Have you ever got into a fight with someone and in the middle of the fight or after it was over, you asked yourself, "What were we fighting about?"
I look at wars of the past and even the present and often wonder, what is that conflict all about? And was there something that could have been done to avoid all that blood shed. A couple of things that I have noticed is that at the end of all of the fighting, there is some sort of peace treaty or compromise that is signed. Another thing that I notice is the person or person's that start the fight or keep the fight going are never out front fighting or eventually die in the conflict. I had to pose this question to myself recently when my brother in-law was killed in Afghanistan. Right before he left on what was supposed to be his last deployment; we were sitting on his front porch talking. During our conversation I asked him why was he going back into the war zone if he really didn't have to? I was asking him this question, base on the fact that he had already done several tours in Iraq and he had been tagged to be the chief training officer for helicopter flight training. His answer at the time, and probably still to this day, I have trouble understanding, he told me "my troops need me". As my eyebrows began to touch in confusion and concern, I posed a second question to him. The question I posed to him was "What about your two sons, don't they need you also"? His answer was short but I can't say it was simple, he told me " they will be alright".
Only time will tell as it relates to my nephews, I certainly hope that he is right. I could take this conversation into many different directions, however I want to stay on message. So what are we fighting about when we go into combat as a nation or as individuals. I learned from the other officers that were attending my brother in-laws service that one of the reasons that we are fighting in Afghanistan, is to win over the hearts and minds of the Afghan people. Good luck with that as their people die on a daily basis from American and Taliban weapons. (Oh yeah and what about Bin Laden?) On a personal level, when we choose to take on a fight, I always try to ask myself, is there something I can do to avoid the pain that will be inflicted on me or the other party before we get to a point of no return? There usually is, but it requires compromise on somebody's part, however isn't that what it always requires? I just rather compromise and live to fight another day and another way.
I look at wars of the past and even the present and often wonder, what is that conflict all about? And was there something that could have been done to avoid all that blood shed. A couple of things that I have noticed is that at the end of all of the fighting, there is some sort of peace treaty or compromise that is signed. Another thing that I notice is the person or person's that start the fight or keep the fight going are never out front fighting or eventually die in the conflict. I had to pose this question to myself recently when my brother in-law was killed in Afghanistan. Right before he left on what was supposed to be his last deployment; we were sitting on his front porch talking. During our conversation I asked him why was he going back into the war zone if he really didn't have to? I was asking him this question, base on the fact that he had already done several tours in Iraq and he had been tagged to be the chief training officer for helicopter flight training. His answer at the time, and probably still to this day, I have trouble understanding, he told me "my troops need me". As my eyebrows began to touch in confusion and concern, I posed a second question to him. The question I posed to him was "What about your two sons, don't they need you also"? His answer was short but I can't say it was simple, he told me " they will be alright".
Only time will tell as it relates to my nephews, I certainly hope that he is right. I could take this conversation into many different directions, however I want to stay on message. So what are we fighting about when we go into combat as a nation or as individuals. I learned from the other officers that were attending my brother in-laws service that one of the reasons that we are fighting in Afghanistan, is to win over the hearts and minds of the Afghan people. Good luck with that as their people die on a daily basis from American and Taliban weapons. (Oh yeah and what about Bin Laden?) On a personal level, when we choose to take on a fight, I always try to ask myself, is there something I can do to avoid the pain that will be inflicted on me or the other party before we get to a point of no return? There usually is, but it requires compromise on somebody's part, however isn't that what it always requires? I just rather compromise and live to fight another day and another way.
