Another Tuesday, Sept. 11, and Bush is our quarterback
The war in Iraq is not some trivial sporting event like a Bears opener, a Cubs game, a "friendly" with the best soccer team on the planet, or another Sunday victory stroll by the world's greatest golfer.
If it were, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki would be as recognizable among suburbanites as is Bears quarterback Rex Grossman.
Seeing Bears players and defensive anchor Mike Brown get weepy talking about Brown's knee injury during Sunday's loss isn't remotely similar to watching Rolling Meadows native Sgt. Bryan Anderson smile as he gamely carves out a new life after losing both legs and his left arm fighting for our country in Iraq.
Nine Americans were killed Monday in Iraq. War is not a sport. But there are similarities in the way people approach them.
"Rex is our quarterback," is the mantra of Chicago Bears Coach Lovie Smith. Yet Bears fans often yell that Grossman fumbles too much, throws ill-advised interceptions and isn't making enough progress to lead the Bears to a Super Bowl victory.
Yet, Grossman, even when he acknowledges the mistakes, seems supremely confident when he insists he is the one to lead the Bears to a Super Bowl championship.
President George W. Bush is our war quarterback. Fans of the United States often note that Bush started the war under false pretenses, arrogantly proclaimed a premature "mission accomplished," foolishly goaded our enemies with his bold "bring 'em on," talk, and still hasn't made good on his cocky promise to "smoke 'em out" and corral Osama bin Laden "dead or alive."
Yet, Bush, even when he acknowledges that freedom might not be marching as fast as he had expected, remains confident and quick to declare "success" and talk of "victory."
Whether it is the Bears' hope for Super Bowl glory, the Cubs' quixotic quest for a World Series, soccer's plea for attention, or a president's appeal for more bodies, money and time to fight an unpopular war, we have seen it all before.
Monday, while the Cubs were beating the Cardinals 12-3 on most suburban bar TVs, Gen. David H Petraeus and Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, testified before Congress. They made a case for giving Bush's surge strategy in Iraq more time to work. It brought to mind 1967, when a beleaguered President Lyndon B. Johnson summoned Gen. William Westmoreland from Vietnam to assure the American public that he could see the "light at the end of the tunnel."
Protesters who yelled during Monday's hearing were forcibly removed. From the left, MoveOn.org fired a shot charging that Petraeus is a lying shill for Bush's war. From the right, FreedomsWatch.org claims the national debate is "dominated" by people eager to "surrender" and "cut and run."
The testimonies of Petraeus and Crocker fuel more questions and doubts than answers and certainties.
It's almost like sports radio. Some Bears fans point to Grossman's 24-yard strike to Desmond Clark as proof the kid can be the man. Others point to his interception, fumble and poor rating as proof that Coach Smith is wrong to stay the course.
Bears fans voice opinions but understand Smith makes the decisions about Grossman and his team. Sports fans can't really influence whether the Bears or Cubs make the playoffs, or who will be the key players.
But U.S. fans not only can voice opinions, they also can make decisions about Bush and his war. Military generals and foreign ambassadors don't have the final say.
In a democracy, such as the one we're trying to establish in Iraq, we the people, the fans of our nation, can register, vote, send opinions to our representatives in Congress and have a say on this war.
We owe it to the men and women fighting our war to give the issue as much attention as we give sports.