While reading Zack Miller's recent column about Iran's nuclear program, I began thinking about all the arguments I could make against his assertion, as I have previously argued in this paper that the Iranian threat is overstated.
However, what really struck me about his column was the tone in his statement, "The doves and the disconnected realists argue that Iran can be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon" ("Addressing a Nuclear Iran," Feb. 22). It's easy to throw out terms like "dove" or "hawk" when it's not your life on the line, and advocating for the use of military force is much easier when it's not your boots on the ground.
I can't say if it was Miller's intention to marginalize those who disagree with striking Iran, but it's flippant to insinuate that those who disagree are merely dovish or disconnected. I disagree with attacking Iran for numerous reasons. The use of military force always involves costs. One of those costs is the cost borne by our men and women in uniform, and it's a cost worth contemplating.
Since invading Iraq, Iran has been rapidly increasing its integrated air defense systems. Striking Iran will undoubtedly result in the loss of U.S. aircraft and the loss of U.S. service members' lives. Furthermore, striking Iran will only set back Iranian nuclear enrichment. Stopping Iranian nuclear ambitions would require a full ground assault. An aerial bombardment will cost U.S. lives and risk escalation to an all-out war.
When I became a Marine, the United States was embroiled in the midst of two wars. We had been in Afghanistan for over three years, and the fiasco that was Iraq was just getting started. When I hit the Fleet Marine Forces, many of my corporals and sergeants had joined shortly following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. My drill instructor and many of these men and women are still in the military, and they can retire from active duty after 20 years of service. Twenty years. Think of that. The men and women who joined around 9/11 have spent over half of their career at war. Involving them in another conflict is something that should be taken very seriously.
One of my first encounters with the personal effects of war was during my first training school. A friend and fellow Marine who was an Operation Iraqi Freedom combat veteran had fallen asleep while watching a movie with a few of us Marines. Abruptly, he started screaming loudly, and we quickly woke him. For a moment, he confusedly looked around the room, covered in sweat. After regaining his bearings, he sheepishly admitted that since returning from Iraq he had been suffering from night terrors.
A few years later, I found myself at Camp Schwab in beautiful Okinawa, Japan. It was late in the evening, and some of my best friends were about to return home after being deployed to Fallujah with the Third Reconnaissance Battalion. My friends and I were young and single, so while the married Marines had family to return home to, my friends did not. I figured if my friends didn't have family to welcome them, at least I could be there to help hump their gear back to their rooms and hand them a beer. As the Marines stepped off the bus, I saw men holding their children for the first time. I also saw children crying in their fathers' arms because they had forgotten who their father was. There were also Marines who never stepped off that bus First Lieutenant Nathan Krissoff, one of the finest junior officers of the 3rd Marine Division, died in combat on Dec. 9, 2006.
Shortly before I left the Marine Corps, I was discussing the folly of striking Iran with my gunnery sergeant, who had served in Operation Desert Storm and in Operation Iraqi Freedom four times. He was preparing to leave for his sixth foray in Iraq and began recounting his days embedded with the Iraqi army as a trainer. He jokingly recalled times running up and down an alley they had dubbed "sniper alley," a name that seemed fitting as our squadron commander had been awarded a purple heart for wounds sustained running down the same alley. After his laughter subsided, he looked at me seriously and said, "Sergeant Brooks, I don't want my sons to join the Marine Corps. I don't want them to have to experience combat. Is that wrong?" I paused for a moment and then looked at him and replied, "No gunny. It makes you a father. You've seen enough combat for all of us."
War has its toll. We've seen 11 years of it. I am loath to mention my military career because I do not want anyone to think that I use my military service to make my views seem more valid. However, those that advocate for the use of military force should always include a sober reminder of what it entails.
Striking Iran includes many costs, all of which should be considered when making the decision to use U.S. military power. Reticence to use force goes beyond merely being dovish or hawkish. Those of us who swore an oath to defend this country are ready to go. We just hope those who call upon us take the time to reflect on the costs.
