Burdens of War

I found this item at This Modern World. It's hardly an new story--an American soldier noting how little the burden of America's wars are shared by his countrymen. The story resonated with me for several reasons.

Yesterday on "About Face" (see postscript) we discussed how the wars affect military families. Our guests included fathers of two soldiers on active duty in Iraq. They described how difficult it is for them to deal with the uncertainty and fear they feel about thier sons. One father described himself as a complete news junkie who cannot stop following events even as his wife refuses to follow them at all. Both told about the anxiety that comes with each announcement of an American casualty in the provinces where their sons are stationed. Those are real burdens, felt intensely by the soldiers and their families. The rest of us simply go on with life. Unless we have a relative in the military, we are largely unaffected.

I fall into that category. I personally don't know anyone serving in our wars. My nephew is an Air Force para-rescue type and could well be deployed at some point but otherwise the few Iraq and Afghanistan veterans I know I've met after their service. But I share their alienation based on my experience in Vietnam. By the time I ended up in Vietnam, American forces and casualties were declining. Draft calls were down substantially and ended completely midway during my tour. For most Americans, the war was over. Except that it wasn't. We lost almost 2,400 soldiers that year and many more wounded. For those of us in the field, the war was very, very real. Yet when I returned to the States on leave and at the end of my tour, the war was virtually invisible. I wanted to scream at people, "DON'T YOU KNOW THERE'S A WAR ON? THOSE ARE REAL FUCKING BULLETS!"

It's easy to see why any soldier will look at the "Support Our Troops" ribbons and signs as little more than window dressing. While they are fighting and dying--all in all, pretty intense work--the rest of us live our normal lives. And the worst part is that there is very little most of us can do because our government simply will not ask civilians to make any real sacrifices despite BushCheney's rhetoric about the "clash of civilizations" and threats to America.

postscript

"About Face" is a program on Air America Phoenix (KPHX 1480 AM). I am an occasional co-host and contributor. The program airs at 11:00 am Sundays. If you are outside the Phoenix area, you can tune in via computer using this link. Keep in mind that Arizona is NOT on daylight savings time.