The Bethie Bee

You can see the full text of tonight’s speech here. I thought it was very good. Here are some of my favorite excerpts:

On 9/11, our nation saw the face of evil. Yet on that awful day, we also witnessed something distinctly American: ordinary citizens rising to the occasion, and responding with extraordinary acts of courage. We saw courage in office workers who were trapped on the high floors of burning skyscrapers _ and called home so that their last words to their families would be of comfort and love. We saw courage in passengers aboard Flight 93, who recited the 23rd Psalm _ and then charged the cockpit. And we saw courage in the Pentagon staff who made it out of the flames and smoke _ and ran back in to answer cries for help. On this day, we remember the innocent who lost their lives _ and we pay tribute to those who gave their lives so that others might live…

Since the horror of 9/11, we have learned a great deal about the enemy. We have learned that they are evil and kill without mercy _ but not without purpose. We have learned that they form a global network of extremists who are driven by a perverted vision of Islam _ a totalitarian ideology that hates freedom, rejects tolerance and despises all dissent. And we have learned that their goal is to build a radical Islamic empire where women are prisoners in their homes, men are beaten for missing prayer meetings, and terrorists have a safe haven to plan and launch attacks on America and other civilized nations. The war against this enemy is more than a military conflict. It is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century, and the calling of our generation.

Our nation is being tested in a way that we have not been since the start of the Cold War. We saw what a handful of our enemies can do with box-cutters and plane tickets. We hear their threats to launch even more terrible attacks on our people. And we know that if they were able to get their hands on weapons of mass destruction, they would use them against us. We face an enemy determined to bring death and suffering into our homes. America did not ask for this war, and every American wishes it were over. So do I. But the war is not over _ and it will not be over until either we or the extremists emerge victorious. If we do not defeat these enemies now, we will leave our children to face a Middle East overrun by terrorist states and radical dictators armed with nuclear weapons. We are in a war that will set the course for this new century _ and determine the destiny of millions across the world…

On September the 11th, we learned that America must confront threats before they reach our shores _ whether those threats come from terrorist networks or terrorist states. I am often asked why we are in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was not responsible for the 9/11 attacks. The answer is that the regime of Saddam Hussein was a clear threat. My administration, the Congress and the United Nations saw the threat _ and after 9/11, Saddam’s regime posed a risk that the world could not afford to take. The world is safer because Saddam Hussein is no longer in power. And now the challenge is to help the Iraqi people build a democracy that fulfills the dreams of the nearly 12 million Iraqis who came out to vote in free elections last December…

We can be confident that our coalition will succeed _ because the Iraqi people have been steadfast in the face of unspeakable violence. And we can be confident in victory _ because of the skill and resolve of America’s armed forces. Every one of our troops is a volunteer, and since the attacks of September the 11th, more than 1.6 million Americans have stepped forward to put on our nation’s uniform. In Iraq, Afghanistan and other fronts in the war on terror, the men and women of our military are making great sacrifices to keep us safe. Some have suffered terrible injuries _ and nearly 3,000 have given their lives. America cherishes their memory. We pray for their families. And we will never back down from the work they have begun…

In the first days after the 9/11 attacks, I promised to use every element of national power to fight the terrorists wherever we find them. One of the strongest weapons in our arsenal is the power of freedom. The terrorists fear freedom as much as they do our firepower. They are thrown into panic at the sight of an old man pulling the election lever, of girls enrolling in school or families worshipping God in their own traditions. They know that given a choice, people will choose freedom over their extremist ideology. So their answer is to deny people this choice by raging against the forces of freedom and moderation. This struggle has been called a clash of civilizations. In truth, it is a struggle for civilization. We are fighting to maintain the way of life enjoyed by free nations. And we are fighting for the possibility that good and decent people across the Middle East can raise up societies based on freedom, and tolerance, and personal dignity.

We are now in the early hours of this struggle between tyranny and freedom. Amid the violence, some question whether the people of the Middle East want their freedom _ and whether the forces of moderation can prevail. For 60 years, these doubts guided our policies in the Middle East. And then, on a bright September morning, it became clear that the calm we saw in the Middle East was only a mirage. Years of pursuing stability to promote peace had left us with neither. So we changed our policies, and committed America’s influence in the world to advancing freedom and democracy as the great alternatives to repression and radicalism.

With our help, the people of the Middle East are now stepping forward to claim their freedom. From Kabul to Baghdad to Beirut, there are brave men and women risking their lives each day for the same freedoms that we enjoy. And they have one question for us: Do we have the confidence to do in the Middle East what our fathers and grandfathers accomplished in Europe and Asia? By standing with democratic leaders and reformers, by giving voice to the hopes of decent men and women, we are offering a path away from radicalism. And we are enlisting the most powerful force for peace and moderation in the Middle East: the desire of millions to be free…

Dangerous enemies have declared their intention to destroy our way of life. They are not the first to try _ and their fate will be the same as those who tried before _ 9/11 showed us why. The attacks were meant to bring us to our knees, and they did _ but not in the way the terrorists intended. Americans united in prayer … came to the aid of neighbors in need … and resolved that our enemies would not have the last word. The spirit of our people is the source of America’s strength. And we go forward with trust in that spirit, confidence in our purpose _ and faith in a loving God who made us to be free.

A. Yasmine Rassam of the Independent Women’s Forum has written a great 9/11 remembrance piece. The piece explores Rassam’s personal feelings following the tragedy, what she decided to “do about it” shortly after, and what we as a nation can decide to “do about it” today. I encourage you to read the entire piece here. I have included some excerpts below:

Rassam began the piece by explaining her reaction to the events of 9/11 and what she decided to “do” about it:

9/11 is a day indelibly etched into my mind, as it was for all New Yorkers that day. As I watched the second plane hit the twin towers and the first tower crumble, something visceral metamorphosed inside me. Our country was under attack. After recovering from the shock, I knew I had to “do something.”

In the following weeks, I opted to leave my high-paying law job to teach a subject that makes our country great: the rule of law and the respect for individual human rights. My first assignment was to teach human rights in Uzbekistan, an ex-Soviet dictatorship with a Muslim population still hell bent on quashing all dissent. While the environment there was not conducive to teaching human rights, I am still hopeful that my former students will lead Uzbekistan on the path to democracy one day.

I then switched jobs to work with Iraqi women who, after living for 35 years under one of the worst dictators in history, were attempting to guarantee their rights in a new constitution. Despite the challenges in both countries, there was nothing more exciting than seeing how the newly-minted concept of “rights” was so fresh in their vocabulary—something the West in its cynicism takes for granted.

She continued to explain what the War on Terror has meant for women around the world:

As a supporter of the liberation of Afghanistan and Iraq, I continue to work at the Independent Women’s Forum on projects that promote the political and economic independence of Iraqi women. These brave women, under threat of death, continue to fight for their rights despite the daily threats of terrorists and their bombs.

Rassam then comments on the reactions of Americans today to the War on Terror:

Despite the impressive gains in Afghanistan and Iraq —the anniversary of 9/11 reminds us how far we have left to go. Five years later, I wonder how the events of that terrible day changed my fellow Americans. What are they “doing” in memory of those lost in this continuing war? Too often, most just complain and urge retreat.

Today, partisan bickering is at its peak. Infighting triggered by midterm elections trivializes the sacrifices that have been made protecting this country.

War is not fought according to timelines set by elections. The murderers that killed our brethren in 9/11 are still killing our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. They are waiting until we get weary so they can take over one of the most geopolitically strategic regions in the world.

As the war wages on, the media tells us that national security is no longer a “hot button” issue. If the latest foiled plane attacks in the U.K., the war in Lebanon, the bombings in London and Madrid, and the nuclear ambitions of the Iranian regime are not “hot button” issues, then something is gravely wrong with American politics.

Rassam concludes:

But what we must realize is—whether or not you agree that Iraq had ties to global terrorists in 2003— the struggle for Iraq now is a critical part of the war on terrorism that threatens modern civilization. That is how our enemies define it. How can we not understand this?

An immediate pullout from Iraq would leave a fractious country of 25 million peaceful people, in the hands of a minute percentage of the population who are fomenting sectarian violence, killing women and children, and taking orders from Iran who pray for our, and the Iraqis’, defeat. These are the same people who bombed the World Trade Center in 1995, our embassies in Africa, the USS Cole, 9/11, London, and Madrid. They are al-Qaeda, the Mahdi Army, the Iranian-backed militias all over the Middle East who are converging in Iraq because they know a victory there is the beginning of America’s defeat.

So is this how we are going to honor the thousands massacred in 9/11 and in the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq? Hand Iraq to the terrorists; retreating with our heads down?

Our politicians today should not play into the hands of the incredibly media savvy terrorists by advocating ridiculous timelines and unattainable goals. Whether we agree with all the tactics used by the administration and its allies in Iraq, we must commit to the common vision of an American victory. Nothing will bring back those who died for our country but surely we can work on reducing the likelihood of future losses. If we keep demanding that Iraqis have a national unity government— isn’t it time that we have one in Washington? Isn’t it time we do “something” in unison?