Lynn C. Woolsey: “Pope John Paul II has passed away. I talk about him tonight because we can learn a lesson from the way he lived his…”

“Pope John Paul II has passed away. I talk about him tonight because we can learn a lesson from the way he lived his life. I did not agree with a lot of what the Pope believed in, but I agree with the way he fought against that which he believed was worth fighting. When Pope John Paul II came into office, the Soviet Union was a dominant world power and communism was a dominant ideology. John Paul II, who grew up in Poland, knew firsthand the atrocities that were often committed in the name of communism. He fought against the evils of communism by speaking out and putting international pressures on countries like the Soviet Union, Hungary, and Poland. These countries understood the threat that they faced in this Pope, one strong-willed man, who knew firsthand the perils of the communist system. In 1989, the Soviet Union fell, partially as a result of the Pope's actions. Then, as now, the world faced a major conflict of ideologies. Instead of communism, the major threat to our generation is Islamic extremism perpetrated by radical groups like al Qaeda. And then, as now, the Pope believed that the proper response was to apply international pressure to alleviate a bad situation. But instead of applying international pressure and utilizing multilateral diplomacy to fight terrorism, the response by the Bush administration was to send 150,000 troops into Iraq to 'liberate' the country. Liberate the country from what, exactly? One bad leader named Saddam Hussein?”