Joel Garb: We need antidotes to militarism

Joel Garb  —  11/12/2008 5:23 am

Dear Editor:

We celebrated Veterans Day yesterday. With its parades and the ubiquitous presence of Old Glory, it seems not just to honor our sacrifices, but to celebrate and even glorify certain pernicious sentiments of patriotism, as well as war itself. Even the more appropriate displays of solemnity are often accompanied by militaristic rituals -- volleys of rifle salutes and taps, for example.

We must acknowledge that, while there may be necessary or just reasons for going to war, there are no good wars. War always unleashes uncontrolled destruction. And these horrors are not reflected in Veterans Day parades and flag waving.

As a partial antidote to the usual Veterans Day fare, Madison's chapter of Veterans for Peace has erected the Memorial Mile on Speedway Road. This exhibit of nearly 5,000 small tombstones represents our reported combat losses in the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Consider the larger context that the Memorial Mile represents: the tens of thousands of wounded and the enduring psychic scars for those who have "survived," the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi and Afghan civilians who have died as a result of these wars, and the 4.5 million displaced citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan, just for starters.

We must find antidotes for our militarism and the ease with which we perpetrate war. Our goal as a nation should not be victory, or domination of other nations or governments, but peace. And war is the worst means to peace. We must continue to strive toward a time when the message of Veterans Day is peace itself.

Joel Garb

Black Earth

Joel Garb  —  11/12/2008 5:23 am