Moral logic of common sacrifice argues against the moral illogic of the Iraq war

Mark Shields makes a point I don't think he intended in this article on war and national sacrifice. He points out that as a nation we've not spread the price of the Iraq war evenly...no secret, with the all volunteer force it's mainly the "have-nots" that enlist while the "haves" are content to mouth support for their rich buddy Bush and his foolish Iraq invasion. All for free, as few of the upper crust have kids in harm's way (count how many members of Congress have sons or daughters serving in the military, or how many members of the Executive Branch).

Here's where Shields sticks his foot in it, however:

The people who make the fateful decision for the nation to go to war are, themselves, subject to no personal consequences. Their children and the children of their friends are not at risk. Without apparent embarrassment, they champion a policy of military escalation with no personal participation.

As of this writing, 1,827 Americans have been killed in Iraq -- 1,686 of those deaths have occurred since President George W. Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln under a banner proclaiming, "Mission Accomplished."
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Moral logic tells us that when the nation legally goes to war, it is everybody's war and it must be everybody's risk. But the elite of the country seeks to make war little more than a spectator sport.

A few observations about that excerpt and the article in general:

1. He's right, numerically/statistically speaking...the "elite" of the nation by and large do not have their kids in harm's way. That burden is carried by the lower classes.
2. It's interesting to note that over 92% of the war casualties have occurred since Bush declared major combat operations (the "war", in essence) over. He sure has a screwed up definition of "major combat operations", but that's to be expected from a non-military serving President (well, non-serving except for champagne).
3. When the nation LEGALLY goes to war, it's a national burden. However, in my opinion (and that of a growing segment of America) this wasn't a legal (or at least justifiable) war. It was based on falsehoods, or at best gross mistakes and misinterpretations. Read the Downing Street Memo.

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News and facts on the Downing Street Memo.

BBA

Downing Street Memo