The night we learned who was to become the 45th president of the United States one of the first questions asked was whether we should rethink our readiness to send troops support America in future conflicts led by Donald Trump.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Given the inflammatory rhetoric that helped propel the billionaire to the White House, it’s easy to see why the question was being asked on Wednesday night. Two days later, on Remembrance Day, it’s even more pertinent.
As we pause today to reflect on the Australians who have fallen in past conflicts, we ought to think of those who might fall in future wars and whether those wars will serve our interests or those of a man whose rhetorical world views expressed during the presidential campaign are discordant with most reasoned analysis.
Parents whose children are serving or thinking about serving in the defence force could be forgiven for feeling a little uneasy about the prospect of Donald Trump making rash decisions that could place their loved ones on a future battlefield via our alliance with the US.
His unsettling campaign thunder about building walls, using nukes against terrorists, imposing trade tariffs, making allies pay for their defence and making America great again has rung alarm bells across the world. Just how much of it was bluster to win votes will be revealed after he takes the reins in January. Optimists are predicting the restraints of office will keep Mr Trump in check; pessimists are deeply worried about the future.
We don’t have to look too far into the past to see instances in which as a nation we’ve hitched our wagon to disastrous American military campaigns. The invasion of Iraq was one and the Vietnam War another. Both delivered outcomes quite the opposite to what was intended. We can only hope the new president finds the reservoir of calm and commonsense his office demands. But, if he does not, we need our political leaders to show restraint before committing young Australian men and women to American-led armed conflict.
The last thing we want is to be observing Remembrance Day in years to come, questioning why our own had fallen in a conflict that would have been best avoided.
The past has valuable lessons about the future, even if our capacity to learn from our mistakes seems limited when it comes to committing our young people to war.