Cold War Veterans Blog

Bush Invokes Resolve of Cold War


The President has no problem comparing the Cold War to the War on Terror but yet DoD still somehow finds that Cold War service is unworthy of a service medal. It seems a little hypocritical to me.


The following is excerpts from BBC article about Bush's graduation speech at West Point .Mr Bush told graduates the US would never back downPresident George W Bush has likened the US "war on terror" to the Cold War fight against communism after World War II, at a military graduation ceremony. Speaking to cadets at West Point military academy in New York state, Mr Bush said the US would not rest until the threat of terror had been removed. The 861 new graduates must fight a war against terror that knew no boundaries, the president told them. "The war began on my watch but it's going to end on your watch," he said. In a wide-ranging speech, Mr Bush talked of his aim of spreading peace through the Middle East, saying repression there was creating conditions for global terrorism

. We will complete the mission "We're still in the early stages of this struggle for freedom and, like those first years of the Cold War, we've seen setbacks and challenges and days that have tested America's resolve, yet we've also seen days of victory and hope," he said. He commended former President Harry Truman, whose administration lacked popularity but who he said had laid the groundwork of success against communism. Mr Bush drew parallels between Mr Truman's Cold War efforts and his own in fighting global terrorism. The cadets were the first to arrive at the academy after the 11 September 2001 attacks on the US. The president noted that more than 50 of their fellow cadets had already seen combat, and 34 former cadets had died in the "war on terror". "We will honour the memory of those brave souls. We will finish the task for which they gave their lives. We will complete the mission," he said.