Normblog has a great collection of links and quotes to counter those who still believe that we should be ashamed or ambivalent about what the coalition has accomplished in Iraq.

Thanks to George W. Bush

Although there are still arguments to be made as to whether our sacrifices were "worth it" to this point, these arguments cannot be made in a vacuum. Opposition to the war seems to be centered around the idea that democracy and freedom can be brought about by peaceful means (even if it does mean that people continue to suffer and die during the "peace process").

But really, what freedom has ever been attained peacefully? Even the fall of the Berlin wall and liberation of Eastern Europe came after decades of global conflict and millions of dead fueled by the capitalist-communist standoff. Does anyone remember the American and French Revolutions (including the Reign of Terror)? The Israeli war of Independence where 1 out of every 100 Jews died fighting? Were they "worth it"? Certainly not based on modern liberal philosophy.

I understand the need to prevent loss of life and unnecessary destruction, but how can anyone think that we haven't been doing that compared to previous wars? Wasn't it just 60 years ago that dropping atomic weapons and firebombing cities were reasonable options? Wasn't it just 30 years ago that we were burning villages and destroying ecosystems with toxic chemicals? Today we use precision weapons to avoid civilian casualties, and spend billions on infrastructure projects (while the war is still going on and they can be destroyed by enemy forces!) just so that the local population doesn't suffer unnecessarily.

I'm proud to be an American. And if I'd have been at the polls on Sunday, I'd be damn proud to be an Iraqi too. They are the new torchbearers of freedom in the world. The only question now is to whom will the torch be passed?

I can already imagine the Olympic procession in the summer of 2008. Afghanistan, Palestine, Iraq, someone else???? Free men and women, with no one feeling sorry for them anymore. The United States might not get the loudest applause, but that's not really the point, is it? Colin Powell recently said about WWII that all America asked of Europe was for a piece of earth in which we could bury our war dead. We don't even ask for that anymore.