Posted by
Matt Keller on Thursday, January 25, 2007 7:16:41 PM
2nd Lt. Mark Daily died a few days ago in Iraq from an IED attack. He
was 23. In his last Myspace.com blog he writes why he feels its
important for him to be in Iraq. I think every American should read his
words. This war is completely different from other wars in the fact at
how the internet, and blogging has infinately changed how we see and
hear our courageous men and women in uniform. With this new
accessability to those in danger war has become infinately more
personal. The somber letters to home from the Civil War and WWII era
have turned into the somber Letters to the World. It is every
American's duty to stand and take notice of the words of those who in
their hectic workday, take a few minutes to relive and reflect what has
happened to them and put these events to digital pen and paper.
Here is Mark Daily's last Letter to the World:
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Sunday, October 29, 2006
WHY I JOINED
Current mood: optimistic
Why I Joined:
This
question has been asked of me so many times in so many different
contexts that I thought it would be best if I wrote my reasons for
joining the Army on my page for all to see. First, the more accurate
question is why I volunteered to go to Iraq. After all, I joined the
Army a week after we declared war on Saddam's government with the
intention of going to Iraq. Now, after years of training and
preparation, I am finally here.
Much has changed in the last
three years. The criminal Ba'ath regime has been replaced by an
insurgency fueled by Iraq's neighbors who hope to partition Iraq for
their own ends. This is coupled with the ever present transnational
militant Islamist movement which has seized upon Iraq as the greatest
way to kill Americans, along with anyone else they happen to be
standing near. What was once a paralyzed state of fear is now the
staging ground for one of the largest transformations of power and
ideology the Middle East has experienced since the collapse of the
Ottoman Empire. Thanks to Iran, Syria, and other enlightened local
actors, this transformation will be plagued by interregional hatred and
genocide. And I am now in the center of this.
Is this why I joined?
Yes.
Much has been said about America's intentions in overthrowing Saddam
Hussein and seeking to establish a new state based upon political
representation and individual rights. Many have framed the paradigm
through which they view the conflict around one-word explanations such
as "oil" or "terrorism," favoring the one which best serves their
political persuasion. I did the same thing, and anyone who knew me
before I joined knows that I am quite aware and at times sympathetic to
the arguments against the war in Iraq. If you think the only way a
person could bring themselves to volunteer for this war is through
sheer desperation or blind obedience then consider me the exception
(though there are countless like me).
I joined the fight because
it occurred to me that many modern day "humanists" who claim to possess
a genuine concern for human beings throughout the world are in fact
quite content to allow their fellow "global citizens" to suffer under
the most hideous state apparatuses and conditions. Their excuses used
to be my excuses. When asked why we shouldn't confront the Ba'ath
party, the Taliban or the various other tyrannies throughout this
world, my answers would allude to vague notions of cultural tolerance
(forcing women to wear a veil and stay indoors is such a quaint
cultural tradition), the sanctity of national sovereignty (how eager we
internationalists are to throw up borders to defend dictatorships!) or
even a creeping suspicion of America's intentions. When all else
failed, I would retreat to my fragile moral ecosystem that years of
living in peace and liberty had provided me. I would write off war
because civilian casualties were guaranteed, or temporary alliances
with illiberal forces would be made, or tank fuel was toxic for the
environment. My fellow "humanists" and I would relish contently in our
self righteous declaration of opposition against all military campaigns
against dictatorships, congratulating one another for refusing to taint
that aforementioned fragile moral ecosystem that many still cradle with
all the revolutionary tenacity of the members of Rage Against the
Machine and Greenday. Others would point to America's historical
support of Saddam Hussein, sighting it as hypocritical that we would
now vilify him as a thug and a tyrant. Upon explaining that we did so
to ward off the fiercely Islamist Iran, which was correctly identified
as the greater threat at the time, eyes are rolled and hypocrisy is
declared. Forgetting that America sided with Stalin to defeat Hitler,
who was promptly confronted once the Nazis were destroyed, America's
initial engagement with Saddam and other regional actors is identified
as the ultimate argument against America's moral crusade.
And
maybe it is. Maybe the reality of politics makes all political action
inherently crude and immoral. Or maybe it is these adventures in
philosophical masturbation that prevent people from ever taking any
kind of effective action against men like Saddam Hussein. One thing is
for certain, as disagreeable or as confusing as my decision to enter
the fray may be, consider what peace vigils against genocide have
accomplished lately. Consider that there are 19 year old soldiers from
the Midwest who have never touched a college campus or a protest who
have done more to uphold the universal legitimacy of representative
government and individual rights by placing themselves between Iraqi
voting lines and homicidal religious fanatics. Often times it is less
about how clean your actions are and more about how pure your
intentions are.
So that is why I joined. In the time it took for
you to read this explanation, innocent people your age have suffered
under the crushing misery of tyranny. Every tool of philosophical
advancement and communication that we use to develop our opinions about
this war are denied to countless human beings on this planet, many of
whom live under the regimes that have, in my opinion, been legitimately
targeted for destruction. Some have allowed their resentment of the
President to stir silent applause for setbacks in Iraq. Others have
ironically decried the war because it has tied up our forces and
prevented them from confronting criminal regimes in Sudan, Uganda, and
elsewhere.
I simply decided that the time for candid discussions of the oppressed was over, and I joined.
In
digesting this posting, please remember that America's commitment to
overthrow Saddam Hussein and his sons existed before the current
administration and would exist into our future children's lives had we
not acted. Please remember that the problems that plague Iraq today
were set in motion centuries ago and were up until now held back by the
most cruel of cages. Don't forget that human beings have a
responsibility to one another and that Americans will always have a
responsibility to the oppressed. Don't overlook the obvious reasons to
disagree with the war but don't cheapen the moral aspects either.
Assisting a formerly oppressed population in converting their torn
society into a plural, democratic one is dangerous and difficult
business, especially when being attacked and sabotaged from literally
every direction. So if you have anything to say to me at the end of
this reading, let it at least include "Good Luck"
Mark Daily