Memorial Day

Many, many times on Xmastime I've wondered about our paradox when it comes to the troops; our insistence that there is no more holy a duty than to proclaim our "support" of the troops while at the same time insisting they're locked in a series of never-ending wars (to the point that we've fooled ourselves into believing that questioning if they should one day come home "hurts their feelings" and therein morale), ripped away from their families for an unprecedented number of tours (including Reservists), re-electing Congressmen who gleefully cut their benefits every chance they get or use the troops' sexuality as a political weapon, and then not really wanting to be bothered to hear about it whenever someone points out the disturbingly steep incline of suicides.  We go on and on, every jerkoff with a camera or Facebook account desperately trying to out-do each other in an effort to BREAK THE RECORD!!! for showing how much they love the troops, numbed to any thoughts of even asking is it really worth it?

THIS GUY, in an article pointing out how America screws it soldiers,  does ask, and I for one think it's a very valid question:

By the time the last invoice gets paid, the total will be in the trillions. Is the money being well spent? Are we getting good value? Is it possible that some of the largesse showered on U.S. forces trying to pacify Kandahar could be better put to use in helping to rebuild Cleveland? Given the existing terms of the civil-military relationship, even to pose such questions is unseemly. For politicians sending soldiers into battle, generals presiding over long, drawn-out, inconclusive campaigns, and contractors reaping large profits as a consequence, this war-comes-first mentality is exceedingly agreeable.

One wonders how many of those serving in the ranks are taken in by this fraud. The relationship between American people and their military—we love you; do whatever you want—seems to work for everyone. Everyone, that is, except soldiers themselves. They face the prospect of war without foreseeable end.

Americans once believed war to be a great evil. Whenever possible, war was to be avoided. When circumstances made war unavoidable, Americans wanted peace swiftly restored.
Present-day Americans, few of them directly affected by events in Iraq or Afghanistan, find war tolerable. They accept it. Since 9/11, war has become normalcy. Peace has become an entirely theoretical construct. A report of G.I.s getting shot at, maimed, or killed is no longer something the average American gets exercised about. Rest assured that no such reports will interfere with plans for the long weekend that Memorial Day makes possible...In Washington, the benefits offered by war’s continuation easily outweigh any benefits to be gained by ending war. So why bother to try?...Here at last we come to the dirty little secret that underlines all the chatter about “supporting the troops.” The people in charge don’t really believe that the burdens borne by our soldiers will ever end and they are not really looking for ways to do so. As for the rest of us, well, we’re OK with that.

 Remember THIS, America.