VHeadline.com commentarist Mary MacElveen writes: In reading US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's remarks when he stated we can be at war for the next 20 years in order to fight the war on terrorism, which I am of the opinion cannot be won: My message to Bush and company is that you cannot have our sons' and daughters'.  I say daughters', because I put nothing past the (G)rand (O)ppresive (P)arty.

Also, while there is no talk of a draft right now, that is for one specific reason ... this is an election year here in the United States.  No, not a presidential election (although, how I wish it were!) but an all important mid-term election.

So, will the GOP bring this issue up if they want to maintain their strangle hold on both houses and keep control over this country?  Of course not.

• First of all, Bush does not see our US soldiers as freedom fighters nor as heroes.  How he (Bush) sees them is collateral damage ... their lives mean nothing to Bush, especially when he has never attended one single military funeral. 

With the military force already over-extended around the world and not just in Iraq and Afghanistan, I do fear that the draft will come back.  While a part of me wishes that it does so that the elitist's sons and daughters are also called up to suffer the horrors of war, these elitists' will truly find a way to keep them out of harms way.  So, who will be left?  The sons' and daughters' of blue-collar workers and others who have no power within this (USA) country.

While many may look to send their sons' and daughters' to Canada as was done to evade the draft during the Viet Nam War, let me remind you that a Bush-friendly Prime Minister was just sworn in and his name is, Stephen Harper ... I really do not think he will give safe haven to those seeking to avoid this draft.

The chicken-hawks who start these wars, do not really believe in a sense of duty to country when they themselves have never served ... unlike President Chavez, who served in the military in Venezuela.

These chicken-hawks are cowards...

Sure they can start a war, but they will send others to fight it ... they will stand right in front of our troops using them as props and grand stand, but they will never place their own in our soldier's boots.

They will not tolerate their own coming home in caskets, without limbs, plagued with illnesses due to depleted uranium or where in some cases, have committed suicide by cop as was the case of Specialist Doug Barber took his own life because he was suffering from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).  On January 17, he reached the end of his rope, having to fight for any of the health benefits he so rightly deserved.

Why is this okay with the American people?

I do not have an answer for that one...

As reported in: A Soldier for Truth Has Fallen ... “For some reason Doug decided he could no longer bear the ongoing pain, agony and inner torment.” I was horrified as I read: “The Lee County, Alabama sheriff’s department was on the scene trying to talk Doug out of it for over 30 minutes. The investigating officer has stated that every effort was made to stop the situation and save Doug’s life. Doug apparently turned his back to the officers, fired one shot, and ended his life.”

Is this what awaits our sons and daughters as they fight these wars for twenty years?

You may say to yourself: Oh the draft will never come back, but according to Former Weapons Inspector Warns of US-Iran War this is what Scott Ritter had to say: “the Bush administration is fixing intelligence around policy on Iran," and that it could lead to a new US war in the Middle East. He noted that the administration used a similar approach in its current war in Iraq ... "There is nothing to prevent the president from going to war in Iran. He has no respect for checks and balances. We're heading toward Tehran unless we get representatives in Congress who respect the constitution of the United States."

Respect the Constitution?

What a novel idea seeing that it has been treated like a "god damn piece of paper" by Bush and his fellow cronies.

If there is anyone to believe in this country, it is Scott Ritter who is an expert in these affairs.  Do not believe what Bush tells you or what congress tells you, but believe what Scott Ritter tells you.  After all, he was correct with regards to Iraq, and this government dismissed his assertions that Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction.

Who proved to be correct?

Those elected officials in the (US) congress should have gone to him as the go to guy, instead of believing Bush's bogus intelligence.  Yes, folks, Bush lied and soldiers died.  Scott Ritter, the former arms inspector, was on the ground in Iraq searching for these weapons and found none.

Was Bush or our congress members?  No they were not.

With tensions rising between Venezuela and the United States where just recently the Venezuelan government expelled US naval captain John Correa on charges of espionage (for trying to get Venezuelan officers to hand over state secrets), the United States government retaliated by declaring a senior Venezuelan embassy’s Chief of Staff, Jenny Figueredo Frias persona non grata and gave her 72 hours to leave the United States.

With President Hugo Chavez Frias looking to purchase more military weapons from Russia and threatening to stop supplying Americans with his country’s oil, those are as well dangerous signs of a possible invasion of Venezuela.

• But, I do not fault President Chavez ... I fault the sheer stupidity of this GOP-led government.

Any nation has the right to protect their country from any invading force and to stop shipments of their oil to a hostile nation ... or as many have come to call the United States ... a rogue nation.

So, while we are engaged in Iraq and Afghanistan, we may also be at some point engaged in war fare with such nations as Iran and yes Venezuela.

Which all begs the question: How will we fight on so many battle fields when we do not have the necessary numbers in order to do so? 

Should the GOP retain both houses in this year’s mid-term election, will it embolden them even more to bring back the draft?  I would dare to say yes.  In order to fight these many wars for as long as Rumsfeld wants to, we will have no other recourse but to reinstate the draft.  A volunteer force will not meet the needs of this war mongering government.  As it stands, recruitment is down and what does that tell you?  It tells me that really no one believes in this war and if they did, they would suit up to fight it.

In conclusion ... many of us are already bone tired of this war in Iraq as well as Afghanistan.  Many of us are already bone tired of this war on terrorism especially when we do not see any end in sight.  So, I want to leave you with this thought of the ultimate blow back effect.

Could some Americans and their allies begin to sympathize with those that this (USA) government have labeled the enemy?

Now ask yourself what this effect will have? I would say total world chaos.

• Should this happen, any perceived enemy will have won.

The day we started the "Shock and Awe" campaign was truly the day of infamy and it just may last for another 20 years.

Mary MacElveen
mary@vheadline.com

http://www.vheadline.com/MacElveen