My thoughts and prayers extend to all victims of the aggression in the Middle East — Americans, Iraqis, Saudis, Israelites, Arabs; men, women, and children; those in uniform and those merely trying to survive this chaos; those with whom I agree and those with whom I disagree.

In the end, we are all human, and our compassion should not be limited to our friends and peers. Until we can learn from our mistakes and value the lives and rights of everyone, we will not achieve real progress.