 |
Weblog Archives |
|
 |
« A time for war, a time for peace. | Main | Happy Birthday, WFS! »
March 21, 2003
A time for love, a time for hate.
I have a friend who is a veteran. Yesterday, I asked this friend, "How can I support the members of the military while opposing the action in which they are engaged?"
It was bothering me. How can I see the humanity of Mr. Bush's so-called "enemy," while not seeing the humanity of the men and women he's putting in harm's way?
Here's what my friend said:
Good question. I think what it boils down to is being able to separate the two things (the war and the people on the front lines fighting it) in your mind. Most people can't get their mind around that: How can I support that guy that just dropped a bomb that went off target and took out a day care center?
But let me try, for a minute, to introduce a couple of concepts. First of all, the people on the front lines, the "troops," are serving their country to the best of their ability. I've said it before: part of the sacrifice of being a soldier is having to put your trust in your commanders that if they send you in somewhere, it is for the good of the country or the world as a whole. Barring the assholes and psychopaths that one gets in any walk of life, what you have in the troops is a bunch of people who are dedicated to the purpose of establishing justice, ensuring domestic tranquility, and preserving or restoring freedom.
A military requires a lot of discipline in order to work in any kind of efficient or effective manner, and when you join, you have to have that belief that the officers, political leaders, etc, will utilize your services in an appropriate manner. And (barring illegal orders which we are trained to recognize) you HAVE TO DO WHAT THEY SAY.
Otherwise it all falls apart, you see.
So, you've got these folks who are dedicated to the service of the country.
Then, you've got commanders who are, perhaps, having these folks do things that you DON'T think benefit the country, or freedom, or whatever. But that's the fault of the commander, not the soldier.
The troops don't get a choice in where, or sometimes, when they serve.
Now, then.
As I said, it's a tough concept. I'm not going to go, "Hey, man, great job with that napalm on the aspirin factory! Woo hoo!" But I am going to say, "Thank you for dedicating part of your life to service to our country," because I think that's a noble thing.
I could say a lot more about this, but to my mind, you can protest the war, and at the same time, hang a yellow ribbon in the hope that the troops come home safely. Hoping for our folks to come home safe isn't at all pro-war, to my mind. Writing a letter saying, "Hey, hope you guys are doing okay" doesn't imply you hope anyone else (like the Iraqis) are being blown to smithereens.
This is the time when it's really tough. Probably a lot of the troops over there are uncertain whether this is a good idea, so they're going to get kind of defensive with anti-war protesters. Add to that the people who cannot separate the war from the people fighting it, and you have even more ill will.Seriously, it's very tough to reconcile for a lot of people. I've been there, so I know stuff about what it's like to be in the military. It's damn hard to explain some things to civilians in a way that makes sense, though, because some of it DOES NOT make sense outside of the military culture. But it makes perfect sense in there.
It is really a different culture too, remember. US military and US civilians live by a very different set of rules and assumptions a lot of the time.
Like I said: Protest the war, Embrace the people. They are our brothers and sisters who have dedicated themselves to the service of our country. If they are used unjustly, blame the leaders.
I thought about that yesterday, and I was able to find that separation between "soldier" and "leadership."
I maintain that this conflict is not worth one American life.
I am outraged that the first American casuality -- a marine, serving his country, following orders -- died while patrolling an oil field.
Pentagon officials told NBC News that the casualty was suffered while U.S. forces moved toward the large Iraqi oil field of Al-Rumeila.
Details of the incident were unclear. However, a fellow soldier, along with an Associated Press reporter, said the Marine was shot in the stomach while his company was patrolling around a burning oil pumping station.
I became aware a website this morning that is sending books to American soldiers in the Gulf. I think it's a great idea, and encourage all WWDN readers to get involved.
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.wilwheaton.net/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/163
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference A time for love, a time for hate.:
» A great idea from Leonine Ponderances
WIL WHEATON DOT NET: A time for love, a time for hate. This friend of Wil's does a great job clarifying the line between not supporting the war but supporting our soldiers that are out there. I should go through... [Read More]
» Thank you, Wil Wheaton. from Poor Sue
this sums up my my conflicting emotions about this war in a more articulate way than i could ever hope [Read More]
» Separation from debgpi
Anne and I were discussing whether it was possible to protest the war without demoralizing the troops. Can you separate... [Read More]
» Cognitive Dissonance? from arbizu.org
Thisposting at WWDN was great to read. It helped me better understand my confusion regarding the war in Iraq. I fully support the men and women that stand up and say they will lay theire lives on the line, if [Read More]
» What else could I be talking about? from Daybreak
Wil Wheaton posted a thought-provoking and, at least in my opinion, very positive piece on a touchy subject: how can [Read More]
» Em busca da guerra from Parn's Blog
Eu não pretendia postar de novo sobre este assunto, mas me parece que muita gente está visitando este site na [Read More]
» The War from Dramatic Insanity
WIL WHEATON DOT NET: A time for love, a time for hate. Everyone read this. This perfectly sums up something that's been bothering me, even tho I don't know anyone who's fighting in the war. But hey, you never know... [Read More]
» separating leader from solider from stanna.net
Many of you have heard me say that I don't support the war, but I do support our troops. Here's [Read More]
» For the love of Wil from Krempasky.com
In response to my previous entry, a kind and well-informed reader responded:It seems that you need to take your own... [Read More]
» Separation between the people and the leadership from life of nicole lee
I've been trying to say this for the past few days, and I think Wil Wheaton's veteran buddy basically boiled [Read More]
» Embrace the people... from life of nicole lee
... but not necessarily the war. I've been trying to say this for the past few days, and I think [Read More]
» Supporting our troops - no matter what from onethumb.com
I've always hated the way our troops have been treated in previous wars upon their return. It's almost like people think each individual soldier made the decision to go to war or enter each conflict. That's not the case at all. [Read More]
» A Distinction from Frankly, I'd Rather Not
This rings especially true after having watched the coverage for nearly all the waking hours of the past three days. Watching the troops and their families, I can't help but admire the decision they've made to serve their country - honorable and noble,... [Read More]
» To everything... Turn, turn, turn... from Acid Drops
As someone taking a strong personal stand against the war in Iraq, it's very difficult to emotionally resolve the dichotomy between hating the war and those responsible for it and supporting those in the military whose job it is to... [Read More]
» On Support and Protest from Blog on the Edge of Forever
Wil Wheaton's site has a conversation between him and a friend that I think is valuable for those people who [Read More]
» http://www.benlantow.com/archive/000033.htm from Ramblings of A Madman
I found this on WWDN... I feel that it embodies proper sentiment towards our armed forces...Check it out! [Read More]
» A Vet's Thoughts on Protest from All the Pages are My Days
Yesterday I wrote about why I believe that protesting the war is still important, and briefly explored the notion that... [Read More]
» Letters from MainMor
I was reading an article about Letters and Packages being sent to soldiers... I wanted to write to someone myself, but I do not know anyone out there. Near the end of the article was this link: http://anyservicemember.navy.mil/ You can [Read More]
» We're All People from ScribeCentral.com's THE "EX" PATRIOT
Separating the troops in the field from the men behind the desks. It is Free Speech to express opinions contrary to official American and British policy; it is amoral and ruthless to criticise the guys out in the field. [Read More]
» A Matter of Conflict from Sarah's Mostly Knitting Weblog
This is what I have believed from the beginning, but Wil and friend have already said it better than I ever could. Read This. The only thing I would add is that I maintain that this conflict is not worth... [Read More]
» Invitations and Upgrade Plans from IMAGinES
I think it was Trent who brought a certain fact to my attention a few months ago: there aren't any flame wars, trolls or generally impolite or unsociable behaviours on the IMAGinewS group. Lately, with an undeclared war commencing, rudeness... [Read More]
» Embrace the people... from life of nicole lee
... but not necessarily the war. I've been trying to say this for the past few days, and I think Wil Wheaton's veteran buddy basically boiled it down for me. Supporting our troops does not equal supporting the war, and... [Read More]
| Read |
|
| Listen |
|
Watch |
|
| WWdN Sponsor |
| Act |
|
|Electronic Frontier Foundation| |
| Fear |
| Look |
|