In a post below ( http://www.habitablezone.com/currentevents/messages/323138.html ), Davin asks about the "Bush death count" and why I persist in posting it here. The answer is simple - I don't want anyone losing sight of the fact that American soldiers are dying in Iraq because Mr. Bush erroneously claimed that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. I believe the decision to go to war in Iraq was appallingly bad judgement and will have negative consequences for American interests and security around the world for decade to come. The war was completely unnecessary.

That being said, I do not believe we can just pull out now that we're there. We're stuck and the only course of action is to succeed at ultimately stabilizing the country. Unfortunately, the current administation is incapable of accomplishing this and will continue to make terrific mistakes that only mean more Americans will die and hundreds of billions more will be spent.

Now for those of you who assert that I am some kind of "anti-war liberal," nothing could be further from the truth. If you follow my posts at all you will note that not once have I ever criticized our military action in Afghanistan. That's because our war in Afghanistan is just and inextricably tied to protecting American security here at home and abroad. It was a defensive action in response to actions by a country run by Islamic extremists who willingly gave Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda a base of operations from which to work.

You will also note that I am fully supportive of Israel. The Palestinian Authority has proven itself incapable of negotiating a peace. Mr. Bush's recent remarks to allow some West Bank settlements to remain and to refuse "the right of return" of expatriated Palestinians is the right perspective. We mustn't forget who it was that danced in the streets of Gaza in the days following September 11th - it wasn't the Israelis.

I will continue to post the Bush death count here as it rises ever higher. That may make some of you angry - and it should. But by directing your anger towards me for simply sharing real-time data here, you are missing the point. The person who deserves your enmity is Mr. Bush who sent these American heroes to die in the deserts of Iraq for a disreputable purpose in the first place. Almost 700 American soldiers have died in Iraq in pursuit of weapons of mass destruction that did not exist. Somebody must be held accountible for this terrible mistake.