Everyone is Affected

The war in Iraq, as much as people may try to deny the truth or simply turn a blind eye, truly has an affect on each and every one of us, directly or indirectly. Raised under very liberal parents, I have developed an entirely unbiased view on world events (or at least I like to believe so). On a direct level, I have seen my closest friend enlist in the Air Force not too long ago. Even though he still has yet to be deployed for his assignment, he still feeds me startling information about our military and the war we are fighting. This close contact is perhaps the main source I have for receiving information about what is going on.

On an indirect level, I, as well as all Americans, are paying for this war. Everyday, the price for gas seems to climb gradually yet steadily, reaching record breaking highs. Even though I do not have true proof that this is caused by the war, I have reasonable suspicion to believe that it indeed is (I could being talking about why I believe so but that would warrant an essay within itself). Aside from gas prices, Americans are paying for our war in our tax dollars. This is the biggest problem I have with our nation. Why should I, as well as many other Americans, be paying for a war that I do not believe in? My generation is going to be the one that pays the price for entering Iraq. But perhaps we are in Iraq with completely good intentions? This is not the case at all. The main reason I feel we are in Iraq is because good old George Bush felt he needed to finish what his daddy started. George Bush Senior had quite a hatred for Osama Bin Laden and promised to bring him to justice. Thus, I think that it is reasonable to believe that baby Bush just wants to make his father proud (great reason for putting our nation in trillion dollars of debt and killing countless soldiers eh?).

So naturally, one may ask me where I get news from. Well, as mentioned previously, I get a large chunk of the news fed to me by my Air Force buddy. We talk fairly often and he talks about what he sees first handedly. Secondly, I get much of my information from the internet. I try to read many different news sites (such as CNN, the New York Times, etc.) to help destroy any bias that is associated with news sites (FOX). However, I receive the majority of my information about what is going on by simply talking to involved friends. A large amount of my friends enjoy engaging in political debates with each other, and as a result, I am fed much information from people directly.

Overall, I feel as if we need to firmly leave Iraq as soon as possible. This is a pointless war that has countless repercussions. I feel as if this war is perhaps one of the most embarrassing and shameful events in our nations history, aside from Vietnam.

~Drew Clearfield