By The Beacon Editorial Board
Soldiers are people too.
When we see them on the news dressed in a hundred pounds of camouflaged-combat gear, wearing dark glasses and determined faces, they don't look like mere mortals.
They look invincible.
It's easy to forget about the human lives tied up in the "endless war" we spend so much time denouncing. It's easy to forget that the bodies under the camouflage and badges are often one kevlar vest away from coming home in a wooden box with a flag folded on top.
It's easy to forget that muscles don't trump bullets or landmines or suicide bombers. It's easy to forget that soldiers are people too, but they are, and as students at a university with two very active ROTC programs, it would behoove us to remember that.
Although men and women in the service are often branded with names like "jarhead," "joe" and "grunt," more accurate terms for them would be "parent," "sibling," "friend" and "student."
At the University of Portland, we mainly have the friends and the students. Think about your friends. Now think about which of your friends are in uniform every Tuesday or Thursday.
When you read in the newspaper about two more American casualties over the weekend, those aren't just numbers. Those are people who are just like your friends - your friends who, more than likely, will wind up in a hostile combat zone.
The U.S. Armed Forces (and the U.S. government in general) has a reputation of using understated jargon to make horrific events seem less horrible. Civilians killed accidentally are 'collateral damage.' Nineteen brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, mothers and fathers killed in battle become '19 casualties' on the 6 o'clock news.
Don't be fooled by the numbers. These are real people.
Regardless of what your political beliefs are, regardless of what you think of the commander in chief, regardless of how you feel about the war on terrorism - our soldiers have volunteered their lives to protect ours. The least we can do is protect them by voting to pass legislation that gives them the resources they need to be safe.
Obviously, our government has flaws. But we all have a vested interest in its function. On both the civilian and military sides of life it is important to treat our foreign affairs and political actions with the utmost gravity.
The soldiers risking their lives because of those decisions have so much riding on our foreign policy that to treat your vote or tax dollar lightly is to do them - and your country - a disservice.
Soldiers don't pick the wars that they fight. They follow the orders of theircommander in chief, who is often a civilian.
If every politician had a son or daughter in the armed forces, they might not be so keen to sign the declarations of war.
As the next generation of up-and-coming college educated young people, we will be the next leaders of this country. Working and learning alongside fellow students who have taken an oath to defend this country, we have a special opportunity to better understand our armed forces on a more personal level.
Leadership that is more conscious of the real people behind the serial numbers and dog tags might be more judicious in starting foreign wars.
