War and its discontents

I’ve avoided saying much about this up to now, because I don’t want to prejudge what happened. But as with the Haditha probe, there is far too much detail in all of this to ignore it. Obviously, there is no excuse for such a venal and depraved act, but given the number of soldiers now allegedly involved, it is time for the military to take a hard look at itself and ask what role it plays institutionally in these kinds of abuses. War is an ugly, horrid thing that distorts minds and makes men believe they have license to do things they otherwise would not do.

I don’t want to tar all soldiers with this, but that is one of the lessons history teaches us — read Chris Hedges’ important book on war — War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning — to get a better sense of what I’m saying.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press

Author: hankkalet

Hank Kalet is a poet and freelance journalist. He is the economic needs reporter for NJ Spotlight, teaches journalism at Rutgers University and writing at Middlesex County College and Brookdale Community College. He writes a semi-monthly column for the Progressive Populist. He is a lifelong fan of the New York Mets and New York Knicks, drinks too much coffee and attends as many Bruce Springsteen concerts as his meager finances will allow. He lives in South Brunswick with his wife Annie. View all posts by hankkalet