War...Good God y'all

I guess I should chime in with a more detailed response to the war discussion started by ADK Mom yesterday. I fear that I’m coming across as sounding like some kind of warmonger—and nothing could be further from the truth.

First, I direct you to the message Aaron left in comments. For two guys with a reputation for having opposite opinions on many topics, we find ourselves in agreement once again (at least in principle).

Do I like war? No! I pray my children will go through their lives without ever having to experience it. Are peaceful resolutions preferable? Of course.

But I acknowledge that is not always possible and that some things are worth fighting for. The American Revolution was worth it (see also Marc’s comments). Stopping Hitler was worth it. And I believe going into Afghanistan in 2001 was the right thing to do.

Iraq is a whole other breed of cat. Although I was onboard in the beginning, those I’ve discussed the subject with know that I freely admit now it was a colossal mistake. While I may disagree with some of you loyal readers on theories behind the reasons for the war, we’re on the same page in thinking that it was wrong to begin with and has been handled wrong so far.

I stop short before joining the cry for immediate withdrawal. Now that we’ve created this mess, I think it would be wrong to just leave. I know you can’t publicize the “exit strategy” without tipping our hand. But I’d just like to know that there is an exit strategy—because right now I don’t believe there is one.

That’s all I have to say on this topic for now. Now let’s move on to lighter things…

Memorial Day

We have a controversy at our house over war. It's funny in a way because Chris has always known where I stand so I don't know why he seems surprised by my feelings against it. Maybe I'm just more vocal about it lately. Anyway, Chris thinks war is a necessary evil at times. I think there's always another option and we should be investing our time and money in discovering them. My hero is Gandhi. I don't know who Chris's hero is--maybe he'll share. I do support our troops and I do honor those that have died in war. I just think it is sad that they are put in that position. How many lives we honor today...maybe if nonviolent methods like boycotting, fasting, sit ins, etc were used then we wouldn't be mourning them now. I'm not saying turn the other cheek and get run over. We should all stand up for what we believe in. It's just I don't think people need to get killed to do it. I'm interested what other people think, although I might be in the minority on my views since this is Chris' blog. I'm taking a risk!
Anyway, it's been a fun weekend. We bought a grill finally so, Chris will tell you, he feels secure in his manhood again! We had steaks last night (Thanks Dad! We've been saving them for our first grill food.) and they were fabulous. I painted Nolan's room. He's going to have a Star Wars theme. He had a mural in his room that Chris and I did 4 years ago and it took 4 coats of paint to hide it. It's a butter yellow now, his pick. And of course lots of baseball games to go to. Friday night was really wet on the field and Thomas was a mud monster by the time it was over. Only 6 games left. Chris has to work today and it's raining so I have to figure out how to keep the kids busy. Hope everyone enjoys their Memorial Day. Maybe you can have controversy over war in your house today too!

EDITOR'S NOTE: The "controversy" evolved from a discussion about the Revolutionary War, not Iraq.