This was the conversation as he was getting ready for bed this evening:

Lad: I think that George Bush was worrying way too much about Iraq. That was his big mistake. It’s like he wanted to start a war. He should have worried about other things, and not started another war.
Dad: Wow, that’s a  serious thought.
[Beat.]
Lad: But now, I want to know who started the Vietnam War and why they did that.

I can’t say with authority to what extent Americans are actually forgetting September 11th, but the “Never Forget” brand is continues to show year-over-year growth. Last year, I noted that a one-day blog search on “Never Forget” returned 593 results. The same blog search today returns over 5200.

Perhaps it is our inevitable march toward forgetting that spurs so many to urge us to remember.

History is the present. That’s why every generation writes it anew. But what most people think of as history is its end product, myth. –E. L. Doctorow

My favorite political post of the week was by Barabara O’Brien’s “The Power of (Right Wing) Myth.” She does a really good job at breaking down the misuses of history by the current generation of right wing propagandists. (Tip by way of Akkam’s Razor.)

You might need to be a fan of Star Trek: TNG to really appreciate it, though. (If you read O’Brien’s post, you may pick up on the delicious irony of using a referential metaphor to illuminate the dangers of explaining complex historical events through referential metaphor.)

It’s hot here in suburban Philly today. In Baghdad, though, it’s 120 degrees and there’s no running water.

* * *

The Sunni ministers in Nouri al-Maliki’s cabinet have resigned in protest, stoking the sectarian tension.

* * *

There’s a lot of debate about whether the surge is working. Yet the entire public discussion seems to be a bizarre extrapolation from a single data point: that there were fewer U.S. military deaths in July than there were in June. (See CNN video; or Liberal Doomsayer’s grousing about month-to-month vs. year-over-year comparisons.) Never mind that statistical variations happen; that correlation is not causality, and all of that academic jazz.

The point of the surge was to bring stability to Iraq, a country already in the midst of slow-burning civil war. The mission isn’t to reduce American military casualties. That’s a variable that is at least partially under our leadership’s control–we could simply reduce the risks that our troops are exposed to.

No, the point of the surge was to prove that we could keep Iraqi civilians safe if we increased our troop levels. So how are we doing? 1653 Iraqi civilians died in July, compared to 1227 in June. [Source: CNN, from Iraqi Interior Ministry] The AP reports As you you consider these daily tallies, keep in mind that the sum total for U.S. troop deaths in Iraq for the entire month was “only” 77.

July 29: 59 dead
July 28: 44 dead
July 27: 44 dead
July 26: 139-153 dead
July 25: 93 dead
July 24: 59 dead
July 23: 86 dead
July 22: 51 dead
July 21: 91 dead
July 20: 38 dead
July 19: 55 dead
July 18: 92 dead
July 17: 86 dead
July 16: 180 dead
July 15: 62 dead
July 14: 71 dead
July 13: 89 dead
July 12: 101 dead
July 11: 75 dead
July 10: 105 dead
July 9: 78 dead
July 8: 94 dead
July 7: 186 dead
July 6: 84 dead
July 5: 75 dead
July 4: 84 dead
July 3: 78 dead
July 2: 60 dead
July 1: 84 dead
[Source: Iraq Body Count recent events report]

To be absolutely clear: U.S. increases in troop levels in Iraq cannot be shown to have increased the security and stability in Iraq. It is a failed strategy.

See also: Juan Cole, Blake Hounshell.

The time has come that we recognize that the various governments that rule the multiple peoples of the world are not all equal. Although it will certainly be a statement that will cause no little distress, it is nevertheless important for all Americans to cease referring to the other state-like entities of the world as nations. If one is to truly look around the globe, one will recognize that while many other sovereign statelike bodies may have positive qualities, it is nevertheless difficult to see how the title of “Nation” could possibly be attributed to them. Consequently, continued use of the term “Nation” to describe these entities will only lead to confusion.

For example, there are many non-national entities that have shared cultures, guarded borders and stable governments. Many may provide for the common good, even with luxuries like education and healthcare. But only the One True Nation can make the claim of being one nation under God, having the quality of undeniable indivisibility, and offering liberty and justice for all, etc.

This assertion, while obviously true, should not be interpreted as an argument against constructive dialogue through diplomacy. While these other statelike regions may not currently ackowledge our singular status, nor yet wish to follow the one true President, we are committed to peaceful coexistence with the many peoples of the world.

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Sometimes it’s hard for my wife to understand the curious, unintended consequences of choosing to combine her chromosomes with those of this particular specimin of human male. On the one hand, she has this adorable, bright boy who fills her life with joy and wonder. On the other hand, she comes down some mornings to discover that he’s turned off Playhouse Disney so that he can watch the news.

What mother doesn’t love to be greeted in the morning with observations like “Mommy, a truck ran over a bomb, and a bunch of soldiers got killed”?

It may be hard for some to believe, but we do our level best to avoid indoctrination in our household. If our son asks for our opinion, we share it, but if he’s asking for information, he generally gets our best shot at an informational, yet age-appropriate answer. It’s not easy when the topic is, say, the worst POTUS of my lifetime. But it’s more important for him to learn about government than it is to try to create some sort of pint-sized parrot of his old man’s views. Besides, I have more respect for the American system than the current decider-in-chief. That respect (along with virtues like kindness, fairness, honesty) is the real value I want to promote over any specific issue opinions.

Although it is hard, I attempt to be ecumenical in representing the ideas I disagree with. And disparaging remarks are saved for the times when the impressionable youngster is not present. (There are limits, of course. Some things come in by osmosis, and it’s not like he’s ever been taken to a Republican candidate rally.)

It’s not exactly what I think most parents of five year-olds are talking about, but here’s the topic that he opened up with me recently, having seen a brief flash of Hillary Clinton’s face while I was channel-surfing.

Lad: Is she going to be the new president?
Dad: Maybe. There will be an election next year, and she’s one of the top few people who are trying to get elected.
Lad: Well, we need a new president.
Dad: Oh?
Lad: Yeah. The president we have now won’t stop the war. It just keeps going on and on. There needs to be a president who will tell all the soldiers that they can come home.
Dad: There are a lot of people out there who would definitely agree with you.
Lad: Won’t the president use up all the soldiers? What if all the soldiers get used up?
Dad: Well, we’ll still have soldiers. You heard that some soldiers have been killed and lots have been hurt, too. But there are many more soldiers who are still okay. The problem right now is that a lot of them are supposed to come home, but there aren’t enough new soldiers signing up to take their place.
Lad: Why not?
Dad: Only people who want to be soldiers are in the Army. Would you want to sign up if you knew there were going to send you some place dangerous where there was a war going on?
Lad: No way.
Dad: It’s hard to convince people to do something really scary and dangerous like that.

Then we talked a while about families being apart, and how hard it was for mommies and daddies, husbands and wives to be apart from their families for so long.

He made a strange face when he thought about not having his mommy or daddy around for a whole year.

I know for certain that being on the accelerated current events awareness plan would not be my personal first choice. It’s humbling to realize how kids have to go about making sense of the world in the media-drenched age, and how much they rely on us to reassure them and give them a safe place to reflect on what they observe.

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