California Conservative

“No one wants any soldier to die, but be proud.  The United States is a liberator.”

Also at Catholic Mass in the Main Post Chapel were two Sudanese and one Iraqi soldier.  Non-citizens, LEGAL aliens, can join the military (what a great way to earn citizenship!) After Mass, my husband, SFC Proctor and I talked to Anwar, the Iraqi Catholic soldier.  The image of a young Iraqi Catholic man in a US Army uniform was surreal.  Anwar, a 37 year old Iraqi who fought as a soldier under Saddam in the 1st Gulf War of 1991, is  now endeavoring to become a US Soldier. He told us that during the Gulf War, Iraqi soldiers refused to fight for Saddam and most either defected to other countries, abandoned their posts or surrendered to the US.  After Basic Training he will study to become a linguist, arguably putting him in a valuable and ironic position to be deployed to Iraq to do his part in the war on terror… but this time as an US soldier.  

Anwar was pleased to learn of SFC Proctor’s familiarity with the Al Rashid district of Baghdad, where Anwar grew up and and the 82nd ABN served from May 2003-February 2004.  Anwar asked if we knew a Fr. Bashar of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Baghdad, to which the answer was: “Of course!”

Cindy Sheehan once said:

"America has been killing people on this continent since it was started. This country is not worth dying for…"

Thank God not everyone feels that way.  Fr. Augustine said with a heavy Malawian accent in his farewell remarks to the congregation:

“Thank you. Thank you for your faith.  Thank you for your love.  Thank you for bringing freedom to countries in need of liberation.  You are not oppressors.  America is a liberator.  No one wants any soldier to die, but be proud.   Americans freely join the military to bring liberation to other countries.  The world needs America.  The United States is a liberator.”         

"I am sorry to add to your grief … but we of the United States have something to fight for — never more fully have I realized that. The United States of America is worth the sacrifice."

"Remember that my leaving was in the service of something that we loved, and be proud. The best way to pay respect is to value why a sacrifice was made."

THANK YOU.  THANK YOU to all the soldiers who have served in the United States military who gave their life in defense of America or the needy abroad. 

SALUTE.

NOTE WORTHY:

• President Bush’s 2006 Memorial Day Speech
• Anthony, Catholic Paratrooper of Jumping Without a Chute, gave this keynote speech at the Franklin, NJ Township Memorial Day Commemoration. 

Cross-posted at Amy’s Blog

This entry was posted on Monday, May 29th, 2006 at 10:55 am and is filed under Author: Amy Proctor, Iraq, Military, Patriotism, Why We Fight: Series. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.