Ceremonies mark 5 years of war in Iraq

Two very different ceremonies in the Capital Region marked the five year anniversary of the war in Iraq Wednesday.

[Joe]

There were about 75 Peace demonstrators in Albany, about 40 in Sch'dy, about 50 in Saratoga, & also a good crowd in Hudson, Glens Falls, Schodack, Voorheesville - altogether a LOT of folks calling for PEACE - at many hundreds of vigils around the US (see moveon.org )- yet the story includes some story about a small gathering that is not anti-war. For balance? The overwhelming majority of Americans want to BRING THE TROOPS HOME!

[Ummm]

But Joe...Senator McCain says the surge is working and the troops will be there for 100 years, if need be. Can you imagine having these vigils through your grandchildren's lifetimes?
Bring the troops home. The mistake of not bringing that kind of force to Afghanistan to get Bin Laden was sheer ego of George Bush. "Remember, this is a man who tried to kill my daddy". What a horse's - well, you know. Enjoy $4.00 a gallon at the tanks this summer. You've got the administration to thank for lining their pockets with cash and having the blood of soldiers on their hands.

[Joey]

How left can you guys get? I am so happy the Marine Corps took me far away from New York. I am an Iraq war veteran with 2 7 month tours over there. I want to go back as do an overwhelming majority of my brothers in arms. Why? Because we see good being done every day we are there. You only see liberal propaganda spewed out in print, tv, and online. Form your opinions "outside the wire" in Iraq/Afghanistan. But please do not protest from the comfort of your life that we are defending.
The Welcome Home Initiative that was poorly covered was not held at a church. It was held at a spiritual healing center and it was meant to help War veterans heal from PTSD, a very real problem that comes with the effects of war. In the sanctuary of the surrounding landscape, military members are invited for a weekend of healing, both spiritually and physically. I know your guys hate anything that has to do with Christianity and the Long War so I should have seen this coming. Next time, do the rest of the world a favor, dont bother sending a news crew. You can spin your own story from the comfort of your offices.

[Noel]

Thanks to the other writers and thanks, above all else, to God for allowing us the freedom to exercise our hard fought privilege of expressing ourselves freely - hard fought often and on many battlefields around the world at the cost of the lives of wounded and dead ordinary men and women, just like each of us. Regardless of whether we agree or disagree with the politics of war, the apolitical WHI retreat was the first of many offering a route to wholeness for a few ordinary folk who willingly and unwillingly fought to keep alive freedom of speech and all the other freedoms we have. WHI offers the opportunity for wounded people to experience the only enduring freedom we have - to be healed by our all-powerful Creator and restored to meaningful life - in body, mind and soul: without ramming that Creator down their throats. WHI is a tiny drop in the ocean, but to the single 'starfish', washed up on some uncomfortable beach of life somewhere, who got thrown back into the living sea to re-experience his or her normal environment again, then it was life saving. Saving just one life made doing WHI worthwhile - and more than one life began to find restoration last week!

[Jan in Adirondacks]

Isnt it strange that just about every troop you talk to believes in what he or she is doing & some have gone back two & three times.I am not to familiar with the WHI.but it seems to me it deserved a lot more coverage than the War Protesters who missed the whole point , This has been how this whole War has been covered by the media.Com e on Media can you get it right for once.Seems you'e always stuck on the left.

[Barbara]

First of all, let me say how proud I am of all the men and women who serve this country.
To Rick, my wonderful son-in-law, you are and always will be my hero! Thank you for serving our country, thank you for being willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice, and thank you for always going the extra mile. I thank God daily that you came into Nicole's life, love her as you do, and are part of our family. We, the whole family, love you!

[In my word 2 you]

I think the WHI retreat was a wonderfull thing that should have been covered more by the news media. I think the troop deserve our thanks and our respect. I still don't believe we should be in this war. The war is part of what is spoiling our economy. If we didn't have the war we wouldn't have all these people suffering from PTSD.

[NET]

I'm with you on this. I have a great respect for our troops. But I think they should come home to thier families that are worrying so much about them.

In my word 2 you wrote:

I think the WHI retreat was a wonderfull thing that should have been covered more by the news media. I think the troop deserve our thanks and our respect. I still don't believe we should be in this war. The war is part of what is spoiling our economy. If we didn't have the war we wouldn't have all these people suffering from PTSD.