Join the Army , See the World, Fight and Die at the Whim of Politicians

Sec. of Defense, Robert Gates has been traveling around the country, making speeches about the challenges facing the country's defense. In particular he talks about the state of the military and the difficulties which face a nation with an all volunteer army. In this speech he speaks of the apparent detachment most Americans have for the Afghanistan "War" and the fact that they see it as a war for someone else to fight. In other words, let the professional Army fight it. It isn't our problem.

Daily, we see various groups and individuals drumming up support for our troops. We are asked to send them toiletries and other necessities. We are told all of the things that they need. It seems to be a constant thing and it is usually coming from someone connected with the military in some way, usually through a relative or friend. I have always wondered why the military does not provide these things for them. Is it because they are a professional organization and expected to provide their own necessities? They are trained to become a professional killer, just as a person in the private sector is trained to do their job. The only thing the only thing provided is the equipment to do your job, just as in the private sector.

Why then, is the public "detached?" Why is is harder to recruit and keep people in this professional army? Finally, soldiers and the American public have seen the folly of joining the army at this point in history. Vietnam was a nightmare and the last administration used the military for a preemptive invasion of a non-threatening country, possibly because of a personal grudge. Thousands of unsuspecting young men and women were killed and maimed because a misguided president chose to send them to into harm's way unnecessarily. That same president mismanaged the Afghan invasion, and we are now bogged down in a country that no country has ever conquered. His successor has been unable to focus a strategy that will either take Bin Laden or disengage our country from a very potential failure.

I would never think of joining the U.S. military at this time. If the extremist Tea/Republican Party were to come back into power in its present form, God only knows what will happen to our foreign policy. These people are openly hostile toward most of the world and would not hesitate to use the military, particularly against Muslim countries. I do not think it is out of the question that they would support an Israeli attack on Iran and a takeover of the Palestinian territories. I expect they would also militarily support such an effort, which could finally blow the lid off the Middle East. The young people of the United States would do well to stay away from the military at this time. Take a wait and see attitude. It is no wonder that the American public is "detached."