Brian Jones: “With the multitude of serious issues and problems facing our Nation, one important issue has been forgotten…”

“With the multitude of serious issues and problems facing our Nation, one important issue has been forgotten: Afghanistan. That brings me to a moving Washington Post feature written by Greg Jaffe on May 27 titled ``Imperfect Answers--A Son Was Killed in Action and His Parents Ask Why.'' I would like to share an excerpt from the article: ``Ten days since Gabe was killed. Bob and Donna Conde were sitting on a couch in their basement surrounded by relatives, close friends, and 16 of the soldiers who fought alongside their son in Afghanistan. ``The soldiers had been back in the United States for just a few days--exhausted from their 9-month deployment and relieved to be home. They had come to this small farming town an hour's drive from Denver to help bury Spec. Gabriel Conde. . . . ``By the time Gabe deployed in September, the war had fallen so far out of the headlines that Bob found it hard to figure out why the U.S. military was still in Afghanistan. He tried to read up on the war, but the news accounts of suicide bombings, civilian deaths, and political infighting never really made sense. They didn't explain what Gabe was fighting for.'' Mr. Speaker, that is why so many of us in the United States House of Representatives are disappointed, frustrated. We have written numerous letters from Members of both parties asking for a debate, and to this day, Mr.…”