Let us call the proposed day of non-cooperation what it is - another glaring example of liberal self-indulgence. Representing a vague and unspecific opposition to the ongoing conflict in Iraq (is the problem the war's premise, its management, or its continuation?), the suggestion of not learning as a means of protest merely feeds an overarching unwillingness of anti-war critics to intellectually defend their arguments.
Moreover, a day of non-cooperation chalked up to a mantra of "stop the war" fails to address the reality of our predicament. Even if we can agree that the war was a mistake to begin with, prescriptively hollow protests at this stage in the game do nothing but undermine the overall value of pointed and substantive criticisms.
A recent Viewpoint, in broaching the matter, sought to defend the prospects of this uncooperative endeavor. Citing those unwilling to participate as "selfish," the writer espouses the day as a powerful response to those who "choose to bring death rather than prevent it." Yet, it is in this pervasive mentality that non-cooperation finds its self-righteous undoing rather than its noble significance.
Implicitly rendering our role in Iraq as that of the executioner, the aforementioned argument brings to light the absurdity of liberal outcry better than any conservative writer could. Furthermore, the flippancy with which this unwarranted message is delivered skews the facts of the situation so as to allow anti-war doves to feel especially good about themselves without any thoughtful justification for doing so.
Decrying our government's blood-lust, oppressive aims, imperial aspirations and, of course, our ruthless quest for oil, those willing to magnanimously forgo a day of classes conveniently paints but half the picture. They overlook the hundreds of thousands killed by Saddam's Baathist regime. They omit the murder of tens of thousands of civilians at the hands of death squads and Islamisist insurgents.
They turn a cheek to the Ayatollahs gripping Iran, sponsoring terror, and undermining stability next door. They join hands with Nancy Pelosi in idealizing Syria and ignoring its ties to Hezbollah. They refuse to admit the painfully obvious implications of a withdrawal from Iraq - ethnic cleansing (perhaps evolving into genocide), a safe-haven for terrorism and an unmanageable blow to a region on the tipping point of war. And they condemn the country that protects their right to protest while emboldening those that stifle debate with secret police and religious absolutism.
Thus in keeping with a recent and most-disturbing liberal trend of villainizing the United States while giving the forces of evil a free pass, those favoring a profoundly meaningless day of non-cooperation are in fact cooperating. Unfortunately, they are cooperating with those throughout the world who truly "choose to bring death rather than prevent it."
Blurring the line between our enemies and our own government, liberals preach a dangerous message of moral equivalency and appeasement. They at once denounce our complacency with respect to unjust governments and the abuse of human rights while lambasting the actions we take to rectify these problems. In turn, an ideology of progress and reform has been transformed into an ideology of inaction and narcissism.
Therefore, I challenge those critical of our presence in Iraq to reject a useless disruption of campus life and instead devise a venue for reasoned, sound and worthwhile debate. I dare them to distance themselves from the far-left masses that find it easier to look inward and find fault than to acknowledge the threats we face.
And I urge them to spurn a selfish psychology that misperceives the uncooperative actions of a privileged few to be a compelling critique of a deeply complicated war. In doing so, an empty voice of opposition just might be replaced with one intellectually worthy of our university.
Sadly, however, I'm inclined to believe that this article will be ignored in favor of that which one of non-cooperation's most vocal supporters has suggested to be an integral part of sticking it to the man - "smoking and hanging out."
Matthew Ladner is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major.
