. At least I'm not doing it to hock toothpaste cars and doritos. It's hard to decipher right from wrong and tactful from tacky in these situations. I guess one just goes with thier gut.