As a fellow Vietnam War veteran I could not agree more with the portion of the Aug. 30 Opinion page article by Terry Garlock (“We are not earning our soldiers’ sacrifices”) relating to the tremendous sacrifices made by the members of all of our armed forces who have served, are serving, or will serve in Iraq.

They and their families, friends and loved ones constitute the one segment of our society which is truly sacrificing in the conduct of military operations in Iraq.

What is unfortunate is that while the aforementioned are paying dearly , with over 2,600 dead and 20,000 wounded, the vast majority of the citizens of this great nation are not sacrificing at all.

Many citizens of this country, while, in large part, paying lip service to the sacrifices made by those fighting in Iraq while going about their daily routines, have been convinced by our elected national representatives that this nation can conduct a war that will undoubtedly cost in the neighborhood of $500 billion or more before our involvement ends while receiving a reduction in their income taxes.

The argument of the politicians goes something like this: “It is your money and you can spend it more wisely than the government,” and, “Lower taxes make the economy grow.”

Asking the American public if they would prefer lower to higher taxes mirrors the reply of a 5-year-old when asked if he/she would prefer a candy bar of their choice ( tax cut) or a bowl of healthy vegetables ( personal economic sacrifice).

The truly sad part of this tax equation is that the upper 1 percent of income earners receive 40 percent of the tax benefit while the remaining 99 percent are barely able to keep up with the cost of yearly inflation.

We, as a nation, have somehow been conned into believing that all is serendipitous, do not worry, it all works out in the “long run.”

Wrong! As economists are wont to relate, “We are all dead in the long run.” Someone will pay for the staggering national debt related to the funding of the Iraq war (Remember one of the early “trust me” predictions prior to March 2003: This war will be paid for by Iraqi oil revenues?) and it will not be you or I; it will be our children and their children for generations to come.

As we slowly approach the November elections, please ask those running for office, regardless of party, just how they propose to lift the burden of debt from future generations.

The men and women of the armed forces have made, and will continue to make, their painful sacrifices to ensure the security of this nation. They are doing their part to provide a viable national security. What will the rest of us do to ensure the future economic security of this great nation for generations to come?

Finally, a word concerning the sacrifices of the men and women of our armed forces. Someday, somehow the military involvement of the United States in Iraq will come to an end.

At that point in time we will have to judge if the cost of our military and monetary sacrifice was an essential component in providing a stable, democratic Iraq which will be a shining beacon of light in a troubled part of the world; or, will the Iraq left behind, be it democratic or autocratic, be no more of a friend, and actually a greater threat, to the United States and our allies than the regime of Saddam Hussein. Let us hope and pray for the former outcome.

Wade J. Williams
Colonel, USA (Ret)
Peachtree City, Ga.