Free Republic

Additional writings from Chaplain Staton for this week: CRYING OUT I read and hear much about the crying out of people wanting us to pull out of Iraq because of the military deaths that are the result of being involved in that conflict. I deeply understand the concern and pain of those who have lost loved ones to this conflict. I also know the pain of the separation from loved ones that death brings into our lives. This crying out against the war in Iraq has caused me to give much thought to the great loses suffered by this country....

DURHAM, N.C. The murderous attack on four American civilians in Falluja, Iraq, brought home gruesome images of charred bodies dangling from a bridge over the Euphrates River. It also introduced Americans to a company few had heard of: Blackwater USA, which was providing security for food delivery convoys when its employees were ambushed. Blackwater, which operates from a 5,200-acre training ground in the Great Dismal Swamp of North Carolina, is a private military firm that provides an array of services once performed solely by military personnel. The company trains soldiers in counterterrorism and urban warfare. It also provides the American...