Memorial Day is nearing and with it we mark the unofficial start to summer. But we must also remember the people this special day honors.
Memorial Day is to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice defending the homeland and our nation’s interests abroad. Each day we are at war we run the risk of the list of war dead growing longer. A number is an abstract idea, but we would be wise to remember this statement posted at Gettysburg:
“Every name is a lightning stroke to some heart, and breaks like thunder over some home, and falls a long black shadow upon some hearthstone.”
Since the terrorist attacks in 2001 we have been a nation at war. After 9/11 we engaged in a large-scale ground war in Afghanistan and then invaded Iraq. Now, more than a decade later, air strikes, drones, cyber warfare and Special Forces extend our reach into places like Syria, Yemen, the Horn of Africa and around the globe, attacking terror cells in vacuums of lawless lands with weak or non-existent governments.
Our nation’s founders wisely insured the military would always be under the control of a civilian government. We operate under the command of the president, the Commander-in-Chief who directs men and women and our nation’s resources to pursue those who aim to do us harm.
Military leaders must analyze daily a wide array of potential threats and make decisions in a complex world of cloudy, asymmetrical threats. Historically, waging war between nation-states was more orderly. There was a clearer beginning and end often with a ceremonial signing of surrender.
In 1973, reacting to Vietnam, Congress passed the War Powers Act over the veto of President Richard Nixon. It was designed to prevent slow escalations of smaller military operations into large wars. Not without controversy, the War Powers Act has been seen by many presidents as an unconstitutional infringement on presidential authority.
Regardless of the Constitutionality of The War Powers Act, we should analyze if we as a society can all too easily slip into a war mindset. Are we all asked to sacrifice? Is the burden shared by all?
Our professional military overwhelmingly bears the burdens of war, going through multiple deployments in hostile environments. We as a nation repeatedly put their lives at risk in harm’s way. Even for those who emerge unscathed physically there are physical and emotional tolls on them and their families.
Much of the country is largely untouched by our military’s sacrifices. The casualties aren’t even really reported any more. We support the troops, we cheer for them at sporting events and parades, but what do we really know about their pain? For many in this country war is something that we support vocally without having to kick in and ante up.
There was a time when going to war required sacrifices from all Americans even on the home front. My mother still has ration stamps from World War II when her father — a man in his 30s with several children at home — served in the European Theater.
In 2016 it is time to have serious conversations about which national interests are war-worthy. This is not an isolationist policy, but rather it is asking for a rational discussion about the responsible use of force.
Thomas Jefferson once wrote: “I hope our wisdom will grow with our power. I hope that we understand that the less we use our power the stronger it will be.”
Those are words we would be wise to consider even now.
Perhaps if we want to go to war, we should force ourselves and our politicians to do two things. The limited space of this column prevents a deeper discussion. But maybe there are two things we could do to force careful consideration before going to war: reinstating the draft in wartime and require Congress to pass taxes to pay for our wars.
The draft adds more personnel to the Armed Services alleviating the enormous pressure born only by the military and their families when we go to war. For those who hawkishly advocate sending our troops to every hot spot on the globe, voting to restart the draft forces serious deliberation about what truly constitutes a threat to our homeland or our vital interests.
The same goes for a military action tax. Having to vote both for a draft and to raise taxes for military action will get government leaders to consider more carefully the costs of the rush to war. They have to realize that the draft means anyone can be called to serve and they can no longer kick the fiscal costs of war down the road.
For our nation a draft and military action tax would ask all Americans to understand that we must all ante up to defend our nation. Going to war means that your son or daughter may be drafted and that your taxes will go up. It makes it a little harder to always run to fight, but that is how it should be.
Decisions to go to war should never be taken lightly. That lesson should be foremost in our minds on Memorial Day. Think about that and how each name represents a loss that broke “like thunder over some home.”
