On Waste

So I've been thinking alot as I finish this quilt for my aquaintance/friend. The one who has lost part of his leg to the war in Iraq. I'll be honest here and say that I've not been in favor of this war right from the get go. This was not a war that we needed to fight. But that's not what I've been thinking about as I've been working on this quilt and watching the death toll rise. Here's what has been knocking around in my head. It counts for Afghanistan and London and Madrid and Cairo, too. It's really more of a question ... If we consent to letting the police search our bags, search our persons ... really to unwarranted searches ... if we just roll over and consent (out of fear) to all of the abrogations of our rights that are guaranteed in our Constitution, then it really seems to me that all of these deaths and dismemberments that our armed forces have suffered have really been in vain. Maybe I shouldn't say that in my "out-loud" voice. But ... really ... it seems to me that one of the ways we can support our troops is to make sure that they're dying for something worthwhile and that we're not just rolling over and playing dead back here at home. That maybe sticking up for ourselves is a more worthwhile support than sticking magnetic ribbons on the family car.