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A DISTANT WAR HITS HOME

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 16, 2007

Few Pay The Price

One of the most striking realities about the war in Iraq is just how little difference it makes in most of our lives back home. My parents remember the sacrifices everyone made during World War II, from rationing gasoline to women going without nylon hosiery.

I remember the way the war in Vietnam divided the nation and the way most men of a certain age (including the current president and vice president) did just about everything we could legally do to avoid the draft. (There seemed to be an exceptionally high number of persons who 'felt the call' to go to seminary in 1968.) In the first case, everyone shared the sacrifice; in the second, we all shared the tension.

But this time around, the only people whose daily lives are impacted by the war are the families and friends of more than 3,000 military personnel who have died and more than 20,000 who have been seriously injured. The rest of us are basically getting a free ride (in our gas-guzzling cars), tax cuts and the assurance that our great-grandchildren will still be paying the bill. One of the painful privileges of being a pastor is being in relationship with people who are, in fact, paying the price for this conflict. It's the constant reminder that there is no such thing as a 'free war.'

'Then What?'

The last Iraq debate I was involved in lasted fewer than three minutes before erupting into a tirade that labeled Bush another Hitler. With that, the person in a moderator's position responded with only, 'Good. We need passion here.'

My response: No, there's enough passion in the Middle East right now to destroy us all. What America needs is cool heads and civility.

I do believe in the doctrine of preemption when it involves a dangerous religious primitivism that openly declares its intent to kill us all as demonstrated on 9/11 and with numerous prior attacks.

I believe that both bin Laden and our own government failed to ask the paramount question before attacking: When Japanese Adm. Yamamoto was asked in 1940 if he could take a fleet across the Pacific and destroy Pearl Harbor, he replied that he could but wisely followed with, 'Then what?' No one answered.

Our own government may have asked but then obviously bungled the answer in expecting to rebuild Iraq in the same way we rebuilt Germany and Japan.

I have had military family members and friends in Iraq. I have students in and out of Iraq. They share personal success stories that never make the news. I believe them.

As much as I find war itself primitive, I believe this is one case in which it is necessary for the long-term safety of all.

We should have planned the 'Then what?' far better than we did. But if we leave without giving our military the time requested, then the losses were for nothing and the future is no safer than it was on 9/11.

The 'Who Cares?' War

One of my most important memories is of a doorknob.

Behind that doorknob - or, rather, behind the door attached to it - stood 50-odd middle school students who surely knew that a war had begun the previous evening and would surely have an opinion to offer about it. All I had to do was turn that doorknob, and I would tiptoe from harmony to the home front, from domesticity to history.

And what did those educated youths, that cream of the adolescent crop, have to say about the momentous occasion?

Not a peep. The other students chatted about homework and weekend gatherings, and the morning meeting progressed as usual.

Over the subsequent years, I heard plenty of talk about the war, everywhere from presidential debates to dinner tables. Eventually, a cousin of mine shipped out for Iraq. Gas prices rose. I began to worry more about America's safety and its role in the world.

From a historical perspective, however, the impact of the Iraq conflict has had a remarkably small impact on the general population here. There are no local noblemen recruiting armies from the villages; no invading soldiers pillaging the countryside; no WWII-esque food rations; no maniacally cheerful 'We Can Do It!' posters.

Thus, the most significant effect on the Iraq War on my life is, paradoxically, its lack of impact. How fortunate it is to remain free enough to concentrate on issues other than the war! How wonderful to take for granted that half my classmates are males eligible, but not selected for, a draft!

What a war this is, to have converted American society into an oblivious eighth-grader.

An Overlooked Absence

It's hard to appreciate an absence. Anything can have tangible good qualities, but numerous things that are good and necessary are so because they prevent other worse things. Spiders are commonly disliked because the good they produce is an absence of bugs, which is easy to overlook.

For everyone who has such a negative attitude toward the war, I ask, how many terrorist attacks have happened since then on U.S. soil? For everyone who gripes about the expense of war, I ask, what is the cost of your life? Though halfway around the world, the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan has disbanded two governments that actively supported terrorist cells and regimes, such as al-Qaida and the Taliban.

It has been nearly six years since we began to re-establish democracy. Six years and the citizens of Afghanistan and Iraq have voted for the first time in a true democratic election; six years and Saddam is dead and his regime in shambles; six years and Osama has nestled comfortably into the hole in the ground where he belongs.

America has installed democracy before, in Japan, after WWII. It took decades, and now look at Japan's role in the world. It took decades to reunite the German country with democracy. It took nearly a century for America to develop the democracy that now keeps us free, and yet six years is too much to give for the part of the world that now needs it most.

Why Choose War?

The first story on the news when I'm driving to work every morning is about war. The announcer reports the deaths of American soldiers followed by how they died and the total number of Americans dead since the start of the Iraq War.

I think about the suddenness of those deaths; no time for final thoughts, last words, or goodbyes. I turn the radio off. I don't object to this war because of my political leanings; war, by definition, isn't political, it is killing and destruction. It's the killing I object to.

My view of war has been shaped by the war in Vietnam and my career as a registered nurse. I was three when the Vietnam War began and 19 when it ended. I grew up during that war. I remember watching the war on TV. I saw full-color pictures of the war in magazines. Those images are etched on my brain. I remember anti-war posters, music, protests, and peace signs.

I've been a trauma nurse for nearly 18 years. Death from traumatic injury isn't pictures on a screen or words on the radio; I know how it looks and what it smells like. I've heard the fear in people's voices and felt the pain of their grief. Giving peace a chance is a much more rational choice than the deaths of young men and women.

We have enormous human resources and technology at our disposal to defend and protect our country; I do not understand why we choose war.

Margaret Belcher is a trauma clinician.

Tomorrow's Wallets

I don't have a single friend or family member fighting overseas. I haven't made any significant sacrifices because I am living during wartime.

I sit at home, watch the news and debate this drawn-out conflict now and again. This war hasn't personally affected me. Yet.

According to the National Priority Project, the tab for the war in Iraq is around $440 billion to date.

MSNBC estimates the total cost grows by $200 million each day. Economists from Columbia University speculate the war could surpass $2 trillion before it's all over.

The bill is going to be handed down to my generation.

Sure, a few more taxes here and there won't break tomorrow's adults, but keep in mind that today's teens will also be taking care of their aging parents, who will probably need additional support due to the declining state of Social Security.

Don't forget the rising cost of living and dropping value of a dollar.

The war also will lead to increasing emotional tensions and prejudices between races, specifically against Muslim Americans. Ironic, considering this battle was supposed to bring cultures closer. So far, this plan is another mission unaccomplished.

Looks like this war is going to affect me personally after all.

Redistribute The Sacrifice

I force myself to watch the photographs and brief descriptions of the soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan that are shown on the 'News Hour with Jim Lehrer.' Each evening when I see a new batch of pictures, I grieve for their families - mothers, wives, children, and fathers - and try to envision how their lives have been diminished. I mentally average the ages of the dead, usually in the low 20s, and think about the future accomplishments that our country has lost.

Based on my admittedly unscientific observations over the past four years, it appears obvious that minorities are over-represented among the casualties. Day after day and month after month of seeing thousands of photographs of these young men (and occasionally women) has convinced me that there are better answers than an all-volunteer military.

I believe that we should require a two-year service commitment for all Americans between the ages of 18 and 25. (They could choose when they would honor this commitment.) Such a law would help the armed forces make their quotas and prevent the lowering of enlistment standards to include ex-convicts and high school dropouts.

My vision of national service would give our young people options besides serving in the military, such as the Peace Corps, the National Teacher Corps or a 'Green' Corps that could help solve ecological problems. If more of the children and grandchildren of our national leaders had a chance of going to war, would our international policy place more emphasis on diplomacy and less on troop deployment?

Let's Talk Of Peace

My friend Brian will be deployed to Iraq in December. It feels as if he has been sentenced to 15 months of uncertainty with the possibility of death. Although I already feel the loss of my friend, this war had begun to become irrelevant in my mind. Call it war fatigue. Nowadays, when I hear or read about the war in Iraq, it's become a routine.

Ten died here and 100 over there. Blood. Explosions.

No one talks of peace anymore.

Occasionally, while driving, my mind will wander off to Iraq. I try to understand and reflect on what is going on there. I think of mothers who have lost children and of servicemen and -women who do their jobs in a place where death is around every corner. Then I think of my own discomfort over gas prices, slow commutes and bills - they are lame by comparison.

If there is a way this war has affected me, it is in a desire to serve. I never agreed with the reasons for this war and the way it's been carried out. There will be no 'job finished' in Iraq, no clear winner and a lot of losers. On the other hand, my friend Brian accepts his fate and even believes that he is doing some good for the country.

His commitment to duty is something I deeply respect and admire. The willingness of our military to offer up their lives, even when the reasons we invaded Iraq were wrong, show a love of this country, its liberties and its principles.

I can only hope Brian comes home soon and that someone starts talking about that forgotten word: peace.

Eroding Freedoms

Since the invasion of Iraq by the United States and other countries, I watched my personal liberties and freedom nibbled away. I have become more distrusting of the federal government. Travel by air and rail is more difficult; banking practices are more restricted; suspicions of my neighbors and friends from the Middle East increase.

Our national treasury is being looted in the name of Homeland Security spending. Money that could have gone to health insurance, education, paying down the national debt or to improving our nation's infrastructure is wasted on foolish projects, with grants given to local governments that have little to do with defending against terrorism.

We all have to endure the many homeland security warnings. What color are we on this week?

I see the hypocrisy of our government when it comes to the administration of the war. The United States complains about Iran assisting Iraqi insurgents, but we forget about the aid our government gave to the Afghans who fought the Russian invaders. We even aided Osama bin Laden.

The government encourages us to snoop and spy on neighbors from the Middle East.

The Iraq War has certainly changed my life. We are now preoccupied with al-Qaida. The war in Iraq has certainly made me more aware of what's not really there. Like President Roosevelt said, 'The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.'

Small Gestures

The war in Iraq doesn't touch my life in any way, unless I choose to let it. I suspect that is true for the majority of Americans who do not have a loved one connected to the armed services. It bothers me greatly that I have to force myself to think of ways I have supported our troops always feeling not enough has been done.

It is immaterial as to whether or not one agrees with the current conflict, but it is singularly important that we respect and honor all those who chose to join the armed services to serve our country in whatever manner may be deemed necessary.

After learning about Bob Williams through former Tampa Tribune columnist Judy Hill, my husband and I have periodically sent a check to 'Support Our Troops,' P.O. Box 7560, Wesley Chapel (Fla.), 33544, helping with the postage of this organization that sends boxes of supplies to our troops. Occasionally our church has also asked for donations in the form of items that can be used by the troops. I feel we should have - could have - been more generous.

Once while waiting in line at a neighborhood bank, a serviceman appeared to be having a bad day. He was being sent from teller to office and back again. On a whim, after my banking was done, I walked up to him and asked if I could shake his hand and offer my thanks for serving our country. Obviously taken aback, he said 'Yes, ma'am' and offered his hand. Several people around us looked on in bewilderment, and I, feeling somewhat awkward, left the premises quickly. Maybe I should do that more often.

An Unimaginable Loss

When my brother received his draft notice I remember sitting in our living room and everyone crying. The Vietnam War was controversial by then, and it had become a political football. I saw my mother and father's anguish at having to send their oldest son halfway around the world to fight in what most Americans believed at the time was an unwinnable war. Many people feel the same way about Iraq as we are about to enter our sixth year with no clear end in sight.

My wife and I live for our kids, as do many parents. The worst thing that a parent could ever endure is losing a child before they have had a chance to blossom and flourish, no matter how worthy the cause. When I hear of servicemen and -women killed in the line of duty, I think of the unimaginable loss their families must be suffering. It's not '10 soldiers killed today' as reported in the news. It is 10 sons or daughters whose lives ended prematurely in service to their county.

No, freedom is not free, so regardless of what position you hold on the current 'war on terror,' please stop, think and realize that every life voluntarily risked, altered or lost is precious - and irreplaceable.

Pray For Their Return

On an almost daily basis,the reality of the Iraq war is refreshed once again for me and millions of other Americans via morning and evening news broadcasts and daily news publications. For me, they serve as a stark wake-up call, a daily reminder that thousands of Americans are in constant danger in a foreign land - a land where both friend and foe look alike, speak the same language, wear the same clothes and travel the same roads.

I have no friends, family members, relatives, neighbors or even co-workers who are serving, or have served, in the war. Yet, like so many Americans who have no close personal link to the war, I still feel deeply affected by it.

My heart goes out to families who have lost loved ones in this combat. I am, after all, an American, and what affects other Americans likewise affects me, even if to a lesser degree. I cannot divorce myself from the war or its impact on the nation. The suffocating unease this war is engendering is inescapable. The war has fomented yet another kind of combat here at home. The two major political parties are locked in an endless war of words, with attacks being launched almost daily in the silly 'blame game' so common in Washington. politics. This domestic 'war' has a debilitating effect of is own.

Does our involvement in this war stem from an ego-driven quest for revenge on the part of President Bush or from real national security concerns?

Republicans will tell you it's the latter. Democrats will maintain it's the former. The truth, I believe, probably resides somewhere between.

I pray we are there for the right reasons. I pray that young Americans there are fighting and dying for a truthful and righteous cause.

I pray that we can bring them all home to their families, their loved ones, their communities, their friends, their lives. I pray we can do this soon.

Jim Harnish is pastor of Hyde Park United Methodist Church. Meg Scott of Plant City is an adjunct English professor at Hillsborough Community College in Brandon. Nicole Yunger Halpern is a freshman at Dartmouth University. Byran Griffin is a student at th

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