THE AMERICAN UNDERSTANDING OF WAR

America hasn’t had a war fought on her soil since 1865. Our homes and cities haven’t been destroyed by attack and our people haven’t been subject to the perils of being occupied by an enemy force. We are one of the few nations in the world fortunate enough to have been able to experience such peace. But because of this peace we as a nation have been slowly becoming more apathetic to war, and the suffering of the world.

There has been only a small percentage of the US population that has truly felt the burden of war. Those who lost friends/relatives in the military and or the 9/11 attacks. I personally haven’t been affected by either. In fact I remember thinking in the days after the 9/11 attacks how little my life had changed. Then again in 2003 when we went into Iraq I remember thinking “everything is gonna change”, but it didn’t. My life went on pretty much the same way it would have regardless of the war. I still think Iraq has affected only a small percentage of the US population. There have been around 4,500 casualties, and 55,000 wounded. That means even if 100 people were affected for every injured or killed soldier that would still only be 16% of the population affected. The other 84% of the population’s lives haven’t been drastically altered in any way.

To most Americans war is an abstract concept. We understand what it is and that people die, but for some reason it’s not completely real to us. The suffering that happens just seems like a story that we’re watching but not experiencing. We as a nation seem so much more willing to sign off on fighting instead of diplomacy because we as a populous don’t truly understand what is actually happening. Only a 20% of us have actually felt the cost of war.

In WWII Germany saw 7 million of its citizens died. The Soviet Union saw 23 million. All of Europe witnessed their cities crumble. But America only witnessed this devastation through news reels and in the eyes of its returning soldiers. The country as a whole was relatively unscathed. The Vietnam and Korean wars were much the same. American’s have forgotten what war and suffering looks like. Even though we think we know we don’t because it’s completely different when it’s on your door step. It’s more personal when you see it firsthand. When you can smell and taste it. With the exception of maybe New York we as a nation don’t understand suffering.

And what does all this do? Because the last few generations haven’t suffered we now take our freedom for granted. We have forgotten the fact that the rights and privileges that we enjoy were earned in blood. The first 100 years of our countries existence was spent fighting to preserve the freedom that we had won, and now most of the country doesn’t even vote. Most of my fellows Americans have never even read the document that guarantees their freedom, the Constitution. All this has built up to a nation of people who feel that they should automatically be entitled success and to be able to do whatever they want.

I’m not saying that we should be bombed or suffer like many other places have, but what I am saying is that we as a country should feel the consequences of our actions more often. We might be less apt to run off head long into combat if we all had to bear the burden of war more equally. During WWII our country rallied together and rationed their supplies in order to fight a war. Everyone was affected. During Vietnam the draft took men from all walks of life wither they wanted to fight or not. In either situation I don’t think that the current population would stand for these actions. The public would cry out for isolationism so long as it meant they could still get their morning latte.

Something needs to change. When US WEEKLY, PEREZ HILTON, and TMZ have more viewers than any major new publication there is a probblem. When Iran is in a state of riot over the results of its recent free election, and only 1 in 20 American's knows about it much less cares about it, there is a probblem.