Iraq - 4,000 Deaths & 5 Years
So then with numbers like that, why aren’t Americans more passionate….in one way or the other. That’s not to say that people don’t have an opinion… Leaving now would be a disaster…..or….pack our bags, we should have never gone in the first place….or a combination of the two. And sure, opinions have heated as the election gains momentum… But hardened opinions are a far cry from the Vietnam-era dove/hawk conviction.
So maybe it’s because of numbers like that. 4,000 deaths is a lot, but perhaps not a number that many Americans would equate with 5 years of warfare. As news of Iraq filters through the MSM, we’re not commonly exposed to on the on-the-ground journalists like Michael Totten & Michael Yon that give insight to how the war affects Iraqis. We also talk about the cost of war, but as the economy shows increasing signs of defeat, there’s little dialogue about the connection between the two.
Perhaps the way we experience Iraq has a lot to do with the reasoned but less passionate opinions about the war. Soldiers don’t return in droves to unanimously recount the horrors. There is no draft and full spectrum, nationwide sacrifice that comes with it. Our voluntary forces are not equally dispersed across socioeconomic and geographic lines. That’s what we don’t have…all elements that would humanize our involvement in Iraq…things that would make our investment emotional, and not just political. Instead we have the 24-hour news cycle and high tech depictions. Remember the coverage of our first missile strikes with night-vision cameras? It was reminiscent of Atari. We’ve seen more interviews with retired generals and military consultants than front-line marines. There are Tuesday night specials showcasing military robotics, but most people don’t know what the letters IED stand for. Recently, more publications have featured human and tactile coverage of the war. This NYTimes piece is a good example. But generally, most of the close coverage and special features on Iraq that are often touted with Oooo’s and Ahhhh’s have prevented many of us from a sincere and emotional investment in this conflict.
March 25th, 2008 at 8:43 am
Numbers are certainly part of “the issue:” The candidates running for president talk about the number of dollars it’s cost, but they say things like “that money could have been spent educating our children,” or “…providing healthcare.” But, that is not true. That money didn’t exist! It’s all borrowed. And the government doesn’t generally borrow money for things like education and healthcare. Of course
They talk about the number of deaths, but as you noted, it’s not like during Vietnam, when the death and casualty tolls were flashed on our TVs every night while we watched and ate our dinners. It seems it’s only when we reach these horrifying milestone numbers that the media focus on them.
As for the lack of passion, when compared to Vietnam - I don’t know what the answer is. I was a young girl during Vietnam and the civil rights movement. I remember the riots in Newark - my mom actually drove us to see them! (What was she thinking?) You guys tell me: you’re the generation that should be focused on protesting. It’s your peers who are paying the price. Even my son, Kevin (JB grew up with him), who’s highly opinionated and liberal-minded, doesn’t DO anything in the real sense of the word, to try to end the war. While I admire his passionate arguments, I know that talk is cheap.
I can tell you that I am fervently against the war in Iraq (and have been from before it started). I’ve even lost friends, I believe, over my strong opinions. But I must also admit to feeling somewhat hamstrung in what I can actually DO about it. I can (and do) go to protests and vigils, but the MSM doesn’t cover them, or at least not accurately, in my experience. I write my congress people, but they just generate form letters in response, and vote along party lines for the most part.
Another point: a friend of my nephew’s returned from three tours in Iraq. He’s a bit messed up, having killed people and seen his friends killed. But, he will not say that it wasn’t worth it. He can’t. Imagine the internal psychological conflict if he did. So, finding soldiers coming home in droves to denounce the war (assuming the media actually want to feature them) may be difficult.
I don’t have answers, either. I wish I did.
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