We can never be safe from those who wish to cause us harm. Our only recourse is to behave in ways that don't needlessly offend others.

The easiest duty I had in Vietnam was providing protection for our Seabees (a group of construction engineers from the US Navy; more than a thousand lost their lives in combat). At the time that I provided their security, they were paving the main highway, QL-1, between Xuan Loc and Ham Tan. The road served many Vietnamese, on their way to/from Saigon, including soldiers from the North. Thus, our enemy would not shoot at the Seabees, and the locals learned that americans were not all bad. We won more hearts and minds with asphalt than with ammo.

I hear some mention of building hospitals and schools in Iraq. Before our invasion, Iraq didn't need our financial aid nor construction - they have quite a bit of oil. Our efforts to assist them militarily will provide good reason for an entire generation or two of Iraqis to hate US. We've disrupted their lives, farms, industries, poisoned their land and water with depleted uranium... If people weren't making money off the war it would be a total disaster.

What every child is taught:
Ask before you borrow.
Say "please" and "thank you".
Put it back when you're through.
Clean up your mess.
NO HITTING!