by James Glaser
June 9, 2006

Michael Berg is the father of Nick Berg, who was beheaded in Iraq in 2004. With America's killing of al Qaeda leader Zaraqawi, many radio stations called on the elder Berg to see what he thought of this military success.

Mr. Berg surprised many when he said he felt bad with the death of anyone. When asked about how Zaraqawi killed so many in Iraq, Berg went on with, "I don't think that Zaraqawi himself is responsible for the killing of hundreds of thousands of people in Iraq, I think George Bush is."

Berg said that it was Bush who invaded and destabilized Iraq and made it possible for men like Zaraqawi to come there. Zawaqawi could be thought as just one of the people who answered Bush's call to "bring it on."

It is amazing that the father of a beheaded son could hold on to his anti-war conviction, and feel that even the loss of a killer like Zaraqawi somehow is a loss for all of us. God said, "Thou Shalt not Kill," and we would all be better off if we followed His rules.

I listened to Michael Berg Thursday morning as he was interviewed on NPR. When the interview was over I said, "That man is my hero." I was shocked at how clear his message was, and how he explained so well that the blame for the war in Iraq and the deaths caused by that war rested on George Bush.

When a father loses his son, you would think that the thought of revenge would be first in his mind. But Mr. Berg held on to what he knew was right, and his words became America's conscience speaking out loud about what many Americans think of this war.

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