Dear Sir,
After reading Mr Scwab’s Sr. letter urging your readers to reassess their “soft” views on the current situation in Iraq by taking a closer look at details of prior US military engagements, I felt compelled to respond. While the facts that Mr. Schwab speaks of are technically correct, one must understand that there are some glaring differences between the conflicts he mentions, and our country’s current military foray. Let’s take a look at them chronologically…
The US fought the Revolutionary war on much different terms than we fight today. The colonies were understandably in an economic shambles. These patriots were primarily not trained soldiers, but rather citizen soldiers who left their farms to fight for the cause. We didn’t have a formal government, or the ability to tax the populace to raise the needed funds to supply the troops adequately. Instead, soldiers fought with what they themselves could provide.