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| Yes | 61% | 28 votes | Total: 46 votes | |
| No | 39% | 18 votes |
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Add to FavoritesWar, Freedom, and Unconditional Love. . .
I am a pacifist. I firmly believe the taking of any life against another person's will is wrong. I live my life that way and I raised my children that way. When my son turned 17 years old, he came to me with the option of joining the military after high school. This was before the War on Terror had started and, at the time, a stable income and educational opportunities were foremost in his mind. I told him exactly what I thought:
"Son, there's a war in our near future. . . I can feel it. I love you and will support you in any decision you make for your life, but before you decide to join the military, you take some time to think it through. You are a gentle soul. Do you really think you can kill another human being? Oh", I added with a smile and a wink, "if you decide that you cannot kill and they start up the draft remember. . . I brought you into this world and I can sneak you out of it."
He was a little confused. His father served ten years in the military and he, himself, was born on an Air Force base. It was then I had the opportunity to explain my beliefs on unconditional love and ultimate freedom. Yes, I may be a pacifist and have always been against war, but that is my choice. To force my beliefs on any other soul goes against my belief that each and everyone of us deserves ultimate freedom as long as that includes respect for the rights of others. True love, then, must be unconditional; otherwise, you are denying the ones you love ultimate freedom. That is how I supported my husband in his military career even though I, personally, am against war. I loved him and I respected any choice he thought was best for him.
It's the same for my children. I don't have to agree with any choice they make in their lives. It's their life and they deserve the freedom to make the choices that best fit them. If they are to grow up to be healthy and happy individuals, they must have room to experience that which they feel they need to experience in order for their souls to grow. My duty is to love and support them as they grow.
Fortunately, my son never joined the military even after 9-11 when many of his friends were caught up in the initial rush to "defend America." That tells me that I was at least partially successful in passing on my pacifism. As parents, that's really all we can hope for. If we tell them what they can or cannot do, they will rebel and, in the process, make mistakes that could be harmful to them in the long run. Nope. . . all we can do is let them know who we are and why we made the choices we did and hope something rubs off. Then, we just love them and support whatever choices they make in life - even if it's going to war. That's unconditional love.
Learn more about this author, Sandi Crain.
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No
As selfish as it may sound, and as much respect, admiration, and support as I have for our brave, and courageous soldiers, I could not support my childs decision to go to war.
Call me an awful person but, he is the only Son I have, and I could not bear the thought of losing him in such a conspiracy that was brought on by our wonderful former President Bush.
This war has been senseless. There were no weapons of mass destruction, as he said there were. The only good they did was wipe out Hussien, which was a true accomplishment. But on the other hand, I thought this whole war was suppose to be about tracking down Osama Bin Laden, wasn't he the one that we should really have focused on first.
I mean, over 3,000 of our innocent people died in the worst terrorist attack on our own soil, that the United States has ever seen, and will never forget. This attack was a haineous, and ungodly crime that is unexcusable act of hate, that should have never been thought of by any human being on the face of this earth. This was an evil act, that only the most horrific minded person could ever dream up, and this person (Bin Laden) needs to be caught, and brought to justice, in anyway the United States sees fit.
I think of all of the families that have lost their children, their Mothers, Fathers, Brothers, and Sisters in this senseless war, and it makes my heart cringe. There has been thousands of young men and woman that have fought for our country, and gave their lives for this senseless fight in Iraq. All of them being American citizens. Most of them very young in their teens, and twenties, just starting out their lives, and not even getting to experience life before it got cut short.
If this war had been for a real cause, like the one it was originally suppose to be in Afghanistan, it might have been worth it, but just to kill all of our soldiers for a mistake by a President. Has it really been worth all of this? In my heart, I really don't think so. It is a very sad situation, and breaks my heart everyday to think of all of the lives that could have been saved, if it wasn't for the "weapons of mass destruction" idea of President Bush.
This is why I don't support my Son going to war, why should we have more deaths of our children, for a cause that never made sense in the first place.
Learn more about this author, Kathleen Sihock.
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