Ask us to sacrifice

I remember the answer almost word for word.

On January 16, not long after he announced the troop surge, President Bush sat down for an interview with PBS News' Jim Lehrer. Lehrer asked Bush the one question I've been asking myself for four years running.

To paraphrase, Lehrer wondered: If this war is so essential to U.S. national security, why aren't you asking anyone besides the men and women in uniform and their families to sacrifice anything for it?

To me, Bush's response was one of the most disappointing things I've ever heard.

"Well, you know, I think a lot of people are in this fight. I mean they sacrifice peace of mind when they see the terrible images of violence on TV every night. I mean, we've got a fantastic economy here in the United States, but yet, when you think about the psychology of the country, it is somewhat down because of this war."

Bush, it seemed, was playing the part of the shrink. We as a nation don't feel good about ourselves anymore. We're depressed because of the war. We're rich but we're unhappy.

That's our sacrifice.

We don't need to join in the fight, we need a pick-me-up. What we need is somebody to prescribe us Zoloft.

His response demonstrates the profound disconnect between the rhetoric of politicians who tell us, "This is a war we can't afford to lose," and their actions which say, "Don't worry about the war. Keep shopping. We won't raise taxes. We won't draft your sons and daughters. There's nothing to see here."

And I know we have an all-volunteer army. And yes, they're the bravest in the world. Yes, they're the best trained and equipped in the world. Yes, they're more dedicated to this cause than you and I could ever understand.

I just have one question: When is the White House going to ask us to help them?

Consider these facts.

• The cost of war is approaching $500 billion. Yet the White House continues to borrow money from China rather than ask Americans to return one penny of their $1.3 trillion tax cut.
• Our military force is stretched thinner today than it has been in a generation. Yet the Department of Defense is extending army tours of duty to 15 months rather than ask the rest of us to lend a helping hand.
• The Department of Defense, according to USA Today, spends over $16,000 to recruit one soldier. Yet the notion of a civilian draft is dismissed out of hand.
• The number of U.S. troops in Iraq amounts to less than one-tenth of one percent of the total U.S. population, and most people don't know anyone who is currently deployed. And yet the administration tells us the force is big enough. They tell us not to get depressed by what we see on TV.

When I come across someone who has fought for our country I feel the greatest imaginable debt of gratitude. But when I hear Bush describe this fight as "the calling of our generation," frankly, I don't believe him.

If he really believes it, when is he planning to call on us?

TJ Greaney is a staff reporter for the Southeast Missourian.