Make love, not war

One of the iconic phrases of the ‘60s was “Make Love, Not War.” But once in power, the 60s generation seemed to forget all that. Starting with the election of Bill Clinton and continuing across administrations of both parties, the US military was committed to multiple foreign wars, which with few exceptions had little if anything to do with our own national security.

Serbia posed no threat to the US or to any of our allies. Nevertheless Clinton subjected Serbia to 78 days of bombing. This resulted in the partition of Serbia into two countries with the creation of Kosovo, which is now the European hub for human, drug and weapons trafficking.

In the immediate aftermath of 9/11 most observers agree that George W Bush was justified in attacking Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. But after Al Qaeda and their Taliban hosts had been routed, Bush kept US forces in the country, starting an endless project of nation building. As of now, after eighteen years, an estimated 110,000 Afghans have been killed, with US casualties at 2,372.

In 2003 Bush attacked and invaded Iraq. The Iraqi dictator had not attacked the US and posed no serious threat. During the ensuing conflict more than 700,000 Iraqis met violent deaths. The US death toll stands at 4,424. The devastation of Iraq created the conditions for the rise of ISIS.

Soon after receiving the Nobel Peace Prize president Obama launched airstrikes against Libya, overthrowing its dictator and destabilizing the country, which is now a semi-failed state and haven for international terrorists. Muammar Ghadaffi had not attacked the US and posed no threat to US interests.

Although Obama resisted pressure for direct US military intervention in Syria, he did authorize covert operations which helped to destabilize the Assad regime, exacerbating the civil war which has now claimed hundreds of thousands and propelled an unprecedented wave of refugees into Europe. The Assad regime had not attacked the US or its allies.

The nearly 7,000 US service men and women who have sacrificed their lives in these mid-east wars, along with the hundreds of thousands wounded are heroes all, who represent the very best among us. Their families have suffered terribly. So we must ask, who are the politicians who have sent them in harm's way, and for what? Do the American people really want to be judge, jury and policemen of the world, deciding which faction here or which ethnic group there gets to prevail? Are any of these foreign military interventions worth the trillions we’ve squandered or the lives sacrificed?

Sadly, war and peace is not even in the top ten issues of concern in the current election. The media isn’t focused on it. Perhaps because Trump is the first president since Reagan to refrain from committing the US to a new war.

In the case of ISIS, Trump tasked the military to annihilate the Caliphate. With that mission accomplished, he wisely withdrew our forces. It isn’t America’s responsibility to decide which tribe rules Syria. Instead of letting our country be lured into a new mid-east war, Trump is extricating the US from the previous two in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Perhaps we take this all for granted. Our TVs are not filled with images of shock and awe. We are not welcoming home scores of flag draped coffins. So we must ask, will the president’s America First foreign policy be maintained with his re-election, or will we return to the DC Establishment’s Endless Wars with the election of Joe Biden?

Sadly, war and peace is not even in the top ten issues of concern in the current election... Perhaps because Trump is the first president since Reagan to refrain from committing the US to a new war.