Operation Freedom: Dropping the Bomb

I wrote this piece in 2003. At that time, President George W. Bush declared a swift war on Iraq for a variety of reasons that he surely couldn't pronounce: they had "weapons of mass destruction" (a 2005 investigation found this unfounded), the Iraqi people needed saving from their evil government (thus war was needed), Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden were threats (we still haven't located Osama, though rumour has it he was spotted performing karaoke at an Egyptian bar with Elvis), and etc. Of course, at the same time, my love life wasn't doing victory dances either. I mean, this is a purely fictional piece paralleling the global catastrophe of war with the microchallenges of a dear friend's heartbreak.
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"You're not the one for me," he declared. "It's a blessing I've realized that now. I'm saving us both from getting more serious. You'll be fine. Better off even. It's just a temporary pain."


Loosening my grip on the telephone receiver, I moved in closer to my Tv screen. As the man I loved was cutting me out of his life, the President was declaring war on Iraq. "We'll spare lives, prevent future attacks, end their evils, and save the civilians of Iraq. We're gonna preserve this great nation and all it stands for. God bless America!" He was saving us from otherwise inevitable horrors and, perhaps, the end of life as we know it. It's a good thing, something to celebrate!


I suddenly felt my heart eclipse global demise. I'll never again experience the tender hopefulness of his touch. We won't fight playfully for use of his car's cupholder on the next roadtrip. No more chances to gloat over a scrabble victory. We won't share laughter about silly things, have tickle fights, or heat up his Volvo's backseat at the drive-in. It's for the best. We're both free to date other people. What a good thing!


Numbness overcame me. The world will never be the same. Families from all walks of life will never again know the security of a daily routine. Too many hearts will be pierced by interminable pain. Hatred, torture, brutality, murderous rampages, a blood stained earth. "It's for the best. It has to be done. We have to act now. It's a truly good thing!"


I shrunk into the nightmares of the moment. We won't walk on the beach hand in hand again. We won't talk for hours about nothing in particular and everything important. We won't lay meditatively in each other's arms. We won't share stories about childhood escapades, recite love poems to each other, or revel in dreams of our happy future together. Thank God I have my freedom! It's for the best!

Damn you for single-handedly stealing it all away! Damn you for demolishing something untainted. Damn you for crushing my heart and soul and dreams in the name of righteousness, in God's name even, in the name of what's best for me! Damn you for killing off all things good in the perverse name of some greater good!