A few years ago my favorite TV show was a drama about Iraq called "Over There". The show attempted to give those of us sitting on the couch, an idea of what our troops were going through. It was cancelled in the first season.
Recently 60 Minutes did a special episode on a national guard division from Iowa that was sent to Iaq in 2005. They followed this group of "fathers, sons and brothers" for two years. I am no fan of Stone Phillips or puff-pieces masquerading as news but this was a great episode. We should all spend more time thinking about the people who are fighting for us and what they are going through.
The war experience of voters, soldiers and Iraqi's are so completely different, it hard to imagine how they can be reconciled. The troops that go seem to have little understanding of the facts surrounding the conflict, either before or after they go. American voters seem to have no concern for the financial costs involved (which they will have to pay back with increased taxes) and little awareness of what Iraqi's are going through or how Iraqi's are likely to feel about our actions when the dust finally settles.
citizen soldiers
As I watched this episode, I was really struck by how readily these men were willing to sacrifice for their country. On one hand, the soldiers and family interviewed professed (the incorrect) belief that Iraq had something to do with 9/11. On the other hand, they were so willing to trust the President. One of them even commented on his faith that the President was "a smart man and would not send them to Iraq lightly."
I was touched by their willingness to give of themselves. Their country had a need and they were willing to heed the call, no questions asked. I found myself thinking about what I have given for the war. Four years now. Four years of war; almost a trillon dollars of tax dollars spent; no end in sight.
The truth is, I have done nothing to support the war. And I am not alone.
I go to work. I pay my taxes. I read about our efforts in the paper. Iraq doesnt touch my life at all and that is the war experience of almost everyone I know. While military families feel the pain, most Americans have done nothing to support the war except continue to shop. (After all, the President himself gave us a tax cut and urged us to fight the terrorists by continuing to shop and keep the economy humming.)
The electorate are thinking about American Idol and iPhones not about sacrifice. What a contrast to previous wars when people pulled together. When there was rationing and a war tax (not a tax cut). When men went off to fight and women ran the factories. When there was a draft that forced everyone to focus on the fight and the costs.
Watching the experiences of these military families, I felt guilty. I felt terrible. I felt like I ought to enlist. I felt like I ought to do something to help.
The worst part of this debacle in Iraq is that those with the most of offer, the most educated and the most wealthy Americans, have done nothing to share the burden. No one has been drafted; few have enlisted. During one of the biggest periods of wealth creation in history, our most financially successful are not giving back or volunteering to pay a war tax. Instead they complain about having to pay taxes at all. Despite calls for change by the odd millionaire like Warren Buffett, most of our wealthy seem obsessed with giving as little as possible to our nation and keeping as much as possible for themselves.
What a contrast. What a country. What a crime. We ought to be ashamed.
I have heard that the rich start the wars and the poor fight them. Maybe that is true but its still hard to watch.
Fathers, Sons And Brothers
May 27, 2007
In Full: Scott Pelley followed a battalion from the Iowa National Guard for nearly two years, reporting on their deployment to Iraq and its effect on the families left behind.
