Moral Hazard

November 11, 2010.

It’s Veteran’s Day, and it’s a day for reflection.

The graphic at the top is the Purple Heart. It is an American military decoration presented to military or civilian citizens of the United States who are wounded or killed in action.

It makes you wonder, “Why would anyone do that?”

That’s a deeply personal question, but it helps if our military personnel are conducting missions they believe in.

Americans can accept the idea of dying for a cause. The problem comes when our military no longer believes in the cause.

When a service member dies “for the American way of life,” what does that mean?

Consider these life examples:

--We see politicians rise to high office to enjoy the fruits of political favoritism.

--We allow non-citizens to vote for our leaders.

--We task our military to “put in their time” fighting until a withdrawal date.

Each of these actions takes a time-honored American principle (public service, citizenship, military service) and turns it into a prop for political purposes.

On this Veteran’s Day let’s not forget to honor the relevancy of the Purple Heart.

UPDATE 11/12/2010:
Chris Smith at The Other McCain is preparing for deployment to Afghanistan.  There is nothing that gets the attention of a Reservist like an official DoD notice with your name on it, stating: "Please ensure your affairs are in order."  Godspeed, Smitty.

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