Can you say that you do not support the Iraq war without it meaning you do not support the military troops?

Question

I am serious. I know there have been public debates about this too.

People can't seem to separate the two. We all love and wish our men/women home safely. They are just doing their call of duty.

Disagreeing with this war isn't synonymous with not supporting the troops, and by people saying if they oppose the war, it's disrespectrul, you're not a patriot, your'e not supporting the troops, etc. is twisted and to me seems like mind control and mind games that people are playing with each other, or that politicians and extremists want you to believe.

I keep thinking of Bush's "You're either with us or against us" echoing whenever I hear that. Maybe it had one meaning at first but it's almost sinister in context at this stage of the game.

I know it's a sensitive area, but I think people need to somehow separate the two, because I think the USA has been divided and has suffered much more as a nation from this war than from 9/11.

Thoughts?

Said so eloquantly Jonathan! My point exactly, and my parents and others were caught up in that war and still carry the scars. We can never afford that mentality again and that is what is most frightening.

Yes Solo...I hear you loud and clear on that...I'm still picking my jaw off the floor.

And I should say God speed as well...there has to be a God to right these things don't you agree....

Just Askin, I said I do not support the war. I do support the troops. You don't understand what I mean by that? I'll tell you. I believe (as many do) that the American public was duped into this war on Iraq. I don't believe the soldiers should be fighting this war. In other words they should not be there. But they are there, and they are fighting it, so I am not going to disrespect the work they are doing and blame this mess on them and say the war is their fault. It's not. As such I support the fact they have to be there as they are only following orders. But I do not believe this is the same war the soldiers marched into after 9/11. Somehow they were all diverted into a secondary war here.

Answer 1

I agree with you completely. Most of these same people who have a hard time seperating the two also make the same mistake of thinking that true patriotism necessitates blind faith and acceptance of your government. I don't think such blind patriotism is healthy for individuals or society as a whole insomuch as it leads to hatred and mistrust of other nationalities and "foreigners". There is a growing trend in the US to repel "foreigners" and "illegals" and effectively close the borders to potentially dangerous outsiders who might be terrorists or supporters of terrorism.
Hitler and Musilini both used similar tactics to prop up their fascist regimes and justify their actions. If you compare what is going on in today's America with fascist Germany and Italy you will find some very surprising similarities.

Answer 2

This is a tough question. If you say I support the troops but not the war, isn't that not supporting the troops? What if your favorite sports team plays its game without fans? You can say, I support the fact they play the game, but I hate the game, because the game is stupid. I am a teacher, and if someone told me that they support the fact that I educate the young, but school is uneccesary, then the compliment they gave is a backhanded one.

If you support the troops, then you gotta honor the game they play. If you enlist in the military, then you know the risk of going to war. You go to basic training to learn how to kill.

I know that the easy answer is to say. "Yes, you can hate the war and Bush and so on, but support the troops." I get your quote that people need to seperate the two and stop believing the either you're with us or against us attitude.

As for me, I cannot go up to a soilder and say, 'I am proud of you, but the job you are ordered to do is wrong.'

Answer 3

1) Soldiers have a job to do - They are trained to kill to contain and so forth - They obey orders - that is thier job - no more no less

2) The military often gets hard to near impossible missions - They are the last resort to situations that are out of control. As such they are ussually very respected by the citzen's or subjects of their nations -


3) The government that is supposed to represent the will of the people command the Armed forces - They decide on what mission - where - how long and what rules of engadgement are to be followed if any - They decide what weapons may or may not be used on the battlefield - They decide when the war is won or lost --

4) To critize the policy of the government - for the orders they give the soldiers is to be critical of the mission they were given - This is not an attack on the employee (the soldier) it is an attack on the governments decision(s) to give the military the specific order it did

5) To critize the efforts of the soldiers or the behaviour they have on and off the battlefield - That is being critical of the soldier -


6) There is a big difference between we should not have taken that hill and saying the soldiers did a bad job taking that hill


7) The fact that this needed pointing out should give you a clue as to how manipulated society has become that one seeks to shut up people who are critical of the governments orders to the soldiers and being a traitor for hating the troops

Answer 4

If you support the troops, you have to support their objective. The President, the Commander in Chief of the military, has the same objective as the military. That objective is something we don't hear much about, in our media or even in dialogue amongst ourselves. The objective of this war, as with any war, is to WIN!!! Military leaders will establish the criteria for victory, but I think our role as Americans is to hope, pray, work, cheer, etc., for VICTORY!! If you can't do that, are you hoping for defeat?? I cannot accept that as true.
So, if you say you support the troops, but not the President, you don't make sense to me. They are intertwined in this war because their objectives are the same. I truly believe that if all of our objectives were aligned, if all Americans truly wanted to WIN the war, we would win and be home sooner, resulting in fewer deaths.
I agree with you. America has been divided. And, since we are at war, and we know that the war will continue no matter whose in office (another issue altogether, I know) it's not going to change, we should get behind the president, TRULY get behind the troops, WIN this war, and come home! When we win and come home, fewer people will die. The longer this war drags on, the more deaths.

Answer 5

As an ex soldier who opposes Bush and the war, I get offended by those that say I do not support the troops or called unpatriotic. Ending this war and getting my brother and sister (both are now in Iraq, my brother is a Marine and sister is Army) and all the other men and women fighting a war started under false pretenses is not being unsupportive to our troops. Quite the opposite since we want our family home and safe! Questioning Bush is very patriotic. If we didn't question leaders, we would still be British subjects!

Answer 6

I am so tired of people debating this question. The intelligent mind realizes that one can support something or somebody(ies) without supporting what they are FORCED to do. And don 't give me any of this "well, they volunteered" or "people die in wars" or "sh-t happens" or other crap.
As Bush said early on, this will be war like none other.
So.,
since it is a "war like none other", people's feelings about it - to Include whether or not they support it" has resulted in "support or non-support of this war -- like none other".
Period.
It isn't even important anymore whether a person supports or doesn't support the war or the troops. No one has a say regarding what they do or don't do anymore, except the president of the United States, unfortunately.

Answer 7

I do not agree with this war either, I have already been and will be going back again. I fully support my fellow service members and will not hesitate to do my duty as a member of our military.

This war was sold to us with lies, lies our hole government told us. 9/11 was perpetrated by OUR government. I have experience in military explosives and when I watch the twin towers and WT7 come down I see military grade explosive job. The facts are there, research it yourself.

Again, I will do my duty. We are doing good in Iraq whether or not we should be there, children are going to school, women are going to collage, hospitals are being rebuilt, power is back on in much of the country ext. Because of that and I wont leave my friends to do the job with out me, I will continue to serve, but this war at the end of the day is a lie and crime.

Answer 8

The administration will do anything to keep their war going! They are masters of the big lie! Like Iraq was a real threat to us! Like to support the troops you must support the war. They support the troops with no proper flak jackets and Halliburton supplying contaminated water. Not to mention starvation wages and depleted uranium poisoning. The only real support is to get them out of harms way and bring them home!
Vote for and support Dr. Ron Paul for president as our best choice to end this mess!

Answer 9

Can you truly support the troops without supporting their cause?
If you do not support the cause are you willing to pay for it, if not then you are not willing to pay for supporting the troops.
If you do not support the cause are you going to protest it, if so you are protesting the troops.

To say you support the troops but not the endeavor they have undertaken is hypocritical.

So if the troops ask you to support what they are doing and you do not then effectively you do not support them.

Answer 10

All the GOP members who are calling the Dems hypocrites once said the EXACT SAME THINGS they are criticizing the Dems for in 1999 when Bill Clinton sent our troops to fight in Kosovo. They are full of crap. Some examples:

"Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is."
-Governor George W. Bush (R-TX)

"This is President Clinton's war, and when he falls flat on his face, that's his problem."
-Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN)

"You can support the troops but not the president"
-Representative Tom Delay (R-TX)