War? No Way!

I figured it was only a matter of time before those who opposed the war would take the blame for the recruiting shortage. Now a number of Republican senators are blaming the media and other lawmakers for the fact the armed forces aren't meeting their recruitment numbers. It is, they say, because of the "negative media out there," according to Senator Inhofe. Inhofe went on to add that other senator's criticism of the war has contributed to the propoganda of our enemies.

It's the old, "If you ain't with us, you're against us," diatribe.

If I'd been born male, I would have been in Vietnam as my number was pulled. That's always given me much thought. But for a small chromosonal change, I could have been wading hip deep in the rice paddies trying to kill Charlie.

War is a brutish, ugly hell that either kills you or scars you for life. Some wars are necessary, some aren't. Iraq is an unnecessary war costing us valuable men and women, crippling our economy and teaching our foes how best to kill us. Iraq is now an incubator for terrorists and we're paying for the training, just as they learned from the Soviets in Afghanistan.

Perhaps the reason the enlistment numbers are down is because people don't believe it's worth sacrificing their kids in the sands of Iraq. Maybe it's because they see this isn't making us safer, isn't what we should be doing at this critical juncture in American history.

The lack of keen recruits willing to expose their bodies to IED's in Iraq is not because of negative media or subversion lawmakers. It's because people are wising up and saying, "No way."

I'm willing to make a prediction, one that will probably come back to haunt me. If an attack occurs on US soil, the enlistment numbers will rise again. Why hasn't there been an attack? Partly because of our law enforcement folks and partly because I believe the bad guys know not to go there, at least until Iraq is settled. They have the better edge right now. So if an attack occurs, keep an eye on the dynamics of the moment. A true cynic would say that an attack would benefit us more than them...

Bring the troops home, folks, as soon as humanly possible. We're losing too many good people and ruining too many lives.