To War or Not to War

Not Again

The call to arms. How many times in the history of this world, let alone our beloved United States, has this alarm been sent out to stir the populace to action, support, and, yes, occasionally to insanity?

I can see someone in millenia past, now, sitting on a hill looking down on Rome, Sparta, Alexandria - anywhere, thinking we must do something, anything to stop them from forcing themselves on us before we can force ourselves on them.

Being a Vietnam vet myself, I'm not averse to the implications that this pronouncement of our need to eradicate some "evil" entails. I've seen enough death and destruction to last me several lifetimes. And for what? Think about it. What threat does little Vietnam pose to us? After all the lives that were lost, maimed and changed forever, not only of the servicemen and women, but of their families, what did it mean? Vietnam was ultimately taken over by the communists and, so what? What shred of impact has it had on us? Wait a minute, I think I see a yellow communist cloud coming around my balcony. My bad, just a little fog. After I got over to Vietnam, I became quickly aware that things were going to and should be allowed to take their natural course. It wasn't our country, it wasn't our place to impose our will and philosophy on those people. All too soon, the only thing spurring me on over there was survival.

And now Iraq. How many times must history truly repeat itself? The call to arms to eradicate the nucular, oh I'm sorry, I meant nuclear threat they present to us. Well, how about the nuclear threat we represent to everybody else? Of course, I forgot, we only have god-fearing, righteous folks living on these shores. Nobody living in the U.S. would ever try to harm, subjugate or in any way try to impede someone else's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Yeah, right.

Speaking as a vet, I feel for the folks putting their lives on the line. It is truly no joke - I know. At the end of the day, I only hope every one of them could come back home to their families safe and sound - in mind and body.

But when it all started, I could only think - not again.