In the words of General William T. Sherman, "You may think that war is all glory, but it is hell, boys". "War is cruelty and you cannot refine it". This was a warning about the reality of war.
After Nine Years of War, It’s Time to Bring Our Troops Home.
In the words of General William T. Sherman, "You may think that war is all glory, but it is hell, boys". "War is cruelty and you cannot refine it". This was a warning about the reality of war.
As President Obama prepares the nation for the escalation of the Afghanistan war, we should keep those words of Sherman’s in mind.
War is the failure of diplomacy or the result of poor diplomacy. It is also a tool used to end conflicts of interests, when all else fails. Some use it to quicken the means to an end, hoping to resolve issues in their favor by creating leverage, or total elimination of their opposition. Sometimes it is used to forestall continuing threats by a larger, hostile force, to keep them weakened. Regardless of the reasons, the ultimate victim is the populace, on both sides of the conflict.
Before undertaking this destructive action, the President needs to weigh the benefits of the war effort, to the rewards gained and the sacrifices made in life, limb, family stress and costs to our nation. Will we truly be better off after taking this course of action, or will we only gain political leverage temporarily, in an ever changing, dynamic world? Will the sacrifice of our armed services families, economic status and destruction of a foreign people, lead to benefits? Or will we create a new generation of hostile individuals, that will blame us for their failed governments, economics and miserable existence.
Finally, we have gone to war many times in the past with the intention of propping up governments loyal to us, but not popular in their own nation. It prolongs the process of cooperation between governments, but also perpetuates the reasons we use to go to war, in the first place.
It’s time we abandoned nation building, using our armed services as an interim police force. A new age of helping nations to become self reliant is needed. This can be accomplished with providing assistance to stable powers in the regions impacted, without the use of force. After nine years of war, it’s time to bring our troops home. www.bgraberforcongress.com