Memorial Day musings
Ken Odor
May 27, 2008

Memorial Day is a special day every year, but perhaps more so this year than most.

Memorial Day is a special day every year, but perhaps more so this year than most.

As I prepared to attend the Memorial Day service at Hanover’s Veterans Memorial last weekend, I couldn’t help thinking about what next year’s observances might be like.

With the two likely candidates for president holding very divergent views on how to bring the war in Iraq to a close, things could be very different, depending on who is the commander in chief.

Would next year’s ceremonies take place as U. S. troops withdraw or are already withdrawn from the Middle East under a Democratic president, who seems to think that because mistakes were made, all the efforts by American in the region count for nothing?

Would we see an ever more powerful Iran extending its influence into the power vacuum that a too quick U.S. withdrawal would leave behind?

Would we see an emboldened Al Qaeda, convinced that they had defeated the U.S. and the western world in a crucial battle, ready to extend the fight closer to our shores?

Would we have seen a naive young president with no experience in diplomacy plunge into discussions with unfriendly powers without understanding the damage he might do?

Or will next Memorial Day find us with a mature veteran at the helm with a clear understanding of world affairs, and a plan to manage what is clearly going to be a long struggle against Islamic extremists with resolve, and yes, with military force, when necessary?

Right now the issue is in doubt, but we’ll find out shortly before Veterans Day.

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