This page was last updated on August 26, 2004.

This editorial tries to make the case that people who supported the Iraq War – but who do not now – are gullible and fickle.  Without saying so directly, the editorial wants us to believe Bush supporters make up this group.  In what can only be described as a blunder or an attempted deception, it turns out the “fickle” were Democrats and independents.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“Beware of summer soldiers and sunshine patriots.

[RWC] The theme of “summer soldiers and sunshine patriots” comes from the first of a series of 16 pamphlets written by Thomas Paine from 1776 to 1783.  In December 1776, Paine wrote, “These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it Now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.  Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict the more glorius the triumph.”

“When U.S. forces were rolling across Iraq, Americans were wildly supportive of the drive to oust dictator Saddam Hussein from power.  The popularity of the war was reflected in the polls, where support for President Bush was positively stratospheric.

“A year and a half later, with the United States bogged down in what appears to be a deeper and deeper quagmire, support for the war has eroded significantly.”

[RWC] News flash from the Times.  When the going gets tough, some people second-guess.  Does anyone doubt if polls had been taken during World War II they would have shown the same thing as our successes ebbed and flowed?  Remember, not all Americans favored war even after Pearl Harbor.  Heck, far from all colonists supported the Revolutionary War.

“The Associated Press reports that a poll of 1,001 Americans that was taken Aug. 3-5 found the public to be evenly divided on the war.  (The percentages in parenthesis are from a poll taken in December 2003.)

“One half were asked, ‘All in all, thinking about how things have gone in Iraq since the United States went to war there in March 2003, do you think the United States ...’ made the right decision, 48 percent (64 percent); made a mistake in going to war in Iraq, 50 percent (34 percent); or were not sure, 2 percent (2 percent).

“The other half were asked, ‘All in all, thinking about how things have gone in Iraq since the United States went to war there in March 2003, do you think the Bush administration ...’ made the right decision, 45 percent (67 percent); made a mistake in going to war in Iraq, 53 percent (29 percent); or were not sure 2 percent (4 percent).

“Those drops are disturbing, and not because of the impact declining support for the war could have on Bush’s chances of being re-elected.

“No, those numbers are troubling because they show how gullible and fickle the American people are.”

[RWC] Here’s a point the editorial doesn’t make clear.  Were Americans gullible then or now?  That is, have the endless – but disproved – claims of lying had an effect?  What about the endless coverage of the bad news from Iraq but little of the good?  It’s clear there are a lot of problems still to address in Iraq, but we hear little of the enormous progress.

What the editorial fails to tell us is that the poll found those who were “fickle” tended to be Democrats and independents.  Nearly 90% of Republicans polled still supported the action.¹

“Go back to the buildup to the war and the war itself.  Those who doubted the need to go to war had their patriotism questioned by flag-waving jingoists.  Those who raised questions about the impact the invasion of Iraq would have on the already fragile stability of the Middle East were accused of betraying their country.  Those who refused to buy the Bush party line were charged with aiding and abetting terrorism.”

[RWC] Personally, I wasn’t thrilled with the prospect of going into Iraq and hoped a realistic alternative would present itself.  It did not and I reluctantly supported the action.  The fact is, most responsible people are reluctant about entering into a war.  I disagree that anywhere near the majority of people were “jingoists.”  A jingoist is a person who exhibits extreme nationalism and advocates belligerent foreign policy.

All positions have their fair share of wackos.  It’s true some who favored action were less than understanding of those who opposed action.  The Times forgets some who opposed action were less than understanding of those who favored action.  Remember the so-called “peace protests” in which those who favored action were called warmongers, war profiteers, imperialists, and worse?

Before we call this the “Bush party line,” remember that Congress supported the action, including Sens. John Kerry and John Edwards.  Further, when recently asked if he would still vote for the joint resolution authorizing the Iraq War knowing what he knows now, John Kerry said he would.

“Where are these summer soldiers and sunshine patriots today?  Are these chest-thumping, flag-waving Americans of 18 months ago rushing to enlistment centers and volunteering for combat duty in Iraq?  Are they lining up to enlist in the Army and the Marines?  Are they urging their sons and daughters to join the Army Reserves and National Guard?

“Where are they?  The polls show they are deserting in droves now that the war has clouded over and winter has come.  Little do they realize that, as Thomas Paine wrote in 1777, ‘Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it.’”

[RWC] I’m sure the Times didn’t intend this, but its “summer soldiers and sunshine patriots” are primarily Democrats.  My guess is the editorial board didn’t read the poll beyond what supported its position or figured no one would take a closer at the poll.  Damn those guys at MSNBC! <g>

This is offensive because it makes the assumption that the vast majority of those who supported the action were “chest-thumping” Americans.  Should we assume the vast majority of those who opposed action were Euro-weenies who didn’t want to jeopardize their sweetheart “oil for palaces” deals with Saddam Hussein?

The fact is, the “chest-thumping, flag-waving Americans of 18 months ago” – regardless of party affiliation – probably weren’t the ones changing their minds.  Those changing their minds were probably “on the fence” all along.  Remember, the poll found that the vast majority of persons changing their position were Democrats and independents.

“We cannot walk away from Iraq, no matter who is elected president in November.  We cannot turn their backs on the Iraqi people, whether the war was justified or not.

“We have sown the wind, and we now must reap the whirlwind.”

[RWC] In general, the only people advocating a pullout are some of those who opposed action all along or who have changed their position for political reasons.

Paraphrasing a biblical quote [Osee (a.k.a. Hosea) 8:7] is real original.  Most anti-war organizations have this quote near the top of their pick list.

1. Some voters growing skeptical of Iraq war; The Associated Press; MSNBC.com; August 18, 2004.

© 2004 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved.