Is it truly senseless to blame American's for the war?

That is the basis for representative government.

It is the duty of every patriotic citizen to make his opinions known either way. Unfortunately, most Americans use their freedom to avoid the duties that come with that freedom.

To answer your question, silence is assent, so those who remain silent imply they support whatever decisions are being made.

It is senseless to blame anyone for any war. we live in a democratic society so if we actually go to war that means that the situation or the war was justifiable at the general public's manner of thought at that exact moment. If we keep on looking after the fact and blame people for wars, then anyone can be blamed. Blaming is just something that people feel is needed to solace their own guilt, regret, hatred, or even their own responsibility towards the war. You can blame America for the war after it has started, but I can blame you for adding to anti american sentiment before the war that lead us to war. This is all after thought stuff used to justify things in people's minds. The fact is we all look at our current situations and make decisions based on that. So all blaming is senseless.

Edit: You are so deluded. Americans accepting responsibility is nonesense because we were not responsible. Americans do what they can and present situations lead to war. You are so deluded to think that anyone including America should be blamed. I wouldn't even blame the parties involved in the war. Again you are so deluded and your baseless arguments are astounding to think democracy solves the problem of wars that not everybody agrees upon. I just have to say it again that you are a deluded idealist.

Edit: To J.T. : I understand you believe people have a right to make their opinions heard, but do you really believe that the majority are against the war in a democracy when they declare war. That silent group you are talking about is a group who doesn't care, has no opinion because they aren't informed, or disagree with how a war is being handled but has no better way in mind. The actual active opposition in this is probably pretty small and they are heard. With a vote comes responsibility but the consequences can never be blamed upon the individual voter because each of them cast their vote whether it is abstention, yeah, or ney and Americans can never be blamed for war because the majority is for the war and therefore right is on our side. The asker is delusional because he doesn't understand war is not a one-party thing and two or more international parties share responsibility for war so how can you blame any one country. Germany was blamed for WWI and look how that turned out. Again the asker is delusional and should stay out of politics indefinitely.

Edit: I just can't get over how stupid this question is to make a country or its people to accept responsibility. This is the most deluded question ever. I don't blame Syria so you don't blame America in a war between Israel and Lebanon. You said no specific war huh. America can't be blamed for war in general. You say every voter has a responsibility to prevent war well look at it this way every citizen of this world has a responsibility towards peace. So don't throw stones in a glass house the shrapnel might just hurt you.

Well, since "Americans" didn't cause the war (just the leaders of the government), it isn't right to blame us all.

Before he started dropping the bombs, more Americans were against it than were for it. Since mere citizens have no say or power, our will was ignored.

I suppose we're all complicit in allowing our government to be hijacked, and not insisting on fair elections and true representation.

Amazing simply amazing, please do research before asking such questions. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War I would like to know how many people have relatives in Iraq as soldiers. I would like to know if they support their loved ones and pray for their safe return. It is so easy to point fingers at other nations. It would be so easy for the USA to simply shut its borders and say stay away but then it wouldn't be the great country it is. You will find in history that the USA was an isolationist society. They was begged by the British to please help them during WWII, but the USA denied this request by saying this country was not involved directly or indirectly. When the USA did get involved what a day of jubulation that became for all of Europe. People can point fingers and accuse all they want but when bombs from Iran begin to fall in your countries I feel so sorry for the mass murders they will cause. This also includes North Korea. People really need to do research and see who their true enemy is. They will find it is not the ordinary citizen of a country but the terrorists that occupy that country. Therefore, you have the problems between Lebanon and Israel. Lebanonese peoples did not lob one bomb in the direction of Israel but the Hezbollah terrorists did. Until these terrorist groups are dismantled conflicts will continue to arise. Until the grudges and hatred of other peoples by the Islamic nations stop conflicts will continue to arise. We have a choice to make, submit to the Islamics, have mass murders like 9/11 or fight back. Which would you choose if this was in your homeland?

To everything there is a season- a time for war and a time for peace.

I believe we should exhaust every effort to resolve conflict without resorting to war- but there comes a point when we do exhaust these efforts, especially with terrorists that are so locked in their backward ways that the only way to satisfy them would be to allow them to control our country as a theocracy.

I really don't get why liberals are so against the war- we are at war to prevent extreme right-wingers from taking control of the region. They would impose their strict religious beliefs on everyone and execute anyone who opposes them and would push women down to the status of farm animals. Is this what you really want? You want us to just turn our heads and let this happen over there? Then you want us to just ask them to stop when they bring their ideology to our own country and try to enforce it by killing innocent people.

Well, I can see your point... though I find it hard to believe it's all AMerican's fault when someone ELSE starts the war. (I am NOT saying Iraq started this war... just so we are clear on that, but you have it presented here as if any war gets started, it's America's fault.). ^_^ But, voicing our opinion is about as far as that goes. There have been so many protests over us going into Iraq that it's not even funny, but our Gov't is going to do whatever the hell it wants to do as far as International Policy goes. We can scream all day and our Gov't just gives us that "Shut the hell up" look and does it anyway. ^_^

Now, I'm not making excuses. But, I find it hard to blame people for something they really don't have any control over. I mean, you wouldn't blame your mom because your brother killed someone... and she stands by him... would you? ^_^

US citizens are to blame for the war because we had to have something going on.This war is approaching no end anytime soon and the odds of troops being pulled out are pretty low right now.We're looking at the possiblity of WWIII and/or a 2nd Korean War.

The last several wars were engaged in without the Constitutionally mandated declaration by Congress. There was a pretense of calling them "military actions" for awhile. Now everyone's forgotten how wars are supposed to be declared, and most people just accept that wars are "the government's business."

I've written letters to my congressmen and senators and newspapers about the immorality of this war, and have gotten NOWHERE. I just read a headline that said the Senate overwhelmingly approved Isreal's latest action. Even a sizable number of US Orthodox Jews are in opposition to Israel's latest Lebanese offensive, but they, like all the other little people in America, are not being heard by the Senate.

I have come to the conclusion that our government is entirely corrupt (well, maybe not the whole house of reps, but the senators all seem to be in some secret cabal that is beyond the influence of public opinion). I don't want to discourage people from writing letters, or getting out to vote....but...

I am not going to point my fingers at, and name as responsible for the war, people who haven't wasted their time writing letters like I feel I've wasted mine. Maybe their way of protest has been to quietly befriend peaceloving Muslims in America, or to give support to humanitarian aid organizations, or to promote intercultural reconciliation through organizations like www.musalaha.com.

It may come to the point that a righteous person who opposes the actions of the American government will have to undergo death for his opposition, after letter-writing and attempts to vote out the bastards have proven themselves fruitless.

I am thinking about reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer for inspiration. He was a German Lutheran pastor and writer who opposed Nazism. He paid more than the cost of a postage stamp on a letter to his congressman for his opposition.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietrich_Bonhoeffer

-----Addition to GEORGIEGIRL above.

Yes, I do pray for American soldiers in Iraq. In fact, for the last several weeks, the background image on my PC has been one of the flag-draped coffin of an American serviceman lifted by his comrades in uniform. It reminds me to pray. I also pray when I see images of Palestinian babies blown to bits by Israeli bombs, and the carnage wrought by radical Islamic freedom-fighters.

The presence of the super-powers, and their military technology, makes this war--and every war they manipulate---bloodier and more prolonged. Should we get the super-powers (Communists vs. antiCommunists) to stop fighting then? Don't bother. The neoconservatives have brought their co-operation to NEW HEIGHTS (or depths) in the US government. Soon there won't be any contest about who controls the world. The super-powers will be sitting and smiling together on the top of the heap, with the rest of us underheel, we who were tricked into taking sides in the wars they amped up.

I can't and I WON'T take sides any more. Only the side of peace. I haven't lost hope forever. Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world."

No, don't blame Americans for the war, blame geography. If there was no oil there then Mr Bush's eyes wouldn't have lit up with oily black dollar signs that dripped darkness into the hearts of everyone.

War happens everywhere all the time since the beginning of time and it will never stop, so people should just get used to it.