Confusing numbers....

The war in Afghanistan, with civilian and military casualties at record highs, has become the longest war in the US history.

Military operations have inflicted over USD 100 million in damages on public property in southern Afghanistan.

The majority of voters believed the US should not be involved in Afghanistan.
The support level in the survey has dropped to 41 percent, which is well below the peak of 59 percent a year ago. (link)

Why does this not seem true in day to day life in America? This reinforces my post on MLK Jr Day. If we even have the numbers behind the message...why no MESSAGE????

Unbelievable...

Pentagon: Martin Luther King Jr. Would've Supported Our Wars (article)

Should Christians swear an 'Oath of Allegiance'...?

The "Oath of Allegiance"that must be taken by all immigrants who wish to become United States citizens:

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

In the fall of 2003 the United States Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services planned to change the oath of citizenship to:

'Solemnly, freely, and without mental reservation, I hereby renounce under oath all allegiance to any foreign state. My fidelity and allegiance from this day forward is to the United States of America. I pledge to support, honor, and be loyal to the United States, its Constitution, and its laws. Where and if lawfully required, I further commit myself to defend the Constitution and laws of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, either by military, noncombatant, or civilian service. This I do solemnly swear, so help me God.'

But that change didn't end up happening. I read this yesterday during our planning of a potential 'citizenship class' in the Spring for refugees planning to take the test for citizenship. I am not sure how the refugees from Burma will think about such language, especially since many are here with an underlying hope to return and very deep seated nationalistic convictions regarding their homeland, Burma and the traditions and culture of the KaRen people.

But, then I too felt weird listening to the language in this 'oath' and thought about Jesus's words in Matthew 5:33-37:

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

There are many aspects to being an earthly citizen that seem to me to contradict one's citizenship in Heaven. Figuring out how to live as you should with such pressures is a difficult part of following the Jesus of the gospels. I know that most of all this kind of stuff is ignored or minimized in most Christian circles but there are moments when I truly wonder if we are calling people to the true gospel or have simply passed on an Americanized version of a civic faith that is rooted more in the values and traditions of American culture than the way of Jesus.

U.S. keeps funneling money to troubled Afghan projects

"The job we gave USAID was ridiculous: Build the nation," said T.X. Hammes, a retired Marine Corps officer and senior research fellow at the Center for Strategic Research, National Defense University. "The U.S. has made a huge assumption that counterinsurgency and nation building are applicable for Afghanistan. More and more evidence shows that it's not true." (full article)

Wresting With Demons...

He was in the army. Then he realized that, as a Christian, he couldn't kill. An Iraq vet grapples with conscience and war.
By Logan Mehl-Laituri

"In January 2010, the number of soldiers who committed suicide exceeded the number of soldiers killed by enemy fire in Iraq and Afghanistan combined....Moral Injury...is the "lasting psychological, biological, spiritual, behavioral, and social impact of perpetrating, failing to prevent, or bearing witness to acts that transgress deeply held moral beliefs and expectations." Read the whole article: here

A moral conscience...

This picture shows a young German soldier walking to his own death. A death by execution conducted by his own brothers in arms

Jospeh Schultz was a German soldier on the Eastern Front. On the 20th of July 1941, he along with seven of his brothers in arms were sent out on what they thought to be a routine mission. After a short march they soon understood that they were on a quite different mission than what they were used to: Ahead of them, they saw fourteen captured local civilians who were blindfolded , positioned up against a wall. The 8 soldiers in Schultz platoon were halted 10-15 meters away, and an NCO ordered them to execute every one of the civilian. Seven of the soldiers took aim, and in the silence that followed you could only hear the sound of a rifle beeing dropped. Jospeh Schultz disobeyed a direct order, dropped his rifle and walked slowly towards the 14 civilians which only heard cautious footsteps in the grass infront of them. The young Schultz positioned himself together with the soon-to-be executed civilians, and choosed death instead of killing hopeless civilians. A few seconds later 14 civilians and 1 German soldier laid dead in the grass. He was executed by his own brothers in arms by order of the NCO.

This action shows that its actually possible to do evil things. Its possible to be a free-thinking morally human-being no matter what is happening around you. But, no other of his 7 brothers in arms followed his example. It was no revolt. No large-scale deserting. This is no hero-story. Neither a story about a victim. No-one was saved by Joseph Schultz action. Everyone were shot. Everyone plus one more. But he was a moral example. He refused to fire because its wrong to fire. It was no different on how many that were shot. But it was a difference to him. And to us.

Afghan girls and education...

Afghan girls attend school on February 16, 2009 in the village of Sandarwa in eastern Afghanistan. Women's education has been severely compromised in Afghanistan as a resurgent Taliban has practiced a policy of intimidation of female students. Women, who make up a significant proportion of Afghanistan's population, have been killed, burned and threatened for attending school

Heroin & Heroes....

Afghanistan accounts for more than 90 per cent of the world's heroin supply. Its annual opium harvest is worth up to $3 billion, or almost half the country's official gross domestic product. Profits from heroin fund the Taliban, along with corrupt Afghan officials who profit from it.

Our selfishness will save soldiers lives...

"We must...stop wasting American blood and treasure on misguided military interventions designed to drag Muslim Arabs and Afghans through the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution in the space of a few years, at gunpoint."
-Short article, kick in the gut analysis.

My response to Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers

Here is my congresswoman's letter in response to me writing her about cutting out of control Military spending:

Dear Eric,

Thank you for contacting me regarding the defense budget. It is an honor to represent the people of Eastern Washington and I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with me.

First and foremost, I want to thank the brave members of our Armed Services and their families who sacrifice so much on a daily basis to protect the freedoms we enjoy everyday. Like you, I believe we need to spend our tax dollars wisely. Keeping our nation safe is one of my top priorities. To that end, I believe we need to give our military the resources they need to maintain a superior defense program. Be assured that should this issue come before me in Congress, I will keep your thoughts in mind as they are debated on the House floor.

Thanks again for contacting me on this important issue. As your Representative in Congress, I am committed to putting the best interests of Eastern Washington first. I invite you to visit my website at www.mcmorrisrodgers.house.gov for additional information or to sign up to be kept up to date on these issues. Please do not hesitate to contact my office if I can be of further assistance.


Best Wishes,
Cathy McMorris Rodgers
Member of Congress


And here is my response to her letter:


Mrs. Cathy McMorris Rodgers,

First and foremost, I too support our soldiers and I believe that writing members of congress, challenging the issues of policy and exercising free speech are not anti-troop actions but are historical and foundational principles of a healthy democracy. The act of challenging the bankrupting of our country through unparalleled military spending and an ever increasing build up of arms, does support our troops and it saves their lives in the long run.

Upon receiving yet another ‘form letter’ from one of your tax funded administrators, I find myself stewing in the disillusionment that is fermenting among those who feel that we have lost the true heart of representative government. The general malaise of political disinterest in our day to day life is often the result of seeing the pointlessness of trying to engage a system that nods it’s head to the voter and taxpayer but in reality is motivated by other bigger, stronger and wealthier voices.

You stated in your letter that the freedoms I enjoy today are the result of the lives and deaths of American soldiers fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. Could you please document the facts behind that statement? It sounds more like a political quip that is meant to derail thoughtful debate before anyone can even begin to lay out the argument.

In my understanding, its the Constitution and Bill of Rights that entitle me to the freedoms we hold in this country...not the killing of other people.

The U.S. will spend more on the war in Afghanistan this year, adjusting for inflation, than we spent on the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War and the Spanish-American War combined. The United States also spends nearly as much on military power as every other country in the world combined, plus we maintain troops at more than 800 bases around the world! How you can justify that kind of draining economic behemoth under the guise of running as a ‘fiscal conservative’ escapes me.

You are the only Republican that I didn’t vote for in the last election and one of the reasons is your apparent disconnect on this issue. Military spending and policy affects far more areas of national life than it used too. The people of Eastern Washington are looking to our elected members of Congress for true leadership to move out of the problems that we are suffering from as a nation. Maintaining the party line, enabling out of control deficit spending to take place, playing the bait and switch game with military spending cuts and then hiding behind a series of military supporting platitudes doesn’t convince me of the legitimacy of your statement that you are “looking out for the interests of the people of this district.”

These failed policies have led to the death of many service men and women in this state, for which I hold your voting record culpable, there is no other way around that fact. Ending the needless deaths of our fellow Americans is the kind of leadership that I desire to see you exercise.

As my representative in congress, I implore you as a member of the House Armed Services Committee to leverage your position to save the lives of soldiers from Eastern Washington, put an end to unrestrained military spending and truly reflect the will of 63% of American people who do not support the war in Afghanistan.

Sincerely,

Eric Blauer
Spokane, WA.

How the Military cuts spending...what a joke.

This is a prime example of how Washington cuts spending...below is the punchline, but the article has to be read to fully feel the impact of the bait and switch that all of this is. I just can't understand why we can't operate with the same type of economic slipperiness as our Government does?

"The $78 billion in defense cuts are separate from $100 billion in "efficiencies" identified by the Pentagon. The $100 billion will be reinvested into other Pentagon programs and will not result in spending cuts; the $78 billion will be cut from the Pentagon's budget over a five-year period beginning in the 2012 fiscal year. Because the Pentagon originally projected budget increases for these years, the cuts won't mean that the Pentagon's budget will shrink in total dollar terms -- only that the rate of growth will slow. The fiscal year beginning this year will see a base Pentagon budget of $553 billion, up from $549 billion last year." -article

63% oppose the War in Afghanistan...

Sixty-three percent of people questioned in the poll say they oppose the war, with 35 percent saying they support the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. (link)

Reflecting on Restrepo....

I've thought a lot about the documentary "Restrepo" that I watched on New Years Eve. You can search and read a lot of great reviews out there that explain and expound on why this is a war film that is worth watching, so I won't link to them. But as I reflect on the movie a few things stand out.

One was how I have been conditioned for violence, particularly viewing it. I found myself a bit frustrated that the film wasn't showing the horror and gore of battle. Something that we are often shown in most war movies. On one hand I think this is good, after watching "The Pacific" those that served in that theater of conflict gained my highest respect. The pure hell of it was captured in that series that left me wondering how anyone could see such a depiction of war and ever sign up for the possibility of being in such a conflict. So the horror sometimes awakens us to the pain and suffering of others and could influence us in our choices.

But the other thing was that I think there is a odd glamorizing of it all that conditions us to kinda 'thirst' for it. Maybe the whole 'colosseum' thing...a blood lust that cultivates a hunger to see more and more extreme examples of killing or desperation. It was something that was strange for me...feeling a bit 'bored' by the lack of 'action' or at least the one-sided view of it...bullets being fired...but not seeing whom they are hitting. Even one of the soldiers in the film complained about not being able to 'see the faces' of those he was killing.

The film relied upon the faces and voices of the soldiers stories more than visual carnage and even though I shared the thoughts above, don't think that it doesn't work, because it does. There are moments where you see that war...shapes a soul like nothing else. There are stares and pauses in the interviews that feel like eternity. The emotion captured in brief moments was petrifying.

The scene where the Sargent is killed during 'Rock Avalanche' and the film captures the shock and grief of a few of the soldiers is forever imprinted on my psyche. That moment was brutal, heart-wrentching and one of the most raw moments captured of human pain.

One other part that has left me mulling over the film, was watching the attempts to woo Afghan hill folk with 'getting rich, projects and progress'...by the soldiers attempting to gain security and information. The whole perception of 'Nation Building' and 'Helping' felt exposed in the jockeying for terrorists. Those boys were there to kill bad guys not educate the dirty, toothless herdsmen that were cutting off heads of their fellow soldiers in videos. Seeing the meetings where they were attempting to build a sense of solidarity through bribery and bullying was pathetic. Not that the soldiers were pathetic...but the point of it all seemed so utterly foolish. Making some grunt have to feign compassion or humanitarian aspirations in order to flush out some enemy combatants was a really hard part of the film for me to process. The thinness of it all was exposed through those moments of the film.

But one of things that has stuck with me the most, and was the same with the Pacific, was at the very end when the small print comes across the screen that tell us that: fifty soldiers lost their lives fighting in the Korengal Valley, yet the US military withdrew from it in April 2010.

After all of that courage, suffering and loss...we withdrew.

The futility of it all was so hard to process...and I still don't quite know how someone can deal with that. How does a mother or a wife or a sister process that her loved one was killed trying to 'take' a pieces of a hillside and then the whole thing is abandoned.

After watching the film my respect for our soldiers was yet again raised and yet, my resolve to see such nobel actions wasted on foreign policies that do not warrant such heroic loss was reinforced.

The Sal Giunta Story...

The Sal Giunta Story from SebastianJunger/TimHetherington on Vimeo.

This is one of the soldiers in the Restrepo movie who received a medal of honor for his part in operation Avalanche. This is what true manhood is all about..courage and humility.

RESTREPO is a feature-length documentary that chronicles the deployment of a platoon of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. The movie focuses on a remote 15-man outpost, "Restrepo," named after a platoon medic who was killed in action. It was considered one of the most dangerous postings in the U.S. military. This is an entirely experiential film: the cameras never leave the valley; there are no interviews with generals or diplomats. The only goal is to make viewers feel as if they have just been through a 90-minute deployment. This is war, full stop. The conclusions are up to you.

Unhappy the land where heroes are needed.
-Galileo, in Brecht's Life of Galileo (1943)

General, your tank is a powerful vehicle.
It smashes down forests and crushes a hundred men.
But it has one defect: it needs a driver."-Bertolt Brecht

A letter from Ron Kovic to young veterans and GIs...

"Those of us lucky enough to have survived combat yearn for life now, for beauty, for all that is decent and good, for in war we saw the worst in the human being. We saw poverty and death, killing and savagery, the darkest sides of the human soul, the most hated parts of our humanity." -Ron Kovic, author of 'Born on the 4th of July", read the article: here