People talk about peace, but men give their life’s work to war. It won’t stop ’til there is as much brains and scientific study put to aid peace as there is to promote war.
–Will Rogers — 1932
One of the biggest opportunities to make my country (USA) better is related to our addiction to war. If only we would put even 2% of what we spend on war to look for alternative solutions first. I don’t think there has been a war in my lifetime that was worth even one life, let alone the thousands that have been lost.
The war of my generation was Vietnam. After 55,000 US deaths we abruptly left and now they are one of our biggest trade partners. We just can’t seem to accept that other countries might have a different view of what they want their government to look like. I remember in the 1960s that we were supposed to either love El Salvador and hate Nicaragua, or maybe it was the other way around. I never could figure that out.
The final and perhaps most critical thing is our military bases are in 80+ countries around the world. We have over 750 bases in those countries when we have less than 500 in our own country. Surely it’s time to let the EU and most of the 80 others defend themselves? I think our love of war is primarily because of the macho attitude that prevails here.
RJ's Corner - Having My Say 