THE DOUBLE TRAGEDIES OF CINDY SHEEHAN

When Cindy Sheehan lost her son to enemy action in Iraq, she suffered a tragedy of war not unfamiliar to countless American mothers and wives. From Lexington Green to Iraq, the loss of loved ones who died in defense of America's interests and freedom serve to remind us all that what we have often comes at a terrible cost.
We lament that Cindy Sheehan has apparently come to feel that her son died in vain. No man or woman wearing the uniform of the U.S. military ever dies in vain. Especially now, in a time of voluntary service, each member of the armed forces knows that his or her life can be on the line. As in conflicts past, the personnel serving in Iraq exemplify all that is most noble. They are the living examples of that line in the National Anthem that defines America as the Home of the Brave.
To Cindy Sheehan, as to all who have lost love ones, we extend our prayers.
But there is an ominous side to the Cindy Sheehan story. As is common, the exploiting forces of the left wing have again struck. Having once met with President Bush and having expressed her belief that he was understanding of her grief, Cindy Sheehan has now been converted to the religion of the extreme left. Whereas Cindy previously had praise for America's efforts in Iraq and pride in her son's ultimate sacrifice, she now speaks for Michael Moore and the Air America Radio crowd. Words have been put into Cindy's mouth, and they are the defeatist words of the old familiar crowd who find America to be always at fault. The same crowd who never cease shouting that America is evil, America is an imperialist bully, and America is all that is wrong with the world.
Thus Cindy Sheehan has begun to suffer her second brutal loss. She has lost the realization that dark forces on the left have cleverly exploited her motherly grief and are using her in their relentless attempts to weaken America and make it ripe for the imposition of all the failed tenets of socialism.
We grieve for Cindy Sheehan and we condemn all those who are using her to advance their evil agendas. We pray that Cindy will take another look at her son's brave sacrifice and that she will come home again to the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.