Murtha's madness continues...

***Topic bump***

Congressman Jack Murtha continues to engage in magical thinking, as evident by a piece he wrote today in the Huffington Post (all emphases mine):

The war in Iraq is the No. 1 issue in the country today. Americans are no longer willing to accept the human suffering or the financial toll of a war that has lasted for 3 ½ years with no end in sight.

I direct you here, Jack.

Jack Murtha--you are a complete cad. HOW DARE YOU say that my son, a soldier, and his compatriots have made no progress in Iraq? How dare you, an elected official, tell our soldiers that what they are doing has no merit. How dare you, an elected official, and a self-described "ex marine" look at our soldiers and tell them that their efforts and sacrifices have made no difference, when you know damn well that they have! How dare you, Congressman Murtha, throw your fellow Marines and other soldiers under the bus, pronouncing guilt upon them without the benefit of due process, the purpose for which can only be surmised as cheap political gain!

The numbers speak for themselves. We've lost almost 2,600 Americans.

And you continue to dishonor their sacrifice every time you open your mouth!

More than 19,000 have been wounded, 46 percent of them so badly they couldn't return to their units. Tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis have been killed in sectarian violence.

And you think that's going to get any better after we "cut and run"? Do you think that the slaughter of Iraqis is going to slow down after we leave and the terrorist elements take over?? Get a clue, Mr. Murtha!

The U.S. is spending $11 million every hour - $8 billion every month. Yet the administration refuses to budge from its open-ended, stay-the-course policy.

And the course is working, Mr. Murtha!! Quit using our soldiers and their mission for your political football!

I know it and the American people know it: We need to redeploy our troops to the periphery (You mean Okinawa?) and refocus on the real war against terrorism.

Who the hell do you think we're fighting in Iraq, boy scouts? Lutheran Church ladies?

The war in Iraq is one of a number of fronts in the GWOT, Mr. Murtha. We cut and run from there, and we've lost a major battle in it.

It's long past the time for us to change direction.

And just what direction would that be, Mr. Murtha? Do you really expect us to confront terrorists in Okinawa? If we re-deployed in another Arab country, do you really think that the terrorists wouldn't set up shop there? If we "re-deployed" and got out of Iraq before the Iraqi Army and Police were ready to independently handle security, do you not realize that the terrorist element would completely take over, making Iraq into another free base of operations for terrorists in the middle east?

Do you really think that such a move would make for a safer world, Mr. Murtha?

You say that you advocated for our earlier retreats from Lebanon (after Hezbollah murdered over 240 Marines) and from Somalia (after "Blackhawk Down"). Do you really think that our retreats from Lebanon and from Mogadishu actually helped our situation? Was September 11, 2001 merely a bad dream for you, Mr. Murtha? Or has it altogether escaped your memory?

Mr. Murtha--a word from an Army dad: I know that you have probably long dreamt of holding a place of real power in the House of Representatives. We all have our dreams. But think long and hard about how far you are willing to go to meet those ends. Think long and hard regarding the fact that in this day and age of immediate communication, every word of discouragement toward our troops almost immediately provides encouragement and comfort to those who have those troops (including my son) in their crosshairs.

Mr. Murtha, I ask you to think long and hard in your heart of hearts, and please start taking personal inventory of your scruples; for your behavior and rhetoric this past year makes it quite evident that if you have ever had any scruples, they're gone now.

****UPDATE AND BUMP****

For Mr. Murtha's benefit, in light of today's events, the questions in the emboldened print above appear more salient than ever. The GWOT is just that, global, and our struggle in Iraq is inseparable from that war, as we do not reside in a vacuum. We are in the war for our very lives, our very civilization. We cannot afford to leave Iraq vulnerable to takeover by terrorist elements. Are you willing figure that into your "risky scheme" of cut-and-run, Mr. Murtha.