by Duane Gundrum

Created on: August 18, 2007

Part of the problem of "supporting the troops" is that it becomes a political issue when it never should be. It becomes partisan when it never should be. It becomes a defensive mechanism when it never should be. But it has become just that.

The whole idea of "supporting the troops" has morphed itself over the last few years into a rally cry and a criticism to be used if someone disagrees with political policy. We have weak civilian leadership in this country that makes half-hearted gestures towards the military in hopes of convincing the masses of America that they are "supporting" troops when in reality they are pandering for troop and civilian political support.

Two clarifications. First, I am talking about both political parties, not just one administration. And second, I am a proud veteran who "supports" the troops by caring about the individuals serving our country more than I care about the stigma of appearing to be pro or con military.

During the last few elections, all sorts of people attacked the left by claiming the left was not "supporting" the troops. Meanwhile, those same people rarely served in the military themselves, and in quite a few cases did everything possible to discourage their own families from doing the same. But as long as they sounded hawkish, that has been considered "supporting the troops."

But they are not the only ones to blame. The other side, in its desire to appear patriotic, has made all sorts of really stupid gestures that have nothing to do with supporting actual troops but to appear equally hawkish. It is as if we have two groups of people acting like the Roman Senate during a war that called for everyone to serve but the only ones left in Rome were the ones who were too "dedicated" to the war to actually serve.

For the most part, I believe most Americans "do" support the troops. The majority of Americans is the demographic from where the troops hail. The rich, the aristocrats, the powerful, do not seem to be the ones sending their children off to fight for "freedom" around the world. They are calling on America to do their serving for them and then complaining when others do not consider their pronouncements "supportive" of the troops.

A final caveat: Supporting the troops does not mean being hawkish or being desirous of bringing home the troops. It means giving the military what it needs to do whatever the military needs, and giving those who have served the respect due to dedicated citizens who have gone beyond the call of duty when they do come home. This means going out of one's way to make sure troops have proper armor rather than focus on which freezer to hide campaign contributions and to make sure that a disabled veteran who was ambushed by our enemies does not have to struggle on welfare and social security the rest of his life while elected officials argue over how much of raise Congress deserves this year while earmarking special funds to build bridges in their district over waterways that no one travels.

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