On the eleventh hour, of the eleventh day, in the eleventh month, the war to end all wars came to a close. 1.2 million Austro-Hungarians, 101,000 Bulgarians, 67,000 Canadians, 1,385,000 French, 1,718,000 Germans, 703,000 Britons, 460,000 Italians, 1.7 million Russians, 128,000 Serbians, 336,000 Turks, and 117,000 Americans lost their lives. The sheer quantity of human destruction was one of the many factors causing the United States to shrink from the world stage, created an abhorrence of further war among the leaders of the Allies, and was the genesis behind the onerous war reparations fueling the financial collapse of the German Republic and setting the stage for Teutonic hyper-nationalism. Peace lasted just 7,599 days. War is horrific. However, at times it is also necessary. Force can only be met by force. Battle to further economic interests is not necessary. There exists a very narrow set of circumstance when the deployment of military forces is appropriate. Those include direct threats to the people of our nation, direct threats to that in which we have a clear national interest, and halting genocide. Even then, going in means going in to win. Success must be defined, overwhelming force used, and the exit path clearly marked. Invasion is the last resort. It shouldnt be used because it is more convenient. It shouldnt be used before other methods of resolution have been exhausted and attack certainly isnt justified by the armed forces mere existence. All too often, Americans have cheered when are military was employed, but the circumstances didnt justify its use. Then, when it came to taking care of our military members, they were forgotten. Every veteran has willingly sacrificed for this country and when asked, would do it again. But if you ask, the threat had better be clear. If you ask, youd better be willing to sacrifice too. That means paying the taxes necessary to both support the war effort and taking care of those injured as a result. That means looking after the families of those losing their lives while serving. That means following leaders that understand when war is necessary and when it should not be used. It means making taking care of veterans a priority over everything else. Dont tell me, thank-you, show me thank-you.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 14:14:13 +0000
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