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Opponents, supporters join for debate on Iraq War

Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2005

Click here to enlarge this photo Brian Lewis⁄The Gazette U.S. Rep. Albert R. Wynn (D-Dist. 4) speaks to the audience during a panel discussion on the Iraq War Monday night in Sandy Spring. Joining Wynn was think tank scholars Jim Phillips (left) from the Heritage Foundation and Subodh Atal (right) from the Cato Institute. Click here to enlarge this photo Brian Lewis⁄The Gazette Victor Simon moderates a panel discussion on the Iraq War. Panelists included think tank scholars Phillips, Atal and Wynn (D-Dist.4), who is part of the Out of Iraq Congressional Caucus.

A Monday night forum at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring welcomed more than 150 people with opposing opinions on the war for a peaceful discussion and exchange of ideas.

By a show of hands, most of the crowd was against the U.S. presence in Iraq, but not by a large majority. A mix of vocal supporters helped balance the scales of the discussion, while those who remained undecided mainly listened.

Victor Simon of Silver Spring, the organizer and moderator, hoped that the diverse perspectives presented might help illuminate understanding for people on opposing sides and those in the middle, he explained in an earlier interview with The Gazette. But even though the forum was conducted mostly in a civil manner, when it was over, the division remained.

U.S. Rep. Albert R. Wynn (D-Dist.4), who is part of the Out of Iraq Congressional Caucus, was accompanied by think tank scholars Subodh Atal from the Cato Institute and Jim Phillips from the Heritage Foundation to share their insight and expertise with the audience.

‘‘If I knew then what I know now, I would not have voted for the resolution,” Wynn said about the ‘‘false” information that was provided to Congress before the legislative body supported the war.

Wynn referred to reports that state close to 2,000 U.S. troops have been killed, more than 15,000 have been injured, and between 23,000 and 26,000 Iraqi civilians have died.

Simon’s first question to the crowd was whether the war makes the country more or less safe from terrorism, which incited a flurry of responses.

‘‘If wanted to increase the probability of terrorist acts against Americans in this country and overseas, I don’t think I could do a better job than George Bush has done,” said Steven Laphan of Gaithersburg.

Another member of the audience saw it in a different way.

‘‘A lot of people carry on like we knocked over Canada one Saturday morning rather than one of the top genocidal mass murderers in the 20th century,” said Kristinn Taylor of Silver Spring.

All sides continued to respond to a series of questions Simon presented to the audience and panel of experts throughout the evening. As facts and figures and were shared, a 15-year-old Sherwood High School student reminded the audience that his generation will be faced with the cost of this war.

Jesse Kaveh of Silver Spring, an Iraqi American born in Iraq, disagreed with a report Simon read stating that almost 80 percent of Iraqis want the United States to leave their country. Doing so would have a strong adverse effect on the human rights the country has gained, Kaveh said.

Dustin Frotangela stood up to tell the audience what it was like to be there in person. He served six months in Iraq before returning over the summer, and explained how Iraqis would shake his hand thanking him for being there.

‘‘They used to dance and cheer for me. I had little kids doing back flips for me saying thank you,” said Frotangela, who is now at the Walter Reed Medical Center. ‘‘I’m 20 years old. I lost my eye June 18. And I was proud to go to Iraq.”

One man asked why the United States didn’t do this job 10 years ago.

Before storming out of the auditorium, one man exclaimed how the United States has lost its soul because of this war, ‘‘and the battle of New Orleans shows that!”

Atal explained that since ‘‘most National Guard groups have about 30 percent of their equipment in Iraq, that did hurt us.” When a disaster like Hurricane Katrina strikes, the country is not fully prepared, he added.

When the forum came to a close, Simon felt his mission was accomplished.

He was inspired to coordinate the forum after experiencing a contentious moment with a close family member who called him unpatriotic and un-American for opposing the military effort. Simon decided to bring the community together for a civil discussion of an issue that he was sure polarized other groups of friends and family members in the same way.

‘‘We proved that people on opposite sides could stay in the same room and be civil,” Simon said.