The Human Costs of War

I found this essay by Teri Wills Allison, the mother of a soldier in Iraq, to be simultaneously touching and enraging: touching for her introspection and enraging because it belies the sheer madness of the occupation.

I know a few soldiers who were involved in the war, but all have since rotated out. Besides them, the only personal contact I have with the war right now are three Iraqi friends, who I only hear from periodically. Having said that, I cannot fathom the idea of having someone from your closest circle of family over there right now. It must be the most nerve-wracking experience.

I also wonder about a point Allison raises in her piece, whether the experience for individuals in close proximity to the effects of the war is different for those who support the war, in comparison with those who do not.