Are you better off than you were four hours ago?
The marathoner’s answer is always ‘no’. You’ve done to your body what the US Army Field Manual on Interrogation prohibits inflicting on high-value al-Qaeda targets. Dislodged toenails. Chafed crotch and nipples. Blood blisters like creepy Halloween decorations on your toes. And acute muscle pain that gives you the gait of an extra on The Walking Dead.
Yesterday I ran 26.45 miles in 3:09:18 at the 37th Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC, arriving 308th out of 23,515 finishers. Marines in combat uniforms handed out water and Gatorade along the course. Hurricane Sandy generously distributed the headwind. Unofficial course entertainment included two Gangnam-style dance routines.
The course was surprisingly scenic, lightly hilly and well-managed. The finish line was staffed with a large squadron of Marine lieutenants who saluted you before placing the finisher’s medal around your neck. And a mighty fine looking medal at that.
At one point along the course you run by a dense series of posters of Marines recently killed in combat. They are officers and enlisted men. They are white, black, Hispanic and Asian. Some photos were taken in dusty combat zones. One was taken in a living room, with the happy Marine holding his toddler son. I’m not very often susceptible to emotion, but I felt tears welling up. And I wondered was it worth it. Was it worth it to send thousands of Americans to die in unwinnable wars? Did those sacrificed lives in Iraq and Afghanistan make your and my families’ lives safer or more free? Or is the blood spilled in Afghanistan like water spilled in the Sahara? Who exactly are we fighting this for?
And are we better off?
First, congrats to the Sweaty Federalist on finishing the Marine Corps Marathon. Done that one before and it is a great race. Time was pretty good too considering what it sounds like the conditions were.
To answer your question, the answer is yes. It is worth it. I know that sounds a bit crass to say that loss of life is ever worth it. One can certainly make the argument that it is never worth it. On the other hand, I fall in the other camp. The United States must finish what it started. Remember, we did not pick this fight. We have an obligation to finish it though. Just because we decide we don’t want it anymore doesn’t mean the bad guys will too (See Exhibit A – Libya). This is the fundamental flaw in the Obama Administration’s approach.
War should always be the last answer, but sometimes it ends up being the only one that works. We have to make clear that the United States will not be bullied or intimidated. Sometimes you have to do it militarily to avoid the “paper tiger” label. We should project both military strength and the willingness to use it when we must. This is what ultimately discourages people from picking a fight with us and preserves the peace. Don’t get sucked into the mind set of those on the left that this is a war of aggression. It isn’t. We simply chose to fight the war they started on their turf. That is both smart and fair.