At the risk of stating the obvious...
we have a serious disagreement here... I understand your cynicism. Hell, I even share most of it. But I'm not willing to take it as far as you seem to.
My mom used to say that water is mostly air in reference to the glass being half empty or half full. I know I may be missing a bunch and I truly trust your intellect. That said, I still feel that you may be part of a counter-cabal of hubris (spelled correctly - thank you :-)) That you have become a member of the armchair warriers and nattering nabobs of negativity. You don't want to give this guy a chance...
I joined the service before going to college. I thought it was my turn, my duty. There has always been something a little wrong with me. I'm guilty as charged. I also have young kids, which makes me yearn for a better world and why I won't shed any tears for repressive dictatorships as they fall, by American and British hands or by others. I know a lot of what's happening now is the sell, sell sell as do you. It is our culture. It is propoganda. But I do believe - still - that regarding the war on terrorism, this administration is acting in my best interest and my children's. YMMV.
This mess in Iraq was unfinished business and if we had adopted yet more appeasement as policy, my children would have inherited the burden of this mess with interest. So, yeah, I'm selfish too. Witness the prowess of the UN handling the Yugoslavia situation. So maybe I think I have choose the lesser of the two evils?
It's easy to sit back and criticize others, doers... Believe me, I work at a major university and see it every day. It's hard to make decisions, even wrong ones, and follow them through. What was the UN's "plan" for dealing with Hussein? Oh, that's right... let's just keep doing what we've been doing and pay much more lip service. That'll bring down a fascist regime. Fucking joke, man.
Come on over to the dark side, brother... the glass can be half full.
