I was not aware that a purple heart is something someone can demand from the military. Could you please explain how this works?

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Those who define have the power. http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/...heney.ssl.html

He sure isn't no Bill Clinton. From what i have seen of the Democratic convention and the interviews being given by Kerry/Edwards on their campaign trail is one huge joke. Over the weekend Bill Wallace interviews both Kerry and Edwards at the same time. They did their usual side stepping to questions as Politicians often do but at the end of the interview they discussed the intake of DIET SODA POP that was injested by Edwards on a daily basis!! It was rediculous. Apparently they thought that we needed to know that he was addicted to DIET SODA POP for some reason and consumes the stuff by the case. There sat our future VP giggling like a school child as they discussed his SODA POP intake. It was like watching a father and his child sitting there explaining how they would run this Country. NOT ON MY WATCH!! For the sake of this Country we need to keep them people far away from our White House. If and when the going gets tough you are probably going to find that Edwards guy hiding under his freakin bed.

I don't think that was meant to take literally. It probably meant that Kerry insisted he needed to get a Purple Heart to get himself outta there!! Oh yeah, my hero .. NOT! This guy is a joke along with his running mate. They make and say pretty pretty things that they think the voters want to hear but when it comes right down to it? They have nothing to back it up with. They are all talk. At this place and time we need a strong man with conviction. Kerry's record proves the complete opposite of that word. Yet he keeps on saying things like he expects for his statements to become truth all of a sudden!! He is as flakey as his wife and has no business trying to run for President. Like i said in a previous post, the Democrats really are scraping the bottom of the barrel.

but you write as if that is a good thing. A big part of the reason America is disliked around the world is exactly this "kiss my @ss" attitude. Of course we don't know what went on behind the scenes - maybe there were road-blocks as you suggest, maybe not. But the administrations' public pronouncements in favour of unilateralism can hardly have helped matters - it simply pandered to the bully-America stereotype. You sidestep the question of repercussions by saying "they always hated us anyway"; surely you don't really believe it's as simple as that? What are moderate Muslims to make of an attack on a 'brother' nation for reasons that prove to be spurious?

It is a good thing to me. I was brought up to believe that anything is possible especially when a person is determined to go after what they believe to be right. I guess when a Country gets to be the most powerful? that indeed has its advantages. It would be different if we MADE/FORCED these Countries to help us in Iraq. They were asked to help and refused. OK what would be your next step? Beg them? Bribe them? maybe you would plead to them? Or just maybe you would sit around like the rest of the world and do NOTHING!! I guess we could discuss the situation at the UN for another how many years? I'm glad Americans think the way that they do. Americans know how to get things done and for the better i might add. Sure things don't always go according to plan but at least we Americans are at the very least TRYING our darnedest to make things right in the world. To all of the people in the world who dislike or resent the way were are? I say tough boogies to you, i live in America and you don't, aren't i the lucky one.

How many Arab Countries do you know that think of their neighboring Arab Countries as "Brothers". Most of them can't stand each other. They are always fighting amongst themselves. Saddam calls the Kuwaitians DOGS! The people who live in Quatar (sp) specifically asked our Armed forces to set up a base there because they don't trust not to be invaded by their so called brothers. That region is unstable and if left alone? Disastrous results would be sure to follow. This is jmho of course.

I don't know how you resolve an impasse within the UN. And I agree to an extent that it's easy for people to just avoid the issues for years and hope they will go away. The American mentality you describe is very different from what I grew up with but I can see the strength in it. But you write as if you believe Might is Right: "I guess when a Country gets to be the most powerful? that indeed has its advantages". Do you then ignore everyone else even when your decisions directly affect them, as the current terrorist situation certainly does? Surely the significance of a problem like this demands that all nations pool their thinking and talent to find a creative solution. That cannot happen when one nation thinks (and states) "We know best"; that also seems to be the tone of your post. You assume America changes things for the better, but you didn't address the question at the end of my previous post regarding moderate Muslims. Does it not trouble you at all that WMD have not been found?

It really doesn't bother me that no WMD were found in Iraq. If the results were different? then maybe it would. I see it that the world is better off without a man like Saddam in power, whatever the reason.

Its obvious that we don't know all of the circumstances surrounding the situation regarding Russia, France and Germany. But don't you think that we should trust our own Government to do whats best for us? Just like those Countries leaders are doing for their Countries. So what you are saying is that because those Countries opposed the US plan we shouldn't have went ahead and did it? Isn't that kinda like letting the rest of the world tell you what is best for your very own Country? I don't see GWB as the only fault in this mess. The other Countries had the options to do as they wished, and they did. Just as we did. If they believe in their convictions that they brought forth then where does the argument come in at? They made their choice to stay out of it but now they are throwing tantrums because they were not involved in the rebuilding of Iraq. Its clear that they did have dealings with the dictator and they are/have lost alot of money because of our actions but is that really our fault that they didn't have the wisdom NOT to invest in a madman?

Regarding brother nations, of course there is a great deal of antagonism between Arab countries. But that doesn't stop the terrorists using the Iraq war as propaganda. The terrorists have billed it as Christianity against Islam.

As for the views of other countries, yes I think the US should have paid more attention to them. The US decision to go to war affects all of us. It is very arrogant and destructive to international relations to have done that without seriously engaging with the concerns of other countries. In so doing Bush may have made the co-ordinated fight against terrorism much more difficult.

Maybe the problem is that at root, America thinks it knows best. At least that is a common perception abroad and it is amply borne out by this administration. There are great things about America (and my wife is American, as it happens) but this arrogance is very hard for foreigners to stomach. Your confident expression of how the world is certainly better without Saddam, and disregard for the complications the war creates, is perhaps a mild aspect of exactly this problem.

I don't think we should unquestioningly trust our governments on these questions. Certainly Tony Blair's handling of the lead up to and fall-out from the Iraq war has been very troubling. The big headline of the Butler report is that the UK government was cleared of wrongdoing and yet it also points out that crucial caveats to the intelligence were removed. The government refuses to explain how this happened. You don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to suspect there's something fishy going on. I don't want to get into a debate on the intelligence; I'm just answering your question - trust has to be earned by honesty and transparency in my opinion.

Regarding brother nations, of course there is a great deal of antagonism between Arab countries. But that doesn't stop the terrorists using the Iraq war as propaganda. The terrorists have billed it as Christianity against Islam.
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I totally agree with you here but don't you think that the intelligent people of the world realize what the terrorists are trying to accomplish by pitting Christianity against Islam? And or the reasons why they are doing it? I would sure like to think so.