by Sol Rayos

Created on: November 02, 2008

It is amazing to me how quick baby boomers are to discount the devastating cost of the war in Iraq on today's youth. You would think that a generation who was thrown into an unwanted and failed war would recognize the toll that this war is taking on their nephews, nieces, sons, and daughters. This is not always the case though as many baby boomers ready response to any greif over the current war is, "Yeah, but in my day there was a draft and kids I went to school with got shipped out, locked up, or skipped town."

While this is an important historical difference between the two wars it can not be readily accepted as being a greater hardship on a generation than that placed on the youth of today. That is because many of today's soldiers who see combat in Iraq or Afghanistan we're sold a bill of bad goods and their love of country was exploited. With the ethic and rhetoric of a used car salesman many enraged, upset, confused high school and college graduates were drafted only to become disenfranchized by the hard reality they were met with. Good intentioned, intelligent people who hoped to make a difference for their country were pushed along by those of questionable integrity, intent, and intellect into a hopeless situation and the dust has just begun to settle.

There remain those who are diehards and strictly maintain their allegiance to this faulty leadership and they perhaps are the lucky ones for they are not burdened by the doubt which looms over the rest of us. Civilians and soldiers alike have paid a dear cost and for some reason baby boomers downplay this in light of mitigating circumstances of past experience. From the soldiers I have spoken with their is no doubt that they made a difference, nor is there any doubt that we as a nation, as a society will overcome. Their doubts are as to whether or not the Bush Administration had their interest at heart when decisions were made which would determine their future and the future of their brothers at arms. Their doubts are as to whether or not other routes could have been taken, could some of the bloodshed have been adverted. Granted hindsight is twenty-twenty but that is of little consolation when our foresight was blindness. From the perspective of a civilian the cost has been great too. Due to improvements in combat medicine and technology many former classmates and childhood friends have returned, and to what? Mismanaged health care facilities, substance abuse, and a disinterested self-absorbed public. This should sound familiar since Vietnam vets returned to similar conditions and this is disheartining as well because this means that we have again failed to learn from the past.

The cost of war are shared. While soldiers bear the direct cost civilians bear a far greater share than they are assumed to by most and belittling the cost that one person bears is insensitive.

Learn more about this author, Sol Rayos.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.