The Truly Responsible

by Steve Young

To balance the severe left-wing anti-war efforts of ABC's "Nightline," which will once again devote its Memorial Day broadcast to reading the names of the service members who have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is important that we devote equal time to a list of names of those we should never forget. While the AM broadcasting Lords of Loud continue to praise so many of these names for their "desire to let freedom ring," in a far-off land, I write of the men and women who abetted in the sending of over 900 U.S. soldiers to their death this past year.

Too often we simply report and forget to give credit where credit is due. Listing the names of 'The Truly Responsible' is a way of reminding listeners, regardless of their feelings about the war, that the men and women who have given us this combat, are individuals and corporations with names and faces. Hopefully this effort will bring the parity necessary to understand that the killing of our troops is not just a one person job. There are a host of individuals and corporations behind the loss of life and devastating injuries of the young victims. I am simply honoring those names who might be forgotten if not for this show. Lest they not be forgotten for their false bravado in providing unwavering support, the Lords of Loud, are given their just due.

The Truly Responsible are, in no particular order...

George Herbert Walker Bush (time off from the reserves to work in a political campaign), Osama bin Laden, Richard Bruce Cheney (6 deferments - said he had other priorities than military service), Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Donald Henry Rumsfeld, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (did not serve), Alberto Gonzales, William "Bill" Frist (deferment during VietNam), Richard Norman Perle (did not serve during VietNam), Al Quaeda's Third In Charge That We Keep Finding Out Is Not Really The Third Guy In Charge, Condoleeza Rice, William "Bill" Bennett (avoided VietNam) Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson, Jerry L. Falwell, Andrew Hill Card Jr., Those Who Sent Our Sons And Daughters Into Harm's Way Without Proper Armor, Karl Christian Rove (avoided draft during VietNam), John David Ashcroft (7 deferments during VietNam), William James "Bill" O'Reilly (deferments during VietNam), Ann Hart Coulter, Tom Delay (deferment during VietNam), Newton "Leroy" Gingrich (avoided draft during VietNam), Matt Drudge, Democratic Legislators Who Didn't Have Enough Gonads To Stand Up To The Administration, Lawrence Ari Fleischer, Haliburton, Roger Eugene Ailes, Colin Luther Powell, George John Tenet, John Robert Bolton, Rush Hudson Limbaugh III (did not serve due to a boil on his butt), The Military Leaders Who Tried To Cover Up The Real Story of Pat Tillman's Death, Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair, Sean Patrick Hannity, Fox News, Brit Hume (avoided VietNam), Scott McClellan, Chester "Trent" Lott (did not serve during VietNam), and The Mainstream Media Who Ignored Asking Almost Any Serious Questions Concerning The Reasons The Bush Administration Used to Invade Iraq.

If there were any names of others who were Truly Responsible that we forgot, and there are plenty, I can only hope that they all have their legs blown off and come home to live the rest of their tattered lives in some underfunded Veterans Hospital.

For those who may question my motives, my goal is to elevate those responsible for the atrocities, above the politics and the daily journalism. This listing of the Truly Responsible, most of whom did not serve in the military even though they have no problem sending the children of others into war, was neither intended to provoke opposition to the war, nor was it meant as an endorsement. It was, in fact, a small attempt to honor those who have suffered the greatest sacrifice by saying to the world, and to those bastards who are Truly Responsible, we know what you did and we will do everything in our power not let you get away with it. Never again.

It's time that we stop allowing the betraying of the veteran, who has been screwed long enough by the leadership of this country and by those in Congress who refuse to fund the Veterans Administration as they had promised. What I am saying is...bless the veteran. It's about time. And while you're at it, remind every veteran you know how the Republican party has abandoned them.