On Haditha, Bush Can't Be Trusted

President Bush is struggling to distance himself from the killing of civilians in the town of Haditha. He is using the same explanation that was put forth for prisoner abuse: Only a few bad apples are responsible. That is being debunked as more reports come out of the war zone that U.S. troops are indeed killing unarmed civilians, including women and children. It is extremely difficult to believe Bush, who as commander-in-chief ultimately creates the culture under which the military operates. It was Bush who refused to sign onto the International Criminal Court, which prosecutes war criminals, called certain provisions of the Geneva Conventions outdated, redefined torture and secretly sanctioned the practice of rendition and the setting up of secret prisons throughout the world to house and torture detainees. Our people in Iraq have been placed in an impossible situation from which they see no relief, and they have become very frustrated and angry. If Bush is not responsible for their state of mind, then no one is. This is not the same country we grew up in. We have always tried to be the good guys, we played and fought hard but we were always the ones who followed the rules even when our adversaries did not. Bush behaves as if the rules are for suckers and losers. He can't even sign a bill into law without putting caveats on what provisions he will and will not obey. It is time to demand from Bush the values on which he ran for office, integrity and honesty. He owes us that much. Karen Padmore, Cape May Court House Published June 15, 2006 in the Atlantic City Press