In a city not unfamiliar with unmitigated chutzpah, a supreme act of this behavior was evident on Wednesday night when HBO invited military, veterans, the press and other political junkies to a preview screening of Alive Day, a documentary directed by James Gandolfini about the walking wounded of Iraq. In attendance at the preview was none other than Paul Wolfowitz, the former Under-Secretary of Defense who ignored the warnings of a post-invasion conflagration and insisted that the U.S. would be greeted as heroes when we marched into Baghdad. Nothing could have been further from the truth, as the last four years have demonstrated.
By attending the event of one of the most dramatic depictions of the horrors of the Iraq war it is unclear whether Wolfowitz, this neo-con ideologue, was seeking a catharsis or merely forgiveness of those who served in our nation's military with honor. Whatever the political motivation his presence there reminded me of the urgent need to get our soldiers out of harms way, and to make sure that such ill-conceived adventures in the name of a unrealistic never-ending war on terror stop. It also underscored the absence of any leadership in making sure we protect our nation's armed forces against the irrational beliefs of poorly planned military adventures.
This poignant documentary that is searing in its simplicity conveys a portrait of a courageous young military that have paid a heavy price for their service in Iraq. Rather than a political diatribe the film unleashed a powerful sense of hurt, of anger and frustration that has wrought so much destruction and pain on so many willing to serve their country. I hope that everyone gets a chance to see what patriotism is really about by listening to the tales of these young men and women who serve our country 24/7.