This week President Obama announced an end to combat operations in Iraq. Seven long years after President Bush declared pre-emptive war on Iraq, most of our soldiers were finally heading home or to Afghanistan. There’s been a lot of discussion this week about the meaning of this war, did we achieve “victory?” Should former President Bush be given credit for the success of the surge? I fear that we have learned very little from this costly and unnecessary war. The lessons that we should have had burned into our collective consciousness; the desperate need for a free and fair media that allows for a full throated debate over the need to go to war with opposing voices given equal time, the absolute necessity to reinstate a draft and a war tax as stipulations prior to a declaration of war-aren’t even discussed. Instead conservatives want to declare victory and allies like former British Prime Minister Tony Blair remain unrepentant, confident that the need to topple Saddam Hussein was a just cause. I’ve heard very little discussion in the main stream media about the human and financial price tag for this war. Here’s a sampling; 4,416 U.S. causalities, an estimated 100,000 Iraqi civilians killed, 3 million Iraqi’s displaced from their homes, nearly 35,000 U.S. soldiers wounded, $ 750 billion in direct war costs. This was the first time in the history of our country that we waged war without increasing taxes to pay for it. There are also secondary effects like the lowering of the United State’s stature in the world by embarking on pre-emptive war and the hardening of hate by Muslims who feel persecuted and victimized by U.S. policies.

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The animated movie Toy Story made its debut when my son Ben was 5 years old. We went to see it, both fell in love with it and I proceeded to buy every character in the film as toys for my son. This summer, shortly before my now 20 year old son jetted off to France for two months of study and travel, we went to see Toy Story 3. I truly enjoyed the film as did Ben and I of course cried. If you don’t know me you might wonder what in the world I could find to cry about in an animated kids film. I tend to cry easily and often but the tear jerking-breakdown moment for me took place when Andy’s mom surveys his now vacant bedroom, just before he leaves for college. Emotions swept over me like a tidal wave as the scene unfolded, I relived every second of what that moment of separation felt like. I also marveled at how fast those 15 years flew by for me. If you are in the throes of child rearing and in despair over dirty diapers, projectile vomiting, homework, car pool, bullying and all the rest of it, cheer up, it’s over in the blink of an eye. It’s a relief to have those trying times behind me but it’s also sad in that I’ll never have those experiences again with my own child. Grandchildren are an entirely different affair. I was fully invested in the upbringing of my child. I worried about what kind of man he would become, if he would ever learn to ride a bike, shake hands, initiate conversations with strangers, and navigate the world without me. I’m so proud to say he turned out just fine with a whole lot of help from a large cast of family, friends and my wonderful, patient and understanding husband who became a step-father late in life and excelled at the job.

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There was a time when everyone took it for granted that unemployment insurance, which normally terminates after 26 weeks, would be extended in times of persistent joblessness. It was, most people agreed, the decent thing to do. But that was then. Today, American workers face the worst job market since the Great Depression, with five job seekers for every job opening, with the average spell of unemployment now at 35 weeks. Yet the Senate went home for the holiday weekend without extending benefits. How was that possible? The answer is that we’re facing a coalition of the heartless, the clueless and the confused. Nothing can be done about the first group, and probably not much about the second. But maybe it’s possible to clear up some of the confusion. By the heartless, I mean Republicans who have made the cynical calculation that blocking anything President Obama tries to do — including, or perhaps especially, anything that might alleviate the nation’s economic pain — improves their chances in the midterm elections. Don’t pretend to be shocked: you know they’re out there, and make up a large share of the G.O.P. caucus.

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