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If we are to assume that "war" is a last resort, then why does it seem to be a pre-emptive action these days.
Watching all the Veteran's Day programming reminded me that war should NEVER be entered into unadvisedly.
Since the Viet Nam war unpleasantness, we seem to be immune to it.
We send troops here and there, and life goes on normally at "home".
Individual families suffer the ultimate grief when "their" soldier does not come home alive, but for most people, it's "business as usual".
Are we TOO prosperous to care? Are we too lazy to notice? Is our government too afraid to level with us?
During WWII, everyone "felt" like they were contributing, even if their scrap metal drives never actually "made" a battleship or their old tires were turned into jeep tires. They held back their own desires for goods, in exchange for the "good of the soldiers" and for the war effort.
The "volunteer" military is not as "volunteer" as they tell us. There is a permanent underclass in America, and we all know that the bulk of the "military force" relies heavily on them. Of course , every time someone mentions this, they are immediately slapped down with statistics of how educated our military is. To some extent that is true, but the grunts on the ground (the non-lifers) are most likely to be people from dead-end towns, who had dead-end jobs, and who took the carrot.
The stick has a very pointy end, and the carrot is not all that tasty.
If war was "always" declared by congress ( not the president) after a lengthy debate, and if it came attached with price tag, the people would decide whether or not a "war" was worth it.
Most people have no direct connection to "the war" (or ANY war). their lives continue as before:
trips to the gym
trips to the mall courtesy of Visa & Master Card
a bigger car
a bigger house
drive through food
American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, Deal or No Deal..
The media lets them off the hook, the congress keeps pushing the bills for the war under the rug..
If they do not happen to have a soldier in the thick of it, they never even have to "know" it's going on.
At least during the Viet Nam war unpleasantness, the draft brought the whole issue front and center. Sure, some rich kids weaseled out (don't they always?), but the draft focused attention of the war like a laser.
the draft also had a "civilizing" effect on the troops. The "volunteer" aspect of the military these days, attracts a thinner slice of life. the draft "caught" guys who were artists, musicians, poets, writers, farmers, along with the ones who were "into" ass-kicking.
The fact that there were people of ALL backgrounds and interests, had to have had an effect on the overall behavior of the soldiers. Were there renegade soldiers? Of course. BUT the make up of the companies and units had a diversity that seems to be lacking these days.
If ALL parents had to worry about THEIR child being grabbed up for a corporate hissyfit-war, they might just start paying attention.
Last week's election had an element of "attention to war" about it..
Let's hope it lingers..and that our newly-minted congress pays their share of attention.
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