Zeev's Turnips Talk Politics (ZTTP)

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Dissent is not treason
By: David Hutchinson
Issue date: 11/23/05 Section: Opinion
Article Tools: Page 1 of 1

During the past week, the White House has been publicly defending itself against charges that the case for war against Iraq was manipulated by the administration. In front of military audiences, which have become a far-too-common platform for the president, he has said that criticism of his administration is detrimental to the morale of our soldiers and sends the wrong message to our enemies. Basically, though not in as strong language, the president is equating dissent with treason. This is not the first time; Attorney General Ashcroft said in front of a Congressional panel that critics of the administration "only aid terrorists" and that they give "ammunition to America's enemies."

President Bush said on Veterans Day: "The stakes in the global war on terror are too high, and the national interest is too important, for politicians to throw out false charges. These baseless attacks send the wrong signal to our troops and to an enemy that is questioning America's will. As our troops fight a ruthless enemy determined to destroy our way of life, they deserve to know that their elected leaders who voted to send them to war continue to stand behind them. Our troops deserve to know that this support will remain firm when the going gets tough. And our troops deserve to know that whatever our differences in Washington, our will is strong, our nation is united, and we will settle for nothing less than victory."

The president is the traitor, not anyone who has questions about the war. This is not a partisan Democrat issue, nor is it part of some far-left opposition. Recent polls show that a majority of the American people have concerns about the case for war. And why shouldn't they? No weapons have been found. Iraq seems to have not been an "imminent threat" to the security of this country. The president wants to forget this and say that critics are rewriting history, but that was where his authority to go to war came from.

The legislature has is partly to blame; they should never have handed over this authority to be abused by the president. Hopefully, the voters will remember this in the next election and call these politicians to account. The legislature voted to give the president this far-reaching authority, and now they are questioning the case for war. But who will call the president to account on this matter? Just because they gave him unprecedented authority does not mean they should not act on the behalf of the American people now. Who else can?

Dissent is far from treasonous, and is actually more patriotic than just going along with everything. The soldiers, and I was once a soldier, should know that they are utilized for warfare in appropriate circumstances where it is absolutely necessary. A patriot does not sit back and allow injustice and abuse of power. The founders of our country knew this. If they had simply accepted authority without question, there would never have been a rebellion against England.

It takes a lot more than simply putting a flag in front of your house and sticking decorative magnetic ribbons on your car to be a patriot! Lazy people pretending to be patriots are everywhere lately. Case in point, turnout in last weeks election in Franklin County was the lowest in the state, not even crossing 30 percent. Patriots love their country and defends it; they do not allow injustice and creeping tyranny to destroy it. They are not armchair patriots; they vote and ask questions. If we were misled into war, it must be exposed. This goes beyond our current war - this is necessary to restore faith in our system for the future.

The president says that dissent sends the wrong message to our soldiers and enemies. This is not the wrong message - it is reality. Many people, the majority in fact, have questions about the case for war. If the president's administration did not mislead us, they have nothing to fear in these inquiries: they will be absolved of wrongdoing. This is not a partisan political issue, it is a serious concern , one that exists, regardless of what the president wants to say about it.

David Hutchinson is a graduate student in the School of Communication. He can be reaced for comment at [e-mail].
http://www.thelantern.com/media/paper333/news/2005/11/23/Opinion/Dissent.Is.Not.Treason-1113295.shtm...