Remembering our veteran's today

There's not a whole lot I can say on Veteran's Day. I, like so many millions of Americans, have family and friends in Iraq, Afghanistan, or returned - or not. My cousins, my prom date, my high school classmates. What do I say to honor them?

I really can't. I've channeled my energy into what I believe would help them most this year, and that was getting the right people elected. Candidates who promise to only use our troops when absolutely neccessary.

Now that (mostly) all the campaigns have stopped, I quickly realized that was the easy part. Now, it's about making sure those officials are going to do what they promised.

To really show our veteran's we care, lets make sure they are taken care of before they leave, while they are serving, and when they come back.

It's not about putting a flag up and calling it good. Make sure the candidates we've elected are looking out for our soldiers, looking out for our veterans.

Two reasons, on 9/11, to remain partisan

With about an hour left until it is September 11 once again, and trying to come out of the political freak-out that's happening on all sides right now, my parents reminded me of two of the main reasons why this election is so important. They are both very directly related to Alaska Native culture, issues, and people. They are both very directly related to the huge issues happening in American right now.

They are both my cousins.

The oldest of these cousins is trying to figure out all he needs to take care of before he heads off on his third tour in Iraq with the Marines. He will leave his young son once again to fight a war I am still grasping at straws to understand - or at least understand its justification. Why are we still in Iraq, and why does my cousin have to go again?

I grew up with this cousin, and at one time we (my older sister, cousin and I) believed all of us were brother and sisters. We sat in front of my grandparents door, announcing "He's our brother!" and "We're his sisters!" to all who entered. I remember being particularly elated that he, the "cool" cousin that could lip-synch George Michael songs, and a whole year older, would finally be living with us, not just spending the night.

I also remember being sorely disappointed that we were a bit confused.

The other cousin is much younger than I. I "babysat" him occasionally, and he quickly became a "favorite" cousin of mine when he asked me, in all seriousness, if I knew everything.

He graduates from basic training tomorrow, September 11, and will be heading to Iraq soon after that with the Army. At some level, it is harder for me to imagine this cousin in Iraq. My older cousin, after all, had a bit of "hero" status growing up, being "so much" older than I. He was always tough, always stuck up for (if he wasn't the one teasing) the other cousins.

But my younger cousin - he's so young! It was only about two seconds ago he was playing with my brother in my grandparents yard. Why on Earth does this young man need to go and risk his life for a war we shouldn't be in?

For that matter, why are we arguing about lipstick while this is still going on?

My point is not to make victims out of my two, strong Alaska Native cousins. They are anything but victims. They entered into service willingly, and I think very bravely. But how can we, as a country, take their gift lightly, or pettily?

I may have been one to take this less seriously, if it had not been for the events of seven years ago. September 11 changed the view of many, and I was certainly one of them. On September 10, just a year out of high school, I thought the military was a big waste of money. Just a few hours into September 11, I saw how very wrong I was.

But this is not a reason to use our military - not an impartial "force", but real men and women - recklessly. It was JFK, after all, who cautioned us both on restraint, and the need to act if neccessary during the Cuban Missile Crisis:

"We will not prematurely or unnecessarily risk the costs of worldwide nuclear war in which even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth; but neither will we shrink from that risk at any time it must be faced."

My point is this - on the eve of September 11, I cannot remain "partisan." What we have before us is too important, is too close to what I care about to pretend that I can ever support something I fundamentally believe to be heading us even further down a path in which more lives are recklessly lost, more lives are sunk into poverty, more lives are not seen as lives, but as numbers. Or worse yet, not seen at all.

For Alaska Native and American Indian people, not being seen at all can be an even more poignantly painful reality of generations past - with a fear of generations to come. Not being seen by the government, not being remembered by politicians, not viewed as important enough to bother with - this policy of ignorance has hurt far more than outright hate or physical injury ever has, or ever will. When I think about what I want for the future, I care about the economy and whether or not I will have a job in a few years. I care about education, and health care, and subsistence and other Native issues.

But if I ever find myself slipping into the ridiculousness of lipstick arguments and who is wearing what - and I have certainly been guilty of it all too frequently - it takes two things to remind me of what is really so important about this election.

They are both my cousins.

I see them for the brave and precious men that they are, strong Native men with a heroic heritage, and an honorable present. I will do everything I can to elect the man that opens his eyes and sees them too, and will do everything he can for their future.

Obama's speech on national security

Speech (video and text) from the speech Sen. Obama gave recently - pretty powerful stuff.

This comes on the same day that a Wasington Post/ABC poll shows Obama ahead by 8 points.

"Our men and women in uniform have accomplished every mission we have given
them. What's missing in our debate about Iraq - what has been missing since
before the war began - is a discussion of the strategic consequences of Iraq and
its dominance of our foreign policy. This war distracts us from every threat
that we face and so many opportunities we could seize. This war diminishes our
security, our standing in the world, our military, our economy, and the
resources that we need to confront the challenges of the 21st century. By any
measure, our single-minded and open-ended focus on Iraq is not a sound strategy
for keeping America safe.

"I am running for President of the United States to lead this country
in a new direction - to seize this moment's promise. Instead of being distracted
from the most pressing threats that we face, I want to overcome them. Instead of
pushing the entire burden of our foreign policy on to the brave men and women of
our military, I want to use all elements of American power to keep us safe, and
prosperous, and free. Instead of alienating ourselves from the world, I want
America - once again - to lead. "

The Iraq situation is only one of many things Obama touches on in this speech - it's worth reading in full. In fact, what we're being distracted from in continuing with Iraq is what he focuses on more:

"For all of our power, America is strongest when we act alongside strong
partners. We faced down fascism with the greatest war-time alliance the world
has ever known. We stood shoulder to shoulder with our NATO allies against the
Soviet threat, and paid a far smaller price for the first Gulf War because we
acted together with a broad coalition. We helped create the United Nations - not
to constrain America's influence, but to amplify it by advancing our values.

"Now is the time for a new era of international cooperation. It's time for
America and Europe to renew our common commitment to face down the threats of
the 21st century just as we did the challenges of the 20th. It's time to
strengthen our partnerships with Japan, South Korea, Australia and the world's
largest democracy - India - to create a stable and prosperous Asia. It's time to
engage China on common interests like climate change, even as we continue to
encourage their shift to a more open and market-based society. It's time to
strengthen NATO by asking more of our allies, while always approaching them with
the respect owed a partner. It's time to reform the United Nations, so that this
imperfect institution can become a more perfect forum to share burdens,
strengthen our leverage, and promote our values. It's time to deepen our
engagement to help resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, so that we help our ally
Israel achieve true and lasting security, while helping Palestinians achieve
their legitimate aspirations for statehood."