Memorial Day has passed. The parades are over as American’s all over the country celebrated our war hero’s. Where has all this war gotten us. In WW II we liberated Europe from Hitler at the cost of over 410,000 U.S. troops. In Korea we kept the communists from taking over South Korea where 34,000 American soldiers were killed. I guess that’s two wins for the U.S. Then there was Vietnam. On the Vietnam Memorial Wall there are 58,272 names listed. There, once Saigon fell, the North became the South virtually overnight. A big loss for the U.S. Big loss. Now were in the midst of two wars in the Middle East (they say the Iraq war is over.) We’ve been there for ten years now and the casualty count so far is at 6,400. The president has an exit strategy that would bring the troops home by the end of 2013. What’s wrong with bringing them home now? What can possibly be gained from remaining there even one more day? The minute we leave Afghanistan, the country will revert back to where it started with the Taliban gaining control once again. The Afghan’s are not ready to govern and protect themselves now, and they won’t be able to by the end of 2013. How about the cost to taxpayers. According to the Department of Defense, the two wars have cost American’s in excess of $1.4 trillion dollars since the Iraq war began in 2001. A study by Brown University put that number at $4.5 trillion. We are in the midst of the campaign season which will bring us the next President of the United States. The wars haven’t even been an issue. I couldn’t even tell you what Romney’s stance on the war is. With all the talk about jobs and the economy, the Afghan war is kind of swept under the rug. It certainly would be a nice boost to the economy not to have to spend all those dollars overseas; not to mention the additional loss of American life. Say what you want politicians, the war’s in Iraq and Afghanistan are, and always have been no win situations. We started these conflicts to get rid of Saddam, and to find Bin Ladin. Mission accomplished. Time to come home now, not in 2013. The veteran vote is very important to the candidates; and I believe that the majority of them would fully support the withdrawal of troops now. Let’s make this an issue. It is time to bring this war to an end, and bring our troops home. Now.
And that is “The Daily Take”