To the Editor:

I believe I have now received at least one e-mail, in some cases two, from everyone on my contact list reminding me to display the American flag on September 11, 2006. Far be it from me to discourage a good flag waving, I’ve always supported displaying and being respectful of our flag. However, this occasion goes much deeper than just displaying the flag with me.

If the only thing we are going to do is display the flag for those killed by terrorists, we may be in for a lot of flag days. We must be diligent in our pursuit of those who would deny us our God given rights. The war on terrorism requires our full time support.

Based on 20/20 hindsight, I believe a better argument could be made for not going into Iraq in the beginning than for pulling out amid chaos and instability. As long as Saddam Hussein was in power, we had very little to be concerned about from Iranian influence in Iraq.

In my opinion, the problem we now face with the elimination of Hussein, evil and ruthless as he may have been, is Iran and the Shiite majority in Iraq. If we leave Iraq in chaos, Iran will surely fill the void. We will have provided Iran a big favor by eliminating Hussein. It could only lead to strengthening Iranian influence in the region and making for an even more volatile situation than now exists.

Iran could make life very uncomfortable for those of us who depend upon oil from that region to run our machines. To paraphrase President Bush recently: “We are addicted to oil.” You may question some of the things he says, but I think most will agree with that statement.

There are no quick simple answers, but I believe we must keep on the offensive against the terrorists or pay the price of Sept. 11, 2001, many times over again.

So, by all means wave your flags on the fifth anniversary of America being attacked. Do so in honor of nearly 3,000 innocent civilians killed for just being Americans. But, do so with a renewed commitment to support the war on terrorism and the elimination of those who would do harm to us just because we are Americans.

James G. Smith

Public Relations Officer

The American Legion Post 20