Nation At War
Like the Second World War, our present conflict began with a ruthless, surprise attack on the United States. We will not forget that treachery, and we will accept nothing less than victory over the enemy. – President George W. Bush in speech at Air Force Commencement, June 2, 2004
I had other priorities in the '60s than military service. – Then Future Defense Secretary Dick Cheney in an interview with Washington Post reporter George C. Wilson, April 5, 1989
Colbert: "Do you support the war in Iraq?"
Jones: "I do support the war in Iraq."
Colbert: "So, why aren't you serving in Iraq? You're a healthy guy."
Jones: "I'm doing my part by running for Congress and supporting them."
-- David Nelson Jones (age 25), Republican candidate for U. S. Representative in California’s 30th district, in an interview (see video pt. 2) with Stephen Colbert on The Colbert Report, November 1, 2006
Somewhere at a Starbuck’s, there’s a clatch of members of the Young Republican Club from the nearby university. Biff and Chip and Herbert III are sipping their lattes, as they discuss their futures in finance, taking the reins of their fathers’ companies, the upcoming Republican victory in the midterms, and the war in Iraq.
They are laughing about John Kerry’s supposed gaffe, theorizing that this is some kind of Freudian Democrat slip. (One of the few times they use less than proper English, using the lower-class adjective “Democrat” instead of the more proper “Democratic”, in allegiance to their leaders who’ve decided that the proper adjective gives too much credit to their opposition.) “Why don’t the Democrats support our troops?”, wonders Biff, as he eyes a blueberry scone. “They don’t share our values”, responds Chip. “By the way, Herbie, have you ordered the strippers for the frat party?”
We are not a country at war, at least not in the way we were in World War II. There are no victory gardens, tire drives, war bonds, rationing. The streets around recruitment offices are not crowded with young men eager to go to Iraq. During WWII there were incidents of suicide by men who were embarrassed at not being able to enlist due to 4F status. Despite the quantity of yellow magnetic ribbons on the backs of SUVs, Iraq and Afghanistan are sideshows to American life. The families of troops may feel the constant weight, but the great majority of Americans pay little attention to the ongoing sacrifice.
During the less than 4 years of World War II, almost 20 million individuals served in the military (see World War II casualties: Casualties by branch of service) out of a population of less than 150 million (see Historical Census Data (1790-1990)). At any one time, upwards of 10 million were serving. As of 2004, the total in the armed services was about 1.5 million, in a population over 300 million (see Military of the United States: Personnel in each service). So, for more than twice the population, we have 15% of the military personnel that we did during WWII.
It always seemed odd that a World War II hero like the first President Bush would pull strings to get his son into a Texas Air National Guard unit that was certain never to go to Vietnam, to essentially help his son evade service. However, as we saw in 1980, when George H. W. Bush left behind his principles for a spot on the Republican ticket, the first President Bush was at base a pragmatist. He did not see service in Vietnam as important as service in World War II; he knew that US survival did not depend on the outcome of the Vietnam War.
It is no surprise that today’s conservative youth, whose idols, including Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, never saw combat, would skip the route with the highest potential sacrifice. So while young men during the World War II era were ashamed when they could not serve, even the most vociferous supporters of the Iraq War truly feel no lack of honor in not only avoiding service, but also in not even thinking about it. Perhaps this is an implicit acknowledgement that, even with all the hype, conservatives don't really believe that the outcome of the Iraq War is all that important.
Let’s face it. We're not a Nation At War. We're a Nation At Starbuck's.
I had other priorities in the '60s than military service. – Then Future Defense Secretary Dick Cheney in an interview with Washington Post reporter George C. Wilson, April 5, 1989
Colbert: "Do you support the war in Iraq?"
Jones: "I do support the war in Iraq."
Colbert: "So, why aren't you serving in Iraq? You're a healthy guy."
Jones: "I'm doing my part by running for Congress and supporting them."
-- David Nelson Jones (age 25), Republican candidate for U. S. Representative in California’s 30th district, in an interview (see video pt. 2) with Stephen Colbert on The Colbert Report, November 1, 2006
Somewhere at a Starbuck’s, there’s a clatch of members of the Young Republican Club from the nearby university. Biff and Chip and Herbert III are sipping their lattes, as they discuss their futures in finance, taking the reins of their fathers’ companies, the upcoming Republican victory in the midterms, and the war in Iraq.
They are laughing about John Kerry’s supposed gaffe, theorizing that this is some kind of Freudian Democrat slip. (One of the few times they use less than proper English, using the lower-class adjective “Democrat” instead of the more proper “Democratic”, in allegiance to their leaders who’ve decided that the proper adjective gives too much credit to their opposition.) “Why don’t the Democrats support our troops?”, wonders Biff, as he eyes a blueberry scone. “They don’t share our values”, responds Chip. “By the way, Herbie, have you ordered the strippers for the frat party?”
We are not a country at war, at least not in the way we were in World War II. There are no victory gardens, tire drives, war bonds, rationing. The streets around recruitment offices are not crowded with young men eager to go to Iraq. During WWII there were incidents of suicide by men who were embarrassed at not being able to enlist due to 4F status. Despite the quantity of yellow magnetic ribbons on the backs of SUVs, Iraq and Afghanistan are sideshows to American life. The families of troops may feel the constant weight, but the great majority of Americans pay little attention to the ongoing sacrifice.
During the less than 4 years of World War II, almost 20 million individuals served in the military (see World War II casualties: Casualties by branch of service) out of a population of less than 150 million (see Historical Census Data (1790-1990)). At any one time, upwards of 10 million were serving. As of 2004, the total in the armed services was about 1.5 million, in a population over 300 million (see Military of the United States: Personnel in each service). So, for more than twice the population, we have 15% of the military personnel that we did during WWII.
It always seemed odd that a World War II hero like the first President Bush would pull strings to get his son into a Texas Air National Guard unit that was certain never to go to Vietnam, to essentially help his son evade service. However, as we saw in 1980, when George H. W. Bush left behind his principles for a spot on the Republican ticket, the first President Bush was at base a pragmatist. He did not see service in Vietnam as important as service in World War II; he knew that US survival did not depend on the outcome of the Vietnam War.
It is no surprise that today’s conservative youth, whose idols, including Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, never saw combat, would skip the route with the highest potential sacrifice. So while young men during the World War II era were ashamed when they could not serve, even the most vociferous supporters of the Iraq War truly feel no lack of honor in not only avoiding service, but also in not even thinking about it. Perhaps this is an implicit acknowledgement that, even with all the hype, conservatives don't really believe that the outcome of the Iraq War is all that important.
Let’s face it. We're not a Nation At War. We're a Nation At Starbuck's.
posted by balto at 2:50 PM
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