War is something that should be despised. It is horrible and ugly. It is also inevitable, not in every situation, but sometimes. It is foolish not to be ready for those times. I defend our need for a strong military not because my husband is a member, but because that is what I believe. I felt that way long before I met him.
I am certainly passionate about this issue. It comes out in my postings. It scares me that people actually believe that we could just dispense with our military. I want my children safe. I want my grandchildren safe. I want their children safe.
As for my husband’s freedom to resist serving in Iraq or in any other war zone, that came when he signed his name. It comes every time he has an opportunity to get out (he could currently give his notice that he intends to get out on any given day). Military service is voluntary. EVERY person who participates in our armed forces does so of their own free will. If they are sent to war they do not like, too bad. Conscientious objectors serving in the miltary I call something else entirely. I call them coward.
I did not say I wanted you to go to Germany. I intended to highlight the fact that you have praised Germany and that country’s education yet you still choose to live here. You have praised their system but have never so much as given a nod to their ugly, fairly recent past, at least in these postings.
You seem to be confusing my support of a strong military with a desire to go to war, further, a desire for the war in Iraq. It is possible to separate those things. I am not arguing political policy, rather our need for defense. I have posted previously that I do not believe everything we have done was right.
However, I do have a few comments that are policy related. Since we did not find WMD in Iraq, is that really proof positive that it was never there? Clinton tried negotiating and it did not work. The planning for 9/11 happened mostly when he was president. Do you hate Clinton for his failures? Do you call him evil for failing to protect us?
My argument is that war in inevitable. One only has to look at history to see that.
The difference between us is that I see the threats facing us. I do not think you see it. The world is full of people with whom you CANNOT reason. There are plenty of powerful people whom you could never influence through any means that you were willing to employ. Would you convert to Islam for the sake of peace? That is the only thing that would save you with some of those people.
World politics are extremely complex. I would never believe that just because Russia and China are saying little about Iran means there is nothing to worry about. Russia was our ally in WWII, until they took half of Europe. Have you ever done any business with the Chinese? If you have, enough said.
How can you deny the thousands of years of history that clearly show that human nature drives countries to warfare? Is a new paradigm really possible? Perhaps if we all just pray for a peaceful, permanently high plateau….
