Open Letter to an Iraqi

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I want to tell an Iraqi person how I feel as an American. I am naive. I learned about America in text books. I learned about the world from text books.

I have been given so much by our society and have put back so little in comparison. I volunteered for our military service as a promise and comitment to defend freedom, liberty and our American values. Luckily, I was not asked to fight in any war. I am truly a lucky individual. I was born into and inherited the principles of The New World, a place where freedom was born.

We are not an old European country. We make no apologies for that. We are America! We are the United State of America. We are free people because our fathers and forefathers fought and died to establish it and maintain it. Freedom and liberty were gifts left by generations past. We came here to escape many injustices and built a land that is the envy of people of many lands. I am proud of my heriatage and I couldn't imagine living in another.

I don't think people kill Americans for who they are so much as for what they do. I think Islamic funamentalists attacked the US on September 11, 2004 because Americans took a proverbial whore into the church of Islam and offended its sensibilities. The US Government tried to integrate American into Iraq and the Middle East which are incompatible with Muslim beliefs. I draw no correlation between September 11 and the US Government's attacks in Iraq.

Please be clear on this. America is a population of American Citizens who are human beings like you. One has to be able to draw a distintion between Americans and the US Government. I am not among the Americans who did this. I am not against you. I am for you. If you ask for my help, I will be happy to help you. I do not want to occupy your homeland. If you would rather I stayed home, that is what I will do. Americans do not speak with one voice unless that voice speaks for Liberty and Freedom.

There is a double standard between America and Iraq today. We have said many times in our history that we would rather die on our feet than live on our knees. We are proud people and have a strong desire to live free. These aren't just words to us, to make us feel good. We honestly believe them as others believe in their guiding principles. We do, however, sometimes forget that you most likely have prinicples that you would would die to defend. Thereinlies the rub. It may seem like America wants to force on you its own beliefs without regard for your own. But I, an American, say here and now that I do not want to force my beliefs on you. I want to you live by your own principles, happily so, in the place of your choosing.

Understanding my own resolve, I imagine yours is just as strong, and I can respect you for that.

I think burning fossil fuels is a bad plan for our whole planet, so the possibility that there may be some oil interests that motivated a few Americans to visit Iraq and do battle is very disturbing.

I want to live a simple life and to be able to support my family and raise my children in a safe, healthy environment. I detest war, the slaughtering of innocent people, corruption among world leaders and the greed that feeds them. I think Michael Jackson acts like a jackass. Are we so different?

I want to reach across the lands as one person to another person, transcend the conflict that divides us and give you a gift: my respect.

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