By Joseph J. Honick
A lesson we are learning almost every day is that more millions seem to know who is winning on "Dancing With The Stars" and on "American Idol" than where things stand with the wars in which we are foolishly invested and the budgets we will have to support.
In the nonstop, confusing and perhaps insulting bipartisan colloquies over our national debt, budget and related domestic problems, there would seem to be little to no attention to the fact we have expanded our two longest lasting wars ever into what may be three or four more.
And the budgets for these conflicts are not part of any debate as if they are "off the table" for any discussion despite the costs of trillions of dollars and the emotional traumas of multi-deployed men and women, casualties, broken families and record military suicides.
Then the news emerges that someone at NATO has requested more planes to do strikes against countries against whom we have not declared war and in defense of some bunch of rebels who would otherwise be called "insurgents" in other places. And, of course, we have no idea who is paying for all these strikes against sovereign governments.
Comes now the revelation that those alleged "rebels" actually have been getting training right here in the good old United States, according to an amazing April 15 article by the New York Times’ Ron Nixon.
They have learned here how to develop social contact groups and all the rest in something called the International Republican Institute and the Democratic National Institute.
Given such underhanded actions with Arab nations, why would those with whom we even have good relations trust us not to do the same to them?
Put another way, would not these realities actually put folks like the Saudis and others in a position to sympathize with Qaddafi and his ilk? And what would be the ultimate implications for Israel, given the known anti-Semitism and anti-Israel feelings even among the rebels?
But here we are, selectively either helping to undermine one country as with Egypt, bombing strafing another as in Libya while also getting in the sticky stuff with Pakistan that has told our CIA folks to take a fast hike.
Somewhere in all of this totally confusing inanity there must be a semblance of logic as all the while we witness bipartisan budget battles during which there is no mention of these wars, the prices in money and lives being paid or the massive profits being doled out to defense contractors whose budgets appear to be immune to any assault by folks who want to cut those other entitlements.
The question posed in respect to these weird events that should challenge Americans ... if we can divert their attention from dancing and talent show contests and by what passes for national leadership this week … is simply: "Why?!"
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Joseph J. Honick is an international consultant
to business and government and writes for many publications,
including huntingtonnews.net. Honick can be reached
at [email protected]. |