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What's all the fighting for?
By Joe Renna
War is the most horrible thing imaginable. The carnage and
destruction is surreal. Intellectually it is hard to conceive
of any circumstance that can justify such extreme action. Ironically
the reason for war is obvious. One only needs to lift their head
out of their text book and ask the person next to them...
Unless that person was imprisoned for reading a book. Or maybe
it is a child who can't speak right now because they are working
in a factory. It may be someone who has been tortured and had
his tongue cut out. Or the person asked may detonate a bomb that
he had strapped to himself. Or maybe the seat is empty and the
person who would have been there decided to go to work on September
11, 2001.
The reasons for war are rooted in preservation of life. A rational
person has trouble admitting that the evils that are capable of
human atrocity exist on his planet. Evil, that if given the chance
will snuff his very life. It happens every day all over the world
to tens of thousands of people. Doing nothing is as surreal as
war.
Freedom and liberty has a price and young Americans are paying
that price with their lives. To suggest this military action is
predicated on a whim is a disservice to our government and to
those troops. Freedom of expression comes with responsibility.
One may rationalize a certain point of view but failure to recognize
an opposing one cuts the legs out from under those very rights
that we are fighting to preserve.
A blissful utopia can be built in the virtual world of academia.
There are no threats from rogue nations bent on destroying it.
In a perfect world there is no war. In reality, war does exist
and it is fought not with ideology but with weapons of mass destruction.
And in reality, as in utopia, no one wants war. Everyone wants
to see an end to this war and our troops home safely. They would
also like to see the end of brutal dictatorships and terrorism
America is the pervador of freedom and liberty throughout the world. Ironically it is the reason for much of the hatred directed towards us. As much as America would like to stay out of conflict, it must make that choice every time it is witness to human atrocities. When the threat is directed towards us, there is no choice. We must act. Before the start of the Iraq war, President Bush said "The risk of not going to war out weighs the risk of going." History has validated the existence of these risks.
Featured in this issue of Around About Peterstown are the members
of the The Kingston Athletic Club. Sixty years ago these men were
in the throngs of World War II. This was an all out battle fought
for the the same principals that we are defending today. The scars
and trauma left from that conflict live in these brave men to
this day. Also living are those liberties that they fought for.
They live in their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
If anyone wants to exercise their intellect about the justification
of war, have them imagine what their lives would be like today
if America tried diplomacy in 1942