Finish The Job
The father of a Marine killed in Iraq has a simple request for Congress, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. Stop the political wrangling and finish the job in Iraq. John and Shawn Wroblewski lost their oldest son, Marine 2d Lt. John Thomas Wroblewski, in 2004. Mr. Wroblewski understands the cost of war in a way that virtually all of the most strident war critics do not. Yet he says finish the job.
John Wroblewski suggests Congress stop all the talk about leaving Iraq in 60 days, or 90 days, or 120 days.
Instead, what the country needs, he says, is "more discussion about victory and how we're going to win."
What he seeks is leadership. Courage, to stand up to a relentless, smart and brutal enemy. Patience, to see the nation through the inevitable dark days. Strength, to set priorities and see them through.
Wroblewski sees these characteristics in those fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, young men and women he considers heroes. Is it too much to ask the same of those who sent those troops into combat?
The high school athletic director from Jefferson Township, N.J., is unapologetic in his support for the war and those fighting it - "You can't separate the troops and the mission," he says.
Often, he says, the news out of Washington makes you "grit your teeth." Worse are declarations that the war is lost.
"When [Senate Majority Leader] Harry Reid said that, it just turned my stomach," Wroblewski says.
As I have said many times, this is the war we have, regardless of how we got here. And the damage to the United States an early withdrawal will cause will apply to all of America, not to any political party. America will be blamed for the genocide that would follow.
By FedUp, Friday, 3 August , 2007 @ 2:38 pm
A hand on the heart to Mr. Wroblewski and his family!! Nothing can ever make up for the loss of a family member, especially in wartime. He is right! We have to unite and get the job done so that his loss willnot be in vain!
Unfortunately, his quest (like Diogenes searching for an honest man) for leadership, courage and patience will go unanswered. Those qualities have been doused with the cold water of politics. When dirty Harry stands up and declares the war ‘lost’ he is demonstrating just how far we have fallen in uniting our country against our enemies. Harry, you and your ilk are a total disgrace and you should be ashamed of yourselves!