Implied (and other) promises

(Hat tip: Instapundit.)

I have a bit of a quirk. Whenever I take on a stray animal, I never just get rid of it. I make sure it has a good home, wherever it's going. I figure that by taking the animal into my home, I've made a promise to it. I've promised to take care of it, as well as I can.

Nor is this some new-age thing where I commune with animals and grant them the same rights that I claim for myself. The promise I make is kept at least as much for my own sake as for the animal's. Breaking a promise, even one made to an animal, damages my integrity.

My sense of ethics will not allow me to return a stray to the street.

When we invaded Afghanistan and Iraq, we made certain promises. Among these, we promised to help the people of both these countries establish representative governmentst so they would have at least a chance of living without a dictator running their lives.

Right now, we're carrying out that promise to the best of our ability, and we're not doing that bad a job.

There were good arguments for and against the invasions of both countries. However, having invaded, we need to carry through on our promises.

As George Will puts it:

Reasonable people can question the feasibility of Bush's nation-building and democracy-spreading ambitions. But, having taken up that burden, America cannot prudently, or decently, put it down. The question is: Which candidate will most tenaciously and single-mindedly pursue victory? The answer is: Not John Kerry, who is multiple-minded about most matters. Tuesday's winner will not start from scratch but from where we are now, standing with the women of Bamiyan, Afghanistan. Back in Washington recently, Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, said those women were warned that Taliban remnants would attack polling places during the Oct. 9 elections. So the women performed the ritual bathing and said the prayers of those facing death. Then, rising at 3 a.m., they trekked an hour to wait in line for the polls to open at 7 a.m. In the province of Kunar an explosion 100 meters from a long line of waiting voters did not cause anyone to leave the line. Which candidate can be trusted to keep faith with these people? Surely not the man whose party is increasingly influenced by its Michael Moore faction.

I hope the American electorate is not the sort to return strays to the street.