Peace Rally in Austin, Texas January 27, 2007

As some of you may know, I have been a proponent of the war in Iraq since the beginning. However, like many who chose to lend their support to the President, I feel that I have been deceived. First, it was the failure to adequately negotiate with the United Nations to form a true coalition of the willing. Then, it was the failure to assemble an adequate military force to execute the war. Third, it was the failure to establish a post-war plan. Fourth, it was a failure to find any significant stockpiles of WMDs. Next, it was a failure to properly oversee the methods of interrogation, ie. Abu Ghraib. Sixth, it was a failure to educate members of the government and military superiors of the complexities of Iraqi internal strife (this was actually one of the first failures but it became apparent when neither of the heads of the committee overseeing intelligence could answer the question of whether al Qeada was Sunni or Shi'a). Seventh, and most sickening, at some point we decided to scrap the Geneva convention resolutions. Shall I continue? The Bush administration has violated so many of the things that once gave us a moral authority that I can no longer keep track.

Believe it or not, I am still optimistic that the troop surge may help with the violence in Baghdad, but I'm losing my resolve. I have been steadfast in my defense of the war, but I'm becoming anxious and confused. I am coming to grips with the idea that American soldiers will never convert the Iraqis to a peaceful existence. But, I am not comfortable with simply removing those troops from Iraq and leaving the country to the fanatical vultures who will swoop in and fill the void. I do not know what to do or who to believe. In my heart, I know that the American soldiers are representing us well in Iraq, but my mind tells me that the people of Iraq are so warped by religious fanaticism and hatred for the west that America cannot help them reach freedom. They do not want it badly enough. If you asked me what we should do, I would say we should stay, but I cannot say what our role should be. Bush has screwed up such a great opportunity that we may be forced to withdraw. What then?

So, that being said, I recently attended a peace rally in Austin. I had the idea that I would ask a few people questions about the war and perhaps their comments would help me find my own version of peace with this issue. I recorded this video at the rally and made this little mini-doc.
Enjoy!