I woke this morning thinking of all the soldiers who have given, or risked, their lives—by facing death, but also by facing mutilation, or psychological scars, or other losses which can follow them to the grave.
They give up any right to ask how, on what terms, or for what goals they make this sacrifice.
They go where they are told, do what they are told to do, without even the right to question whether the risks they are taking are worth the current objective.
That kind of sacrifice, that kind of loyalty, can only exist in a context of supreme trust—the soldier's trust that the people at home have his or her back, that we will keep watch on those in power, making certain that the fight is worth the risk, that the freedoms they are fighting for are being enhanced at home, not dismantled, that their commander in chief is carrying out the will of the people, as he is elected to do, when he puts them in harm's way.
If we do not live up to that duty, if we do not keep watch, if we allow those in power to create policies that undermine the integrity of our troops, put them at risk unnecessarily, or erode the very freedoms they are fighting for, we betray that trust. We cheapen their sacrifice, and risk turning their faith into gullibility.
Our responsibility, at home, and theirs, on the battlefield, are two sides of the same coin. Our duties are one. Without us as their watchdogs, they cannot know whether they are fighting for freedom, democracy, and the safety of their loved ones, or for oil, empire, and the enrichment of the elite.
We owe them the guarantee that we are on duty, that we will guard their homeland, and what it stands for, while they are away.
Any suggestion that we should shirk this duty, that by keeping this promise we are "unpatriotic", or "undermining" the troops who are counting on us, is not only a subtle treason, not merely a lie, but a sure sign that the speaker has no respect for those troops, or their sacrifice.
We must never give in to such pathetic, and immoral, blackmail.
When they return, we must be able to look them in the eye, and say, "You were not foolish to trust us. You were right.
"We had your back."
