A READER WRITES:
As a servicemember, I’m continually amazed by the lengths that some will go to “use me” as a prop for their point of view. To wit, the quote from Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, commenting on the President’s speech last night:
“If the quality of his evidence matched the quality of his oratory, I’d be ‘ready to roll.’ But his repeated references to 9/11, despite his advisers’ admission that no such link to this terrorism exists, show how very weak the case for war now really is. My concern is that a near-unilateral land invasion of Iraq will endanger thousands of young Americans now while exposing our families to terrorism for years to come in what will be perceived by too many as a new crusade against Islam.”
My primary beef, aside from the usual “weak case” rhetoric, is with this rather shameless use of the “young Americans” scare tactic. It pains me to be seen as a pawn in this game, especially since the servicemembers that I know are not really interested in how much danger we might face — as long as we can go in with the right tools, support and mission, we don’t mind danger. After all, isn’t that what we’re trained for?
However, Rep. Scaremonger has no interest whatsoever in my well-being, or else he’d have complained more vociferously about the last president’s little escapades. The rhetoric is not matched by any sign of real concern, such as seeing to it that my ships get the gear they need or my men get the support they need. Guess that wasn’t on his “to do” list.
Bottom line: The Armed Forces of the United States are ready, willing and able to take out the targets directed by the President. No amount of armchair QB’ing by the donks will change that, nor will their shameless use of the “danger” that I may face affect my readiness.
I get a fair amount of email from military people along these lines. I don’t usually reprint it, but I think this makes an important point. I should also note that I have yet to get a single letter from a serving military reader using the term “chickenhawk.”
[Note: Another reader with JAG experience advised me to remove the name from this email, so I have done so even though the author did not request anonymity.]
UPDATE: Reader Dick Aubrey writes:
As a general rule, it is probably easier for people to make a decision in this case than in other cases. For, now, we are in horrible danger if we do nothing. So the decision is not whether American soldiers die or nobody dies. Soldiers will die if we move. But if we do nothing, American soldiers will die, as will a great many civilians One need not be a veteran to make a choice there.
The “chickenhawk” argument has as its basis a planted axiom that to choose to go to war means American soldiers die while to choose to refrain means nobody dies. This does not describe the present situation.
Well said.