In Reply to: Re: Christian "Fundamentalists in US military? posted by susie on December 21, 2006 at 00:49:52:
Just to be clear, I support the troops, but not necessarily all of the policies that put them in the line of fire.
Even though I'm basically a nonviolent peacenik, I recognize there are people who believe very deeply in the military mission of personal sacrifice in defense of fellow citizens. I'm divided between being an idealist and a hard-headed pragmatist.
I don't like the idea of killing people in a war, but for people who are in the military, it's not fair to be asked to do their job in a half-assed way. In other words, I think it's only fair to the soldiers who are willing to kill or be killed that the politicians not play games with the basic military mission. That mission (imo) is essentially one of kicking the sh*t out of the enemy in a decisive manner. Kind of like "piss or get off the pot"--countries who aren't willing to totally destroy the enemy shouldn't go to war. Soldiers become "cannon fodder" when there aren't clear military goals and objectives. This includes going into a strategic war of choice without enough troops and sufficient equipment to accomplish the mission.
I see the military as an institutionalized social reality that should be used with a great deal of care and respect for the people who are willing to put their lives on the line. As much as I'd like to see a world where the military doesn't exist and no thinks soldiers are necessary, I don't think that will happen in my lifetime.