True troop support
My son is about to be drafted. It's no longer called that. Now it's called "involuntary reactivation." And it comes with orders for 25 days of refresher training and 18 months in Iraq. He's already served four-and-a-half years of active duty with three combat tours in Afghanistan. (Remember Afghanistan, the country that still needs resources and support?)
I am told that by speaking, by asking questions, I am not supporting our troops. Instead I guess I should circulate e-mails that sentimentalize this conflict, or buy a bumper sticker for which a few cents of the price is actually used for anything that could be remotely associated with "our troops." I have, instead, a few other ideas for supporting our troops:
*Take the time to urge your federal representatives to reinstitute the draft. This is a country that symbolizes justice for all and doesn't this also imply responsibility for all? If you supported this war, then support it with a real draft and not one that goes through the back door and requires the same men and women to serve again and again. The lack of a draft was just one more political manipulation designed to move this conflict forward.
*Urge these same representatives to increase the pay of those who are serving so that the military can compete with and attract those who would like to make a career of the armed forces. Why not attract the best? Police officers and firefighters also serve, but they also receive pay and benefits sufficient (they deserve more) to attract good candidates.
*When these men and women return and they come to you for a job, hire them. One young man from Indiana told me that a prospective employer thanked him for serving his country but then added that that didn't entitle him to a job. If you can't hire them, at least point them in the right direction. Tell them what they need to do to get hired and how to do it. They've risked so much; give them at least that extra minute.
Cynthia Mosca
Oak Park
