I was born 70 years ago this spring in the Bronx in New York City. In the years I’ve lived, more than 500,000 Americans have died and almost 1 million have been wounded in at least 15 U.S. military conflicts. Some wars were long and cost a great deal in lives and treasure, such as World War II and the Vietnam War; others were short and cheap, such as the invasion of Grenada in 1983.
Americans are being killed and wounded today in Afghanistan in a war that has lasted 12 years, the longest in U.S. history. And now some in Congress and elsewhere are calling for U.S. military action in Syria and Iran. One thing you can count on: Every U.S. military intervention takes surprising turns and is beset by unexpected problems. Victory looks a lot easier in the planning stages than it does once the bullets and bombs are flying.
Let’s Not Blunder Into Another War
By Barry Blechman
In
I was born 70 years ago this spring in the Bronx in New York City. In the years I’ve lived, more than 500,000 Americans have died and almost 1 million have been wounded in at least 15 U.S. military conflicts. Some wars were long and cost a great deal in lives and treasure, such as World War II and the Vietnam War; others were short and cheap, such as the invasion of Grenada in 1983.
Americans are being killed and wounded today in Afghanistan in a war that has lasted 12 years, the longest in U.S. history. And now some in Congress and elsewhere are calling for U.S. military action in Syria and Iran. One thing you can count on: Every U.S. military intervention takes surprising turns and is beset by unexpected problems. Victory looks a lot easier in the planning stages than it does once the bullets and bombs are flying.
To read the full op-ed, click here.
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This op-ed first appeared at CNN.com on May 23, 2013.
Photo courtesy U.S. Department of Defense