"I'm afraid that if the politicians and opinion makers (elected officials and the MSM) had relatives at the "sharp end" the net result would be zero, or close to it."
the columnist did seem influenced by the fact that his own son has served. maybe its a start. keeping the interests of the "elites" in alignment with the average citizen when called upon to go to war through service of their own close relatives might be one of the more important democratic protections that could be implemented. the question then would be whether to support such a policy through social pressure or a draft.
one would not want to go overboard in saying there could never be criticism of how a war is conducted unless they had a close relative involved. also, i don't know that he was necessarily saying it would influence whether a close relative is for or against a war, but that it does reduce patronizing attitudes, which itself would be a big relief, and creates the political pressure to ensure the troops get everything they need.
thank you for your service.
Good points, and well thought out.
I am mindful that Cindy Sheehan had a son killed in Iraq, and Murtha was himself a Vietnam vet.
It seems that there is no qarunteed path to wisdom in this respect, or at least there are some glaring exceptions to the rule.