Retired Military Speaking Out
I am recently retired from the military and,
while I was wearing the uniform, I too considered myself a Republican. The
main reason was a simple one – Republicans traditionally are the party that
supports military spending, while the Democrats traditionally oppose it. To
serve in uniform yet vote for political policies that may endanger my livelihood
just didn't seem to make sense, so I voted for the candidates who seemed more
likely to continue funding my service, leave my base off the closure list,
or throw us another annual 3-4% raise.It was only after retiring that I seemed to
wake up to the reality of what I had supported for 20 years – a bloated, profit-driven
political machine that sacrifices the poor and naive young people of the nation
to further its own corporate interests. The psychology of rationalization
involved in subjugating my personal values in order to make a living is surely
not limited to myself. I only hope that all of the courageous people currently
serving who have had to make the same Faustian compromise in their souls will
be able to see the truth before it kills them.
Coopster posted the above comment, for which I'm grateful. They
are important words that everyone needs to read. This is what I'm hearing again
and again from retiring veterans. We owe our veterans so much, but not just
in words, in actions, too.
Iraq will bring a change of political heart as never before seen in our
fighting men and women and for very good reasons.
Forty people were killed today in Iraq, as a string of bombings
wounded 36 others. Want more?
Finally, insurgents armed with rocket-propelled
grenades and machine guns ambushed 60 fuel tankers on a road north of Baghdad,
destroying 20 of them, police and oil officials told The A.P. There was no immediate
word on casualties. The militant group known as the Islamic Army in Iraq claimed
responsibility for the attack in an Internet posting, Reuters reported.
More
Than 40 Killed in String of Bombings in Central Iraq
 |
| Hey, Bill, you arrogant ass. Where were you when your country called? |
Yesterday, the ever arrogant Bill O'Reilly, a man who never served
one day of his pontificating life in the service, came after John Murtha for
what this Marine veteran recently said. Rep. Murtha stated on “Nightline”
that if he were of age he would not enlist in the U.S. military. O'Reilly was
enraged. The truth bites, doesn't it, Bill?
Yes, our fighting men and women serving in Iraq are doing a valiant
job, but Iraq is now no longer our war to fight. It's up to the Iraqis to make
of their country what they will… or won't.
Our president is now down to stopping in Mongolia to thank that
country for 130 soldiers. Is he kidding? This is what we've come to in Iraq?
The coalition of the willing, which wasn't that impressive to begin with, is
not only dwindling, but let's face it. We no longer have a coalition at all.
As member nations consider another calendar
year in Iraq, the Bush administration's “coalition of the willing”
appears increasingly unwilling to commit to the cause indefinitely.Last week, two countries finished withdrawing the last
of their troops from Iraq, and two others decided to cut their forces by about
a third. In all, the coalition has declined from a 2003 high of 38 nations
and 50,000 troops to 28 nations and about 20,000 soldiers today. U.S.
Allies Valuable But Dwindling
Are we going to allow the U.S. military to continue taking this fight on the
chin, while our Armed Forces decline, recruitment lags, equipment orders cannot
be filled and our veterans come home one by one wondering what our policy is
in Iraq and around the world?
As Dr. Bacevich, a professor in international relations puts it, “A coalition
matters to the degree that it brings something substantive to the table.”
And that, my friends, is the problem in a nutshell.
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