Cole and I went to a lunchtime presentation today given by Congressman Bob Inglis who has monthly talks with his constituents in area restaurants. Today’s topic was “Accountability in Iraq”. Apparently, although we are the ones who invaded their country, bombed their cities, destroyed their infrastructure and are killing their people, accountability rests entirely on the shoulders of the Iraqis.

The main frustration in the room seemed to be that the new Iraqi government wasn’t getting the situation in Iraq under control. The fact that “control” might be a little difficult when your country had 160,000 armed foreign troops in tanks and airplanes firing upon its citizens, when they hadn’t had a full day’s electricity in four and a half years, clean drinking water was an expensive luxury most cannot afford, and starvation was as big a danger as imminent death from US firepower, seemed to have entirely eluded these people. The fact that a government forced upon you by the very people who had invaded your country might not actually be accepted as legitimate by victims of the invasion, also seemed to be an alien concept.

The Congressman talked about the cultural differences between “Americans” and “Arabs” when it came to solving problems. Americans, according to him, saw a problem and solved it immediately. Arabs, from his perspective, took a more circuitous route to a solution, even going so far as to giving the problem some actual thought. What a concept - to actually discuss the problem with others while engaging the brain? How could they utilize such an ineffective process to find solutions when dropping bombs can be so immediate?

Several of the audience mentioned that our soldiers’ “precious blood” was being spilled and they were frustrated by this. I am, too! I don’t want to see another one of our soldiers die! But, I also don’t want to see another Iraqi civilian die. I don’t want to see another beautiful little girl like Salee lose her legs, or another loving father like Abu Ali lose his son. But nobody even bothered to mention the Iraqi civilians who are being slaughtered daily in their own country.

I venture to guess that, due to the area, everyone in the room was of one “Christian” denomination or another. They probably go to church every Sunday. But, I found Christ’s principles to be seriously lacking. A recent study based on a 2006 scientific survey suggests that more than one million Iraqis have died as a result of the American invasion. Their blood is just as “precious” as our own. Christ was a man of peace. He commanded us to “love one another” as we love Him. He reminded us that whatever we do to the least of our brothers we are doing unto Him.

Cole and I left the meeting early, secure in the knowledge that over 70% of American citizens and over 80% of Iraqi civilians oppose the war. The unreality of the discussion had made me uneasy.

I missed the sweetness of Salee, the flesh-and-blood reality of the war in Iraq.