Go find the young men never to fight again;
Bring up the banners from the days gone by,
Sweet moderation,
Heart of this nation,
Desert us not, we are
Between the wars
Bring up the banners from the days gone by,
Sweet moderation,
Heart of this nation,
Desert us not, we are
Between the wars
It should be noted that Bragg released this in the 1980's, after the trend of unnecessary wars was getting established.
ReplyDeletePoint taken. IMO, the last four necessary times American military boots were deployed into combat on foreign soil were in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and in the capturing of Osama Bin Laden. That said, all Americans who have served & sacrificed in uniform are to be honored today.
DeleteAs proud as I am of myself once in a great while, I'll never be proud enough to say that I
ReplyDeletefought for my country.
I agree Baydog. There's few higher callings than the call for duty. Those who serve their country by wearing the uniform have a right to be proud. Those who serve their country as civilians have an obligation to inform themselves and our political leaders so that all sacrifices undertaken by those in uniform were essential to our national interests.
DeleteI'm in the same boat. I was heavily recruited by the Navy out of high school and was accepted at West Point - but I was only 17 years old at the time, and committing to 9 years of my future life at that time seemed like an eternity... so I chose a different path.
Deletemy wife's brother and 2 of my younger brothers all have served a tour (or two) in Iraq and Afghanistan in the recent years - I guess you're not calling these "combats", but it sure felt like it to us when our brothers were over there.
my dad was drafted for Vietnam, but served as an MP stateside. my mom's father served overseas in World War II (I believe in Italy and North Africa).
...American military boots were deployed into combat on foreign soil were in World War I, World War II, the Korean War...
ReplyDeleteI would have to include Cold War in that list. While America does have the blood of innocents on its hands the men in control of the Soviet Union were dangerous in their own right and could have pushed the world into the abyss just as easily.
Beach, your point is well taken. Because I agree, I took the pains to include the word "combat". I would add that as expensive as it turned out to be in terms of time and resources, a Cold War was cheaper than a hot war with the USSR would have been. Containment allowed for time to take its toll. Currently, the containment option is first choice as a policy for such uniquely ticklish problems presented by Iran and North Korea: power with patience. Not sure how it's going to turn out; not too hopeful about Iran.
Delete