Memorial Day 2007

This country has lost over one million soldiers in its wars. Over 80 percent of them died in the Civil War and WWII. We are not involved in a just war right now, but without US involvement in WWII, both Germany and Japan would have conquered much of Europe and Asia and billions today likely would be suffering from their dominance.

I’d like to take this day to honor those who have died in battle for my country. It is the ultimate sacrifice. But I’d also like to take this day to make some effort to promote the idea that we shouldn’t engage in wars without purpose.

We are currently fighting a purposeless war. Over 3000 American soldiers have died in Iraq. They should be honored for their patriotism. They and their families deserve and get my utmost respect.

Since WWII, this country has engaged in combat in a number of wars. Korea, Vietnam, Panama, Granada, Kuwait, Iraq, with increased frequency we have tried to use combat to further our political objectives. By my counting, we have fought in as many wars in the last 50 years as we fought in the previous 150.

Few of these recent wars have had reasonable objectives. If a soldier sacrifices his life for this country it should be for a just cause. With increased frequency, that has not been the case.

My own view is the reason we have chosen to go to war with increased frequency is not that the world has become more volatile, but that we have the resources to do so. We spend so much money on weapons and troops that sooner or later we feel compelled to use them.

It was not always so. For example, just prior to WWII, our nation was so poorly ready for battle that training for our inevitable participation in that war involved the use of broomsticks instead of guns.

I’m not advocating that we shrink our military budget down to pre-WWII levels. But we do need to ask ourselves whether the foundation of our economy should be built on military expenditures. A nation that invests so heavily in its military is bound to want to use its force. When you’re a carpenter every problem looks like a nail. When you’re a country with a military-based economy every problem looks like a battlefield. It would be desirable on days like today when we honor those that died for our country that we know that they died for a real purpose.