WHO DIES FOR WHAT? The news release yesterday reporting that about half a million people have been killed as a result of the current war. We have been shocked to learn that our own military deaths there now amounts to thousands.
Why bring up such a topic? Because of what it is costing us is of utmost importance to each of us. We are troubled with having different views and obvious disagreements and differences in our populace concerning the nature of this war in particular.
It is, I think, to consider the obvious fact that we are going to get two diverse,”knee jerk” views in asking such a question. This can be both good and bad, and remember that it is not the purpose of this page to attempt to decide which of the two views might be the better way go.
The report cited deals with the great number of “civilians” killed. The term itself is antiquated and often miss used. In one sense, we are all “solders” but there are combatants and non-combatants. So many of those killed in Iraq have been, and will continue to be non-combatant persons. Notice how of news accounts refer to,perhaps sixty seven civilians as killed when a zealot Iraqi set off suicide bombs he was wearing at a checkpoint or a market site. Several Iraqi policemen were injured, maybe an American solider wounded, and it is they who get the media headlines. The civilians become a number and those number are adding up fast.
Even greater in cost and suffering is cost to the nation and suffering from the high number of wounded among the people. The very nature of a home-made bomb makes it an anti-personnel bomb of horrible injury when small medal objects such a bent nails,rusted screws and hinges are packed within them.
All wars are different. They no longer follow patterns. They make their own depending on what is available and this is an especially because of the religious associations. This pattern which is killing or wounding so many needlessly.
The time has come for each of us to seriously re-examine that which we profess to believe about this war. Try to give a little and see how our disagreements here are, in many ways, causing suffering to million of people elsewhere. Can you find it deep within yourself to fore-go some little, even petty, political advantage you might gain by stubbornly refusing to concede a minor point which can save lives?
Try. Try for half-a-million - very human - reasons.
Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 6-25-06 [c446wds]
