[Publisher’s Note: Below is a commentary from Kirk Jorgensen, who is running against Carl DeMaio for Congress. – Flash]
Through the prism of the civil war in Syria, history is asking this generation of Americans to decide what level of violence we find acceptable.
Kirk Jorgensen
Chemical weapons were used in Syria, resulting in the deaths of 1,400 civilians, including 400 children.
Chemical weapons are taboo to those of us who’ve served on the battlefield. They are simply barbaric, and innocent civilians are usually the victims of these weapons of mass destruction.
As a U.S. Marine, I spent years living in the Middle East and in other countries where chaos and violence were often the norm. The more time I spent away from home, the more I realized America is a special place. And, we as Americans have a special responsibility in the world.
Before the September 11th attacks, I worked with a unique group of men and women from our U.S. Intelligence Community who served in clandestine operations across Europe. We identified and apprehended those accused of war crimes and genocide from the former Yugoslavia. Americans sought justice where other countries sought to ignore, or even harbor, these men.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, I entered Iraqi police stations on the ‘Campaign to Baghdad’ and combed through classified files held by Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi Intelligence Services. In coming face-to-face with the brutality of Hussein’s regime, I came to realize the famous quote by Edmund Burke during our own American Revolution could be applied to Iraq, or even Bosnia: “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing”.
I learned evil cannot be ignored. It must be confronted forcefully.
Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to have offered a solution to prevent additional chemical attacks in Syria. It’s not yet clear what will happen if Bashar al-Assad’s regime fails to meet the standards agreed upon by the U.S. and Russia. Regardless, what happened in Syria is a war crime. Someone needs to stand up and say it. War crimes cannot go unanswered.
Understandably, Americans are war-weary. We’ve absorbed the blows from fighting two wars during the last decade. We’ve watched as other popular revolts during the Arab Spring replaced long-despised dictatorships with questionable regimes. But our own national exhaustion should not drown out the outrage we, as Americans, should feel when watching the images of hundreds of dead Syrian children.
Turning our faces away from the crisis will not increase our national security. Instead, a weak response by America will only embolden other rogue regimes.
Isolationism will not end the war on terror. After the civil war in Syria is over, terrorists won’t forget the jihad declared against the United States.
As Americans hope for a peaceful resolution, we should remain vigilant. Assad cannot remain in power. His regime has proven itself to be vicious, with no regard for the wellbeing of Syria’s civilian population. He is a war criminal.
If President Obama asked for permission to strike Syria, and if Congress authorized it, many Americans like me would proudly seek justice for humanity. We are the good men and women to whom Edmund Burke referred. After all, we are Americans.
Kirk Jorgensen, a former U.S. Marine Corps Officer and resident of Black Mountain Ranch in San Diego, is a candidate for California’s 52nd Congressional District.