We have received a number of letters from military families who saw their loved ones killed or severely wounded in Iraq. Some of the letters are heart-breaking and all of them ask this question: why did our people sacrifice so much if now Iraq is going to become a terror state?
Yesterday, on ABC, a general who served in Iraq addressed that question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIARELLI: I don't really know what you say to those families. This has got to be so difficult for them. It's difficult for the almost 4,500 survivors who have lost loved ones in Iraq. It's difficult for all the wounded. It's difficult for all those folks who spent much longer than I did, much longer than two years, four, five, six tours over there and put their lives on hold. To see this happening is extremely difficult for all of us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean does it mean it was all for nothing?
CHIARELLI: Well, it really seems to be that way today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: With all due respect, I disagree with General Chiarelli. The al Qaeda militants who have ceased the northern part of Iraq -- a part of a world wild terror movement. Al Qaeda struck Kenya, Africa over the weekend. These people are hell bent on opposing a fanatical strain of Islam on the world. Yes Iraq has been poorly managed as President Obama pulled out all U.S. troops. There's no question about that. But our initial sacrifice was not in vain. In fact, it was noble.
So I am addressing the following comments directly to the brave men and women who served in Afghanistan, Vietnam, Korea and Iraq. You guys defeated a killer Saddam Hussein -- a man who oppressed millions of people and was the embodiment of evil. We are doing the same thing now in Afghanistan, trying to give the Afghan people a chance to throw off the brutal oppression of the Taliban.
Likewise in Vietnam armed forces fought against communist totalitarians who once we left Southeast Asia murdered millions of people - - millions. The truth is that modern America has always fought on the side of freedom -- giving people the chance to decide what their country should be. The South Vietnamese did not fight hard enough for their freedom so they lost it. The Iraqis are apparently not interested in freedom, they want to settle scores, Shia vs. Sunni -- that kind of thing.
All you guys can do in the military is give people a chance and you have done that at great sacrifice time after time after time. You saved the South Koreans. Can you imagine those people living today under the tyranny of the North Korean tyrant?
So let's all stop the theoretical nonsense. The U.S.A. protects the human rights of people all over the world -- period. The anti-American cabal can point to Abu Ghraib and other embarrassments but that's a very small part of the picture forged by the brave men and women in the U.S. military.
Now for the current Iraq mess. President Obama seems to understand that if al Qaeda takes over Iraq, they can use that as a safe haven from which launch attacks all over the place including on America itself.
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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have enormous interests there and obviously our troops and the American people and the American taxpayers made huge investments and sacrifices in order to give Iraqis the opportunity to chart a better course, a better destiny. But ultimately they are going to have to seize it. As I said before, we are not going to be able to do it for them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: And that's true. We are not going to be able to solve the internal problems of the Iraqis. That being said, I fully expect President Obama to begin bombing the al Qaeda army very soon. If he does not do that, it would be an enormous dereliction of duty. He is the commander in chief. Al Qaeda wants to kill us. So he must send a message to them and to the largely cowardly world. We will not allow savages to decimate the world. That is the message that must be sent.
Let me ask all you bleeding hearts this question. What's wrong with destroying an al Qaeda army anywhere on earth? What's wrong with that? These people want to destroy civilization. They want to impose Sharia law. Over the weekend, the al Qaeda army murdered nearly 2,000 people executing anyone suspected of being in the Iraqi army or police force, putting them in ditches, shooting them while they lay prone, beheading them, setting them on fire -- you name it.
While that was going on President Obama was playing golf in California. Again, I expect the Commander-in-chief to begin bombing the al Qaeda army in Iraq and Syria forthwith. He has already announced a few U.S. troops will be sent to Baghdad to protect Americans there. But that's purely a defensive action.
Of course, once you go on offense, you are going to get some people protesting. Some libertarians don't want any foreign involvement, and a number of far left people simply oppose everything the U.S.A. does.
A few years ago, before the U.S. pulled out of Iraq, we put this question to Jane Fonda.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you think might happen to the Iraqis? Are you concerned about what will happen to the Iraqis if we leave?
JANE FONDA, ACTRESS/ACTIVIST: I'm concerned about what's happening to the Iraqis right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you think about what happened to the three million Vietnamese and Cambodians who died after the U.S. troops left Vietnam?
FONDA: It's too bad that we caused it to happen by going in there in the first place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: That's right, Miss Fonda. We caused all the murders in Southeast Asia. Don't blame the communist. It was our fault. What a loon.
"Talking Points" well understands that history will reflect that the United States made a mistake attacking Iraq after 9/11 it was not worth the trillion dollars spent and all the blood of our military. But, again, our intent was noble. We took out a mass murderer who oppressed millions of people.
Unfortunately, many of the Iraqi people did not appreciate it and are now fighting among themselves, giving advantage to al Qaeda. But make no mistake by attacking al Qaeda from the air, the U.S.A. may be helping the government in Baghdad. But we are real fighting to defend ourselves. These savages will kill us if they get the chance -- even Jane Fonda.
And that's "The Memo."
- You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.
