Evil, and Uncorrectable

One argument made for a Republican vote in this election—and the support it will bring to President Bush—is that Bush has the right foreign policy aims in mind; he errs only in their pursuit. If we would just give him the support he needs, he will correct his errors—thus speak his apologists.

Well, some 3,000 Americans have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and over 10,000 have been maimed. Until those apologists raise the dead and restore lost limbs, the "errors" remain uncorrectable.

Bush has had nearly four years to watch this horrendous destruction of our youth—and to understand its purpose, and its cause. But the more body bags and stretchers come home, and the more our position deteriorates, the more he demands we "stay the course." What course? The good of the Iraqis, which trumps all other considerations.

This is not error. This is the intentional, ongoing, committed sacrifice of our young people to foreign strangers. This is evil.

Please spare me the rejoinder that Iraq is a "small war" next to World War II, and that we lost 12,500 dead and over 50,00 wounded at Okinawa alone. The war is not small to that 25 year old soldier who wanted to protect his country, but ended up losing his legs for the Iraqis. It is the purpose of the war—sacrifice on behalf of others—that makes it evil, not the body count.

The withdrawal of support for the Iraq war by the American people is a healthy response to this sacrificial carnage. It is their recognition, even though implicit, that that the Iraqis have no claim on the lives of our young people. Most Americans, who are value-seekers rather than value-destroyers, do not like sacrifice. The vast majority of Americans support their troops, want them to win, and to come home safe. But these Americans do not confuse their brave young soldiers with the commander in chief who is sacrificing them on an altar built by others.

One blogger has had the courage to say this—Diana Hsieh.

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Related:

• In Memory of John David Lewis (1955–2012)
• John David Lewis: A Man Who Lived
• William Tecumseh Sherman and the Moral Impetus for Victory
• “No Substitute for Victory” The Defeat of Islamic Totalitarianism

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About John David Lewis

John David Lewis was a contributing editor to TOS from the journal’s second issue, in 2006, until his death, on January 3, 2012. He was a visiting associate professor in the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics Program at Duke University. He held a PhD in classics from the University of Cambridge and taught at the University of London. He had also been a senior research scholar in history and classics at the Social Philosophy and Policy Center, Bowling Green State University, and a fellow of the Foundation for Objectivist Scholarship. He published in journals such as Journal of Business Ethics, Social Philosophy and Policy, Polis, Dike, and Bryn Mawr Classical Review, and lectured on classics, military history, and contemporary political issues at numerous universities and for private groups. His research interests were in ancient Greek and Roman thought, military history, and their connections to the modern day. His books are Solon the Thinker: Political Thought in Archaic Athens (Duckworth, 2006), Early Greek Lawgivers (Bristol Classical Press, August, 2007), and Nothing Less than Victory: Decisive Wars and the Lessons of History (Princeton,2010). Dr. Lewis also wrote for Capitalism Magazine. His website is www.JohnDavidLewis.com.

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