Democrats on Kurds
Lately, in the news, we hear about all the Democratic indignation at POTUS Trump’s moves to get our soldiers out of Syria. The Democrats say we are putting our Kurdish allies at risk by pulling American troops out of the area.
The Kurds became our allies because they were already fighting in the area and had long-running wars with Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. It was initially not thought to be a good move for the U.S. to partner with the Kurds as they were labeled by our government as terrorist fractions. Even the words Kurds, Kurdistan, and Kurdish were banned by the Turkish government who is a NATO ally of ours. In 1983 the Kurdish provinces of Turkey were placed under martial law due to the militant activities of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party). Guerilla warfare took place through the 80s and 90s. Thousands of Kurdish villages were destroyed and more than 20,000 Kurds were killed in the violence.
The Democrats now make this all sound like a new problem, not the hundred years old problem it has almost always been. It happened during the entire Obama administration and now President Trump is finishing off the troop withdrawal started by Obama. What is not to like? Do we want another nearly twenty-year war like Afghanistan? Is our war machine fueling so many pockets that we must move on from one war to the next and hope we find wars American people approve of?
I think American people are growing sick and tired of wars. American has only been at peace 21 years out of its total existence since 1776. We have never gone a decade without a war. The only time Americans have not been involved in a war for five years was between 1935 and 1940. Up until 2015 America has been at war for 222 years out of 239 years. We know what has happened since then. We have never got out of war.
The Kurds are far better off now that America has provided them with their much-needed weapons to continue on their wars against the Turks, Syrians, and Iraqis.
This may be one of the reasons parts of the world feel America is the number one threat to world peace. The five-year span where the USA was not at war was during a period of isolationism. Perhaps it is time we head back and devote all the money used for war to fixing our native country. Or is our economy only based on war?
God bless America. Rick Redalen, MD, Maverick Doctor
Pick up a copy of my book “God’s Tiniest Angel and the Last Unicorn,” available on Amazon.
Dr. Rick is a retired American physician, entrepreneur, and philanthropist who has done mission work around the country and around the world. He is now on a mission to improve healthcare in America. Visit maverickdoctor.com or email him at rickr@maverickdoctor.com.