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War on Terror

In defense of suicide bombers

By arthur Weinreb, associate Editor,
Monday, august 29, 2005

Cindy Sheehan certainly has her fans. Many in america and elsewhere look to "Mother Sheehan" as encapsulating everything that is wrong with the United States, including capitalism, Republicans, God, support for Israel, and america itself. Sheehan has her detractors as well; those that think that she is only tarnishing the memory of her son, Casey, who was killed while fighting with the U.S. army in Iraq and all of the other troops who are engaged in the Iraq war. To those who oppose her views, it is Sheehan herself that represents what is wrong with the United States; americans who seem to take great delight in attempting to show that everything that is wrong in the world is the fault of the United States. If there is any true evil in the world, it is represented by George W. Bush and not the Islamofascists who fly planes into buildings full of innocent civilians or who behead infidels with dull knives, all in the name of allah.

But there is a third group of people who take a position in between these two polarizing views. They are the ones who adamantly disagree with Sheehan’s lies (Bush "sent" her son to Iraq), her Israel-bashing, and her connection with far left and hate groups, yet excuse all of her behaviour because she is "grieving" over the loss of her son.

alexander Rubin wrote an article entitled, "In defense of Cindy Sheehan" that appeared in Canada Free Press on august 17. after criticizing some of her statements and behaviour, Rubin writes, "Right-thinking people should feel nothing but sympathy, and perhaps pity for Cindy Sheehan." Later on he goes on to state, "[t]he tragedy of her son’s death has affected her badly", and further adds, "…in her grief, [she] made some unfortunate statements."

In other words, lying about how her son ended up in Iraq and blaming Israel for his death can all be forgiven because of her "grief". as a result of her son’s death, presumably Cindy Sheehan has no free will and is somehow not accountable for either what she says or the actions that she takes. It’s almost as if Rubin and like minded people think that one day Sheehan will awake from her "grief" and seek the Republican nomination for U.S. senator from California and blast away at Barbara Boxer.

Now Cindy Sheehan is hardly in the same class as Palestinian suicide bombers are. Sheehan has never advocated violence let alone plotted to blow up innocent civilians including babies and children. But it is not unheard of for a relatively apolitical, moderate Palestinian to become involved in a terrorist group and end up as a suicide bomber because someone close to them has been killed, rightly or wrongly, by Israeli forces. Would Mr. Rubin and others who advocate that everyone should feel nothing but sympathy for Sheehan, extend the same sympathy to those who become terrorists because of their grief? Probably not. The acts are very different but the principle is the same — being above criticism because of personal grief.

Excusing Cindy Sheehan because of her grief is unfair and insulting to those parents who believe what the United States is doing is right and who have themselves lost sons or daughters in Iraq. The fact that Cindy Sheehan purports to speak, not just for herself and her far left friends, but for these other parents as well, can in no way be ignored or condoned because of her grief. Her lack of caring about parents of other dead soldiers who do not shre her views, is her real "crime".

again, Cindy Sheehan is no suicide bomber. But this is not about Sheehan; it is about those who choose to excuse any criticism of her on the grounds of grief, a courtesy that many of these same critics would not extend to grieving Palestinians.

and speaking of Palestinians, the late Golda Meir once said, "We will have peace with the arabs when they love their children more than they hate us.

Perhaps Cindy Sheehan will one day have peace - when she learns to love her son more than she hates George Bush.