As the last U.S. troops leave Iraq this month this moment offers a call for reflection of our response to 9/11, a response that certainly included an argument to invade Iraq.

Since 9/11 the U.S. went after Al Qaeda, those who undertook the attack, chased out of power the Taliban Afghanistan government that sanctioned Al Qaeda, invaded Iraq, and focused upon the aggressive improvement of our homeland security.

How has all of this worked out?

In spite of a transition in Presidential leadership, the move to destroy Al Qaeda went forward seamlessly. President Obama found and killed Bin Laden, Al Qaeda’s iconic leader, in Pakistan in 2011 during a stunning Navy Seal raid. Anwar Al Awlaki was killed by a U.S. drone on Sept. 30 of this year. Al Qaeda’s leadership has largely been captured or killed by now, with six operatives captured this past Tuesday in Yemen.

The Taliban remains a force against the US and the Afghanistan government, while hiding in Pakistan. Whether the Taliban will ever control all or parts of Afghanistan remains to be seen.

In Iraq the war is over, and our heroic sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters are now returning home to a country appreciative of their contributions.

Finally, our airports, harbors, borders and cities are more secure today than ever before, and while total security is impossible, national security is significantly improved.

But what does it all mean in terms of how all of this has affected the United States, our people and our politics?

Attacking Afghanistan united Americans demanding retribution for 9/11, but has turned into an impossible task of nation building today, at a cost in lives and wealth beyond justification.

The war in Iraq was fought for wrong reasons on false intelligence with many military and political mistakes. And the war there divided the nation.

No one regrets the tracking down and killing of any and all who claimed any association with Al Qaeda.

The formation of Homeland Security addressed the structural weaknesses of our interior security, at least in part…though gaps remain in protecting American soil.

But all of this has come at a very high price. In Iraq more than 4,000 U.S. troops dead, more than 31,000 wounded. More than 100,000 Iraqi civilians died and nearly 3 million were displaced by the war. In Afghanistan almost 1,800 troops died, and another 15,000 wounded. Total coalition casualties are nearly 3,000 dead.

The dollar costs have been sobering.

According to Brown Universities’ Watson Institute for International Studies (2011) the combined costs of the wars will exceed $3.7 trillion dollars, when including ongoing military budget increases, continued veterans care, interest payments and other indirect costs.

Homeland Security, since 9/11 has cost $636 billion.

America lost so many young, promising heroes, and paid so dearly in our wealth…for results that must be questioned.

Will Iraq become a stable democracy, or simply shift power from Sunni’s to Shiites with Iran gaining influence?

Will Afghanistan ever really be more than a collection of tribes marketing poppy into heroin?

Will the costs of the wars, paid for solely by tax cuts and debt, result in Americans losing health care and retirement security?

So few seem to be reflecting upon these outcomes now, as the true and total costs of war now come to influence our national future. While it is far too late to make different choices, it is important to make better choices going forward.

The American Empire cannot be our future, for the price of empire is too great to bear. Instead we must build a nation that cares first for its people.

If experience does teach us, then we will shift our focus to our people and to seeking peaceful solutions over war.

 

Jim Crawford is retired educator and political enthusiast living here in the Tri-State.