Sacrifice?

(Image from herald-review.com by Kelly J. Huff)

Our Nation is at War.  Do you feel it?  For nearly all my daughter’s life and all of my son’s life we have been sending brave men and women to lands far away.  In this decade’s long struggle what have you sacrificed?  Odds are you are like me.  You do not feel it and you have sacrificed nothing.  In fact, my taxes have been lowered and I have not suffered anything.  Nothing has been asked of me.  I am too busy, too jaded; too fill in the blank, to do anything.  I give some money to the Wounded Warrior Project and to the USO, but I do that because of a blend of thanks and guilt. Our Leaders, both Democrat and Republican have asked nothing from the American people collectively.  Frankly, it is shameful that they have not. 

I know people who have served.  I have some far off relations that have endured three, four, and even five “tours” of Afghanistan and Iraq.  I have some friends that I once knew and trade e-mails with on rare occasion, but the Wars have not really touched me. 

According to the Department of Defense, since the start of these Wars, 2.28 million individual service personnel have spent time in Afghanistan and Iraq; most of them going back more than once.  Of those 2.28 million who have gone, 6,084 have lost their lives and another 44,266 have been wounded.  These numbers will only increase.

Our service men and women only offer themselves, but their families too.  These are people who have truly sacrificed in the past decade.  The have suffered hardship and separation that the vast majority of no concept of.  We all thank them for their service.  But is that enough?  In my opinion, it is not.  It’s not even close.

Yes, we given them good benefits after they leave – free health care, GI Bill, if they serve long-enough a significant pension, and other benefits; all well-earned and all well-deserved.  But that is not what I am talking about. When this or any Nation goes to War it should feel it.  We should not be distracted from the War by reality TV, Facebook, or whatever stupid thing politicians do.  A nation at War should be focused on it.  If we ask men and women to die for us; we should have the common decency to pay attention.  If were asked to do more; if we actually had some token sacrifice to make, it is my feeling they would not have been there so long,  sacrificed  so much and they would have had the resources and equipment they needs in 2004 rather than 2007; we would have paid close watch on Afghanistan as it fell apart.  Wars of occupation have no end.  That is our fault. 

What have you done?  If you are like me – nowhere near enough.

-       Jon Porter

July 6, 2011