American Apathy

American Apathy
by Justin Jackley

Americans for the war and against it agree we should support the troops. This is a welcome change from the stories we hear of Vietnam veterans returning home only to be spit on by anti-war activists. But how are we supporting the troops? Pro-war or anti-war, paying lip service to America’s servicemen is not enough.
Soldiers are coming home to find the Veterans Affairs’ budget slashed and an apathetic American public.

As National Public Radio commentator Rebekah Sanderlin, wife of a Fort Bragg soldier who served in Afghanistan, said in a Dec. 31 broadcast: There’s a popular saying in military towns like mine. The American military went to war and America went to the mall.

It’s hard to claim the U.S. supports its troops when that is the sentiment of soldiers and their families.

A Jan. 2 article from The Washington Post quotes an unnamed Army Special Forces sergeant: The fatal flaw was when right after Sept. 11 the president asked everyone to go on with their lives. That set the stage for no one sacrificing.

We can’t just slap yellow ribbons on our cars and say we’re supporting the troops. That is not enough…

Another NPR commentator, Bob Sommer, whose son served in Iraq, had this to say about yellow ribbons in a Feb. 14, 2005 broadcast: And the sight of all these yellow magnets are starting to bring out the worst in me. Sometimes I want to roll down my windows and confront the drivers. I want to exclaim, Who doesn’t support the troops? What have you done to support the troops?’

Attending a College Republicans or College Democrats-hosted fundraiser for the troops is much more effective than throwing a yellow ribbon on a vehicle. Soldiers in Iraq stand to gain nothing from a magnet on a car. They do benefit from the care packages the College Republicans are raising money to send them.

The way the war is shown to us in the media doesn’t make it seem real. It’s all a jumble of statistics in newspapers or well-edited footage on cable news. It’s hard to associate real people with this war.

But real people are involved. People like Yari Mokri, James Funkhouser and Jacob Neal, who used to be part of this town but now will never see their friends or family again.

There are ways beyond rhetoric to support the troops and make them feel like we didn’t all go to the mall while they went to war. Web sites such as www.OperationMilitaryPride.org, the organization the College Republicans will be sending their money to, help citizens support those who are fighting for us. The site provides the public with a means to send cards, letters and care packages to servicemen and women.
Another site that allows people to correspond with the troops and has links to organizations accepting donations is www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil.

We chose the representatives who chose to start this war. We can’t solely blame President Bush for a war that Congress authorized him to pursue. The people we elected started this war, so we are responsible for its consequences.

As long as our government forces young men and women to go to war, let’s not make them feel we went shopping while they were fighting for us.