Numbers
: 37 Americans died in Iraq today, 31 of them in an accidental helicopter crash. We pay more attention when more people die. That’s ridiculous, even offensive. Others died yesterday and the day before. Some died in accidents, some at the hand of insurgents/terrorists/murderers. None of them should have died, of course. Some try to blame the president for these deaths; too few blame the murderers with blood on their hands. Blame won’t bring them back, nothing will. But it is important that we at least remember them and their tragic sacrifice as we reach an important milestone this Sunday with the first election in Iraq. I don’t know that I believe that death can be given meaning but if it can, bringing democracy to a nation is a noble cause. It is also important that we remember all the innocent civilians who have died at the hands of Saddam and now the terrorists in Iraq and as a result of war. The people of Iraq will be risking their lives this Sunday to bring democracy to their nation; the soldiers there will be risking their lives to protect them. Democracy is that precious.
