The other half of war

Last week a video surfaced showing four Marines urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters. In the immediate aftermath, knee-jerk articles emerged, some defending the actions of these soldiers as an acceptable response to the duress of wartime, or as President hopeful Governor Rick Perry put it, "these kids made a mistake," while others condemned these actions as unbecoming of a Marine and deserving the stiffest military and/or legal repercussions available. Some write-ups included a little bit of both.


Military service is sold to the American public and the young men and women who enlist as an honorable way to serve and defend our country. I agree with this definition of military service. However, there is an element of "military service" that is poorly understood and yet is the most relevant part of what occurs when one enlists during a time of conflict. This element boils down to a single word: war.


While the idea of the word "war" being a poorly understand element of military service might seem laughable, it is a word that is thrown about in casual conversation without a clear and comprehensive definition. Think back to how we were taught about war in school. As children, war was presented in descriptions of George Washington and the American Revolution in which impoverished colonists successfully won freedom from the world's largest empire. In high school we learned about D-Day and how another generation of Americans climbed out of boats and defied the odds by advancing on a beach while running straight into oncoming bullet fire. Both of these events happened in their respective wars as we were taught and yet our lessons omit crucial elements that we only learn via images from incidents like at Abu Ghraib and what occurred last week with our Marines. War is more than service to country. War is more than just fighting. Service and combat only tell half the story. The other half of the story is the part that doesn't come in television recruitment advertisements or a drop-down-box on the GI Bill website.


The other half of war is hell.


In this hell, selfless young men and women have their minds pureed as a result of spending months upon months away from home and family, living under inhumane conditions, courting death on a daily basis to accomplish missions the goals of which are not always clear. Under the compromised functioning of understandably psychologically devastated young people, bizarre and horrific actions are taken such as the rape of Okinawan women by American soldiers during World War II or the decapitation and taking of "trophy skulls" during the Vietnam War. The atrocities unfortunately do not end there. These same individuals frequently come home with diagnoses of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and multiple substance abuse disorders. They sometimes commit violent crime against others but more frequently, against themselves. According to The New York Times, "From 2005 to 2010, service members have killed themselves approximately once every 36 hours. For veterans, the rate is estimated at once every 80 minutes."

I do not mean to justify the crimes our servicemen and women have committed in the past or most recently. Also, I am not attempting to assess their fitness for service or the legal ramifications of their actions; these are the jobs of commanding officers and attorneys. My goal is that by spending more time and energy examining what war actually does to the mind as seen so clearly in the video acquired last week, that we as a citizenry may think harder before we get enthusiastic about the initiation of combat operations. I don't envy the Commander-in-Chief as this decision is likely one the most weighty choices a leader has to make. I just want him or her to realize that for the time during which our sons and daughters are away, and possibly for the rest of their lives should they come home, they are in hell. I don't mean to use the word "hell" lightly, but I can't imagine war being anything less if it takes our brave and patriotic youth and bends their minds to the point where they would rape, decapitate, torture and desecrate the remains of other human beings.

I have known and worked with Marines. Their dedication to this country makes me tear up. If I could make a direct message to our Marine Corps it would be this: I don't know exactly what happens over there but I know it is horrible. I don't know what will happen to your colleagues who committed these crimes. However, I do know that they are not "kids" as Governor Perry would put it. Kids don't live and die by the sword. I am sorry we have to ask so much of you and that we as civilians frequently fail when we try to put you back together. Regardless of what happens in regard to this particular incident, my respect and admiration for the United States Marine Corps remains steadfast.