The closest to the truth about war -- there is no honor in war, only horror

Rating: 10/10 (2 November 2014)

Before turning the TV off and going to bed the other night I watched the last half of the new war movie "Lone Survivor". This is the true story of a squad of US SEAL soldiers who were nearly wiped out by Taliban forces in the rugged hills of Afghanistan. In my experience in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Pakistan) this movie is the truest account of what it's really like to be a soldier or a civilian in war; what's it's really like to come under fire in a battle. It is a pure horror; full blown horror.
Why do humans, and particularly human leaders, continue to forget just how horrible war truly is? There is never, repeat never any honor involved when the shooting starts. It's pure unadulterated mayhem and horror for every soldier under fire.
Watch this movie to understand what war really is.
It worries me a great deal that the US stopped the military draft after Vietnam. Today, save for the elite officer corps, the US Government basically hires its military from the lower rungs of the US social and income ladder. The military is a way out of poverty. This has been tried before. Think Rome. I continue to believe that all young US men and women, both rich/privileged and the less advantaged, should serve their country for 1-2 years in some capacity. If this happened, the US would engage in fewer wars because the leadership would think twice about sending their own sons and daughters into the horror of war. Also the cost to the government would be lower, and, over a lifetime, such a democratic military would increase the participation of the citizens in their local, state and federal governments.
Don't forget; vote!!!