Post Scripts: America’s war burden

Kathy does not like for me to write too often about the war in Iraq and, according to a recent letter to the editor in this newspaper, I am about to "drive a reader crazy" with my frequent columns about this unfortunate war. I respect both my wife and the other lady as well, but I can only suggest to those who do not like what I write to stop reading it. This will be difficult to achieve since Kathy is my local editor and also my conscience.

There has been much in the press lately about the fact that our fighting force is a bit small for the job it was assigned. Some of you will recall that I have written about that in earlier columns – not that I’m a military expert – but in my dotage I still have an element of common sense. It has been obvious for sometime that our president and his Department of Defense pal, Donald Rumsfeld, have bitten off more than they can chew with the force they were willing to put in the field.

Let me explain. Our forces in Iraq would not have been too small had America not found itself virtually devoid of international help. Oh, there are token troops from several nations but it is American soldiers who carry the major burden. I have been surprised that more Americans have not questioned why most of the our usual allies have declined to commit needed amounts of troops and capital to this war. Could it be they don’t have Lockheed, Halliburton and other defense contractors pulling the strings?

Perhaps it is because they are not dependent on foreign oil. When will people understand too many of our escapades into war are instigated by corporate interests and paid for by the taxpayers and, sadly, with the lives of American soldiers. While I’m on this subject, let me add that I think we should reinstate the draft. It would involve everyone in this war, not just the patriotic and the poor. There are large segments of society that have never served in any of our several recent wars, but they are all for combat as long as they don’t have to face the enemy.

It is interesting to note that this is reflected in our elected representatives. The number of veterans serving in Congress is at an all-time low. Just coincidentally I suppose, our involvement in military adventures around the world has increased. The cost of freedom is high and we should temper leaders’ desire to see shock, awe and other remotely viewed explosions and bleeding bodies, as long as it is not them being shot at.

Iraq seemed an easy mission before the war. We could have let inspectors work, ended the sanctions and let the Iraqi people overthrow their ruthless dictator. Now there is no end in sight and no one is safe in Iraq. Events of the past two weeks are simply sickening. As Aldous Huxley once said: "Ye shall know the truth and the truth will make you mad."