I truly believe that fighting World War I and World War II was absolutely necessary to our nation’s security. I truly do not believe that fighting in Korea, Vietnam, Kuwait, Iraq nor Afghanistan was necessary to the security of our nation.

If my understanding of the history of these wars is correct, Korea and Vietnam were fought to prevent the spread of Communism to South Korea and South Vietnam. The war in Kuwait was fought to drive Saddam Hussein out of a country that he wrongly invaded. The Iraq and Afghanistan wars were because of 9/11. Considering these five countries are so far from the U.S., I do not, again, I do not see how these wars were even conceivably or remotely fought to protect our nation’s security.

Now the overpaid, underworked, and clueless government officials in Washington, D.C. are continuing to force tens of thousands of American troops into harm’s way for absolutely no good reason. The term “nation building” has been used to describe both Iraq and Afghanistan wars. I was of the understanding that this was viewed as wrong for a country to get involved in.

It is well past time for our so-called “government officials” to stop being war mongers and bring all of our troops home to safety and their families where they all belong!

— Timothy Monroe Bledsoe 
South Carolina Resident