War: What is it Good For?

While our military men and women are putting their all into the confrontation in Iraq, many of us at home are asking: What is this war good for?

The answer? As Braveheart's William Wallace put it, "Freedom!"

In the most basic sense, an attack on Iraq is about defending our freedoms as Americans - life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - and even extending those freedoms to the people of Iraq. As an American citizen, I have the privilege of holding on to these ideals as universal rights, obtainable by all men.

So when Dave Matthews sings "Is war the only way to peace? Well, I don't fall for that," I have to question his hippie ideals in light of the iron-fisted oppression in Iraq and the terrorism it is linked with.

Translation: Peace is beautiful, but this time we need to clench our teeth and kick some butt if we don't want to worry about the protective properties of duct tape for the rest of our earthly lives.

Others disagree, and many of these peaceniks have not been shy about letting us warmongers know how they feel. On Oscar night, Michael Moore's acceptance speech became a sort of political rambling in which he accused the president of waging war for "fictitious reasons."

Apparently, Moore must think either Saddam Hussein or terrorism is imaginary. Newsflash: The man and the mustache really exist, and I've seen Ground Zero myself.

I would have preferred he take Martin Sheen's route: silence. The West Wing star recently demonstrated against the war with a piece of duct-tape reading "peace" placed across his mouth. Bravo, Sheen, but you're still not the real president.

Enter the not-so-beloved Dixie Chicks, whose lead singer, Natalie Maines, would not even stand by her denouncing of Bush after realizing it had caused her a loss in record sales. Now that is dedication to the anti-war movement.

Those not able to abuse fame as a means to political authority have been causing chaos - blocking New York City's Fifth Avenue, for example. While I don't believe those opposing the war should be ignored or silenced, I find this particular sort of demonstration repulsive.

Rather than presenting their ideas intelligently and discussing their views like adults, demonstrators are choosing to express themselves in what resemble organized temper-tantrums. Not only are these people making fools of themselves, but they are also discrediting those who are against the war and can back it up with legitimate reasoning.

More importantly, these childish displays require the attention of law officers, who should be allowed to concentrate on potential terrorist threats instead. Still, such protests will no doubt continue.

Moore, genius that he is, observes on his Web site that "There is virtually no one in America (talk radio nutters and Fox News aside) who is gung-ho to go to war." All I have to say is: obviously.

I'm going to have to break Moore's heart on this one, though: Not even Rush Limbaugh or Bill O'Reilley are bloodthirsty enough to call for something like Sept. 11, 2001, to be inflicted upon the Iraqis. After all, who in his right mind would specifically seek the destruction and suffering that is unavoidable in war?

We're not terrorists, and the American people aren't pursuing innocent and meaningless bloodshed as a means of retaliation. There is a much more concrete reason that has driven Bush to the use of force: terrorism. The only drawback is that we'll have to fight terrorism hands on.

In wartime, the fear for friends and family who are enrolled in the military is ever-present, and this fear is 100 percent rational. We already know that not every soldier sent to Iraq will be returning alive. But is that alone reason enough to back off from this war? No.

As civilians, we must first accept that all members of our military are there because they have voluntarily joined the armed forces. Whether for an education or as a career, they chose to become part of the military and defenders of our free nation.

One also must realize the risk of pain and suffering exists for America, war or no war, with the advent of terrorism here in the States. At least the men and women who are putting their lives on the line in Iraq will have died as soldiers, defending their country's security, rather than as helpless victims. Glory and heroism are present not in the sacrifices made in war, but in the ideals those sacrifices are meant to preserve.

To allow us to step on a plane without fearing box-cutters, to open a letter without testing for anthrax, and to check an e-mail without receiving a message from the university about the heightened level of national alert - these are the goals of this anti-terrorism war.