SOLDIER'S MOM IN CRAWFORD

It's hard to even begin to understand a mother's grief at losing a child. When a parent loses a son or daughter in a war, you fully expect that parent to lash out at the Military, the government or the administration.

In other words, you cut them some slack, . . . give them some leeway. After all, their family member paid the ultimate price. But sometimes the actions of a grieving parent graduate to the level of political action.

The statements and charges become more and more outrageous, and it's time to respond to it.

We now have one such case involving one Cindy Sheehan of California. She is camped out down in Crawford, Texas outside George Bush's ranch. She is demanding to speak to the president.

Her son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, was killed last year in Iraq while fighting Islamic terrorists. So what are her demands??

Quoting Sheehan: "I want to ask the president, why did he kill my son??"

This, of course, is extremely ridiculous, and is doing nothing more than trivializing her son's service. It's one thing to go down to Crawford, set up a protest and demand answers or whatever, . . . but to accuse Bush of murdering her son?? That's just a bit over the top there, Mrs. Sheehan.

She also has started an organization, called the Gold Star Families for Peace, which is, among other things, demanding that George Bush send his daughters to Iraq if the cause is so noble.

This ignores a few things that Mrs. Sheehan may just need a bit of reminding about. First, we have an all-volunteer Military. Her son made the choice, himself, to enlist in the Army. If he didn't want the possibility of going to war, he shouldn't have signed up. It is a risk people take.

Sure, in peacetime, you get to sign up, be stationed somewhere and have your college paid for, but that's not how it works in wartime.

However, President Bush, ever the class act, sent his White House deputy chief of staff and National Security Adviser out to talk to Sheehan. They met with her for 45 minutes. They explained that her son died for a noble cause and that the best way to honor his memory would be for her to support completion of the mission in Iraq. She isn't budging until she gets to meet with Bush.

My advice is that she needs to stock up on bottled water, . . . it's supposed to be in the mid-to-upper 90's in Crawford all this week. Oh, . . . and I'll continue to pray, along with many others, for her, and her son's heroic soul. God Bless Our American Heroes, like him! Most American citizens are doing the same.

God Bless,
Dan'L