Orwell Wins

So, NPR mentioned this morning that Senators don't want to vote for any measure that would even reduce funding for the Iraq war because it would be "political suicide," since it would mean they did not "support the troops." And I read this, again:

Over the course of three days spent with the 105 soldiers here — Company C of the Second Battalion, 12th Cavalry — four American vehicles were hit by roadside bombs near the outpost. No soldiers from Company C were wounded, but they know the fighting will intensify.

“I’m a juicy target they are just trying to figure out,” said Capt. Erik Peterson, 29, the commander at the outpost.

The phrase has become positively Orwellian, and positively irrefutable. In the name of supporting our troops, we must make targets of our troops. To fail to continue to do so, is to undermine the morale of our troops.

Vietnam. On steroids. So long as "victory is at hand," we must support our troops by feeding them to the slaughter. Because the only altenrative is to "cut 'n' run," and that would mean abandoning the chance to win.

Does no one else remember that Vietnam was a civil war, too? When do we finally acknowledge that we just love setting up those juicy targets? Or is that the reality humankind cannot bear very much of?