Maybe
I’m just getting old. I turn 65 this week, so perhaps I’m tired of war. In my
34 years of military service I served in two wars: Vietnam and Iraq. Make no
mistake – war is an ugly business. Despite the efforts of Hollywood to glorify
war, and apart from fighting for a worthy cause, or the defense of your homeland, very little else can justify bringing people to
the point of war.
It
has been said that war should be the last resort. I whole-heartedly agree. It’s
no secret that Syria has been using chemical warfare against its own people.
We’ve been receiving reports on this for quite some time. This is why it was
most unsettling when our President made the challenge to President Assad that
if the United States finds out Syria is using chemical weapons against his own
people then we would be forced to take action. The President made a bold
statement about a red line being crossed should Assad and his regime fail to
comply with the U.S. wishes. Well, Assad ignored us, which is typical for
dictators, and since 2011 he is reportedly responsible for the deaths of over
100,000 of his own people through the use of WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction).
I
wish the President had not made such a boast about taking military action
against Syria. If he had kept quiet, he could then have taken action when he
felt the time was right, and not on some predetermined time-line.
Another
factor in this has to do with those nations who are supportive of Syria and the
Assad regime. Russia has made it quite clear that it does not want us messing
around in that region. The threat was real. Then there’s Iran. They have been
supplying weapons and men to the Syrians for some time. We’re still in Iraq and
Afghanistan, so does it make sense to “beard the lion” by provoking Russia and
Iran?
Israel
has enough trouble keeping at bay the enemies it has on all its borders. They
are the sole democracy in the part of the world. Should the U.S. come into
their region and stir the pot without their tacit approval? I think not. We
could be unleashing a war-storm that could be a precursor to Armageddon.
Let
me explain why I think we could be creating a mess. The Arab countries fight
amongst each other continually. It has been going on for centuries. What is
happening in Syria is nothing new. Only the modern weapons make this different.
However, because the Arab peoples are related, it’s like families that fight
amongst each other. They may scratch and claw, but the moment an outsider gets
involved they unite against the common enemy. That’s what I see happening
should the U.S. make a move against Syria. Even as I write this article on
Sunday evening, the news is reporting that the Obama administration is strongly
pressuring Congress to vote in favor of military action against Syria.
There’s
still another concern I have, and that is our military. Make no mistake about
it – should the President issue the order to take action against Syria, our
military forces will answer that call. The problem is that we have been at war
in two countries for twelve years and there is an exhaustion level that can be
reached by those who carry the burden of defending our nation. Add to that the
downsizing of our military; the cuts in defense; sequestration, etc… well, you
get the picture.
My
final thought on this possible military action in Syria is the same old problem
the United States has dealt with since we were formed as a nation in 1776. Somehow
we keep believing we are the world’s police force and that we can come in and
make everything better.
When
should we take action as a nation? Which hot spots around the globe deserve our
attention? We routinely ignore for instance, the many uprisings, wars, and
tribal conflicts which have left millions of people dead, homeless, and
ravaged. Why did we not take action in those equally far off places? Who
decides where we go?
My
prayer is that cooler heads will prevail in our government, and that we will
learn to step into situations only when our national defense is required.
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