Service Matters, But It's Not Enough

We're military spouses, so we love the fact that the McCains, Bidens and Palins are military families. Service is something to be proud of and celebrate. We're not nearly so impressed with Sarah Palin and the Republican party's mocking of other kinds of service, though.

Both candidates in this election have served a cause that is greater than their own personal ambitions. John McCain served heroically in the military. Barack Obama shrugged aside the large paychecks, status and power that a Harvard degree promises in favor of the long hours, low pay and tumultuous politics of community organizing. To anyone who thinks this comes with no responsibility, well. . .you've never done it. Frankly, being an engaged military spouse is a lot like community organizing, and we think it counts as something to be proud of.

The real question is whether or how the past service of each candidate informs their decision-making. Service matters, but it is not enough.

John McCain's daughter Megan recently asserted that "no one [running for office, presumably] knows what war is like except my family." Is he the only candidate that understands us? We respected John McCain at the beginning of this election, before he started shucking off his long-held (and honorable) ideals, but even then we thought Barack Obama was the better choice for today's and tomorrow's military.

Barack Obama cosponsored the revolutionary new GI Bill, giving a new generation of veterans a giant dose of gratitude and respect for their service, not to mention a paid up college education - transferable to a spouse or child. McCain inexplicably vetoed that bill. Obama sponsored the Lane Evans Bill which improves the transition from military health care to the VA and ensures that vets with PTSD and TBI's are taken care of for their service. McCain has not signed on to the bill.

Obama has plans to strengthen our military, our alliances and our stature in the world, to make us safer. He will install a national service plan to encourage all of us to share the burden of creating a safe and just society. In short, he is a man who has not forgotten what it means to serve, nor has he limited his notion of service.

Barack Obama may not have served in the military, but he has served his country. He spent years not only serving a community, but becoming a part of it. He offered his talents to it without asking anything in return. He does not expect your vote because he served others. He wants your vote so he can inspire others to serve. Because he understands that service begets empathy. Civic engagement begets community. All things that are sorely needed in this country these days.

Comments

[Traynor]

What courage these two ladies have! I pray for your husbands that we soon have a Commander in Chief who will ensure their safe return. Obama's the one to make it happen. Nothing less will do.

[angryveteran]

Thank you ... thank you ... thank you for the well-written posting. As a newly-retired veteran, I can still claim that most of my friends are affiliated with the military. ALL have been negatively impacted by the lack of competent leadership in Washington over the last 7 years. While Bush continues to claim that he respects the opinions of his military members on the ground, we continue to find out just the opposite is true. I too respect McCain for his service to our country; however, I feel that somehow he and his family believe his service is more important than mine or my friends. This is a shame because McCain knows that military members and their spouses rarely have control over WHERE they serve. You just serve honorably where you end up (this is especially true with the enlisted force). McCain did it and so have thousands of others. That alone doesn't mean I should get a 'pass' to the White House nor should McCain. It doesn't make me a foreign policy genius and guess what, it doesn't make McCain one either. GO--VETERANS for OBAMA!

[PSE]

What a great article!! Service DOES matter. As a military spouse of a wounded Iraq veteran, I fully agree with the authors that "being an engaged military spouse is a lot like community organizing, and we think it counts as something to be proud of." I have to be engaged to ensure that my husband, who is currently receiving care at Walter Reed, gets the best care possible. I have to be engaged when, b/c of his TBI, he cannot remember things like he used to. I have to be engaged when those that are not affiliated with the military are puzzled when we speak of veteran care, PTSD, suicide rates and military divorce rates.

Community activism is at the base, the core level of giving back to society. This, in and of itself, makes Obama the perfect choice. The fact that he has not served our country in a military capacity does NOT connote that he has not served our country at its root -- community activism. That's how this country was formed: one community at a time.

[IsaacZelda]

Hear, hear! John McCain does not have the best interest of veterans close to his heart. Politics matters more. The military families need clear information about where each candidate stands in relation to their interests. Thanks so much for posting this! It's a refreshing point of view.