Chase Manwaring Humanities 1100 Nov.

13, 2013

War Journal
1. 4 readings a. Tyrtaeus of Sparta (c. Mid-7th Century B.C.E.) I Would Not Say Anything For A Man. I believe the author of this poem is trying to pose the question; are you man enough to stand in front of everything world sees you as or are you going to stand behind everything the world sees you as, a slave to their ideology? I am not aware of myself every asking this question directly however I believe in the subconscious because of the way I was raised this idea of standing in front of who I am is common place for me. I believe this poem helps me to take it to the next level of understanding. That its not just enough to have the subconscious thought but to actively seek to employ this principal. b. Francis Scott Key (1779-1843) Defence Of Fort McHenry. When I read these words and think of the music that was composed for it the best question that comes to my mind is; What enemy is there that can destroy a united country built upon the morals of good men striving to become great men to allow all men to be free? I dont believe I have ever asked myself this question but in so doing I reflect upon what kind of men strived to destroy this kind of ideal. This then leads me to ask, is power over man so addictive its worth the destruction of other mens lives? Man is sick and disturbing if such a person can answer this question with a yes. c. Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) The Charge Of The Light Brigade. Are you willing to succumb to fear or allow that fear to push you forward? And a follow up question to this I would like to add is, Are you willing to stand up to the blockades of life with courage and honour to conquer and triumph or fade away a loner unrecognized? I would say yes I have asked this question before. I have had many life challenges especially in my youth in which had I not the courage to have fear and beat it, I would still be a troubled soul that blamed the world. d. Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) Dulce ET Decorum EST. This poem was especially hard for me to read, I remember even leaving class when we talked about it. When I hear or see the words of this poem the question I find myself asking is, did you love him enough before he was gone or did the monotony of routine get in the way? There are a few occasions in which I found myself asking this question and still to this day I can find myself pondering this question in my mind. The worst part of this question

comes when you realize there is no answer unless you can say with and ASTOUNDING YES! Yet the precious gift of life is so fragile that it begs a question, are you living a life in which at any given moment you are capable of such a response? Gives people a moment to digest just how happy a life they live, and how compassionate towards others they act. 2. Im going to use my real-life experiences in a fictional plot to respond to this serious of questions. The scenario: Russia and china are relocating ICBM (InterContinental Ballistic Missile) launchers to more strategic locations for an offensive strike. A. My first course of action would be of course contact with Russia and China, I want to ensure open communication as much as possible to remind them we arent just a target but a living breathing people. I want to humanize in their minds the United States of America. B. An increase in security defense systems, (DEFCON) level to be heightened. All military forces on alert. Since this is a small step im going to combined it with meeting with my entire cabinet ( all the joint-chiefs). We will devise 3 actionable plans i. If they launch how do we defend ourselves against their missiles? If those missiles make it to the United States and there are casualties how do we take care of the injured? To what end are we willing to retaliate ii. What offensive strikes can we make either with our own missiles or strike forces (soldiers on the ground) that will disable the enemys ability to launch the strike? What repercussions can we expect from such an attack? iii. How do we involve NATO? What are our allies willing to do to help protect our nation? C. As far as the media is concerned all details must be kept classified unless the following scenarios take place i. All efforts to stop a missile in progress of flight fail ii. We successfully thwart the possibility of attack iii. The enemy stands down from their threats iv. Nato intervenes and the issue is resolved v. An outside force launches a war against the enemies or ourselves D. Justification of neutralizing perpetrators i. Kill or be killed ii. Saving thousands at the expense of a few iii. Defense of Democracy iv. The best of all answers ( the public just doesnt know anyone was killed) (black-ops, or surgical missile/bomb strikes)

3.

4. a.

b.

E. All-out war would be a last resort! I would hate to have subjugate anyone into the kind of situation in which the taking of lives becomes a transitory part of any humans existence. I believe the entire truth of all situations would be very good especially in relation to war journalists. However I do not believe this is a realistic expectation, which is why I side with the quotes that truth is the first casualty of war. The problem isnt war journalist capturing the truth of war, the problem comes in that pictures and even video are unable to exact for every single aspect of the documented moment in time. So no matter how raw the footage or material is there is a bias against what isnt known if you arent the soldier, victim, refugee etc. best example I can think of is the video and picture of the officer that shoots the enemy execution style. Because nothing is known of the victims crimes or the courage of the officer performing the act or anything else, a very biased opinion forms of what event is actually being portrayed due to lack of the entire truth. I do not believe it is possible to portray the entire truth of war without actually being the person experiencing it. Without that capability I do believe that war reporting or truth of war is the first casualty of war 2 outside sources, I chose 1 article and 1 song http://news.yahoo.com/us-urges-eastern-europe-overcome-old-hatreds040337067.html I chose this article because I believe that in the later end of the 20 th century and now in the 21st century our biggest excuse for using our military force or influence has been for the better good of mankind through DEMOCRACY in all honesty I hate this with a passion. Our form of government we believe to follow doesnt make it the only and best way to do things especially since most of the countries we try to impose this upon have cultures that are so far different from democracy it wouldnt make sense for the country as a whole to even be able to accept it. I agree with this article in the aspect that I do believe that eastern European countries need to put aside their grudges towards each other and towards everyone else as well. I disagree with how they use manipulation and how they patronize them. The way they try to use the good of children against them etc. is very disrespectful to me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM8bTdBs-cw this song is One by Metallica. To be honest I have never seen the official music video before or even read the lyrics both of which have drastically changed my opinion of the song. I choose this song because I loved the guitar solos in this song and I knew it was a bout a soldier that returned from war, but I didnt know anything beyond that. I dont suffer from severe injuries either mentally or physically from my time in the military but I have many friends that have and I must say insight of seeing them that I agree with the sentiment expressed. War is a downright awful misery that itself doesnt bring happiness but the aftermath of civilization can. Those that have the awful privilege of being a war hero are also

haunted by those same experiences. I felt and immediate desire to connect with those that this song talks about that they might find hope. I believe it has re-alerted me to the very real depression my colleagues suffer through and my responsibility to be there for them.