Thousands of soldiers are deployed to fight in the war in Iraq and risk their lives every day. American media has constantly reported how numerous U.S. soldiers and Iraqis have died since the day the war was first declared. The U.S. government does not hesitate to recruit young men and women, especially those who come from low-income backgrounds, to serve the country.
But for some reason, many people become frantic when royalty decides to serve in a war. Why? Maybe it is assumed that the masses are the ones who should risk their lives for their country.
People were in frenzy after hearing that the head of the British army said Prince Harry, who is the younger son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, will go to Iraq. But people may have been more surprised when Harry said, “I’ve waited a long time and just want to get out there and serve my country,” according to cbsnews.com. Again we ask, why?
It is routine for recruiters in the United States to set up small recruiting centers in shopping malls and on high school and college campuses to encourage young people, mainly those of low-income or middle-class families, to join the service. Recruiters visit schools and attend fairs hoping to grab the interests of army seekers. But the thought of the elite wanting to serve their country is not routine, which made Harry stand out like a sore thumb.
President Bush encourages Americans to join the service and serve in Iraq because he wants more troops in Iraq. But which groups of people are being recruited? He’s certainly not going to ask the rich.
According to the article on cbsnews.com, commanders were afraid that Harry’s presence could possibly “endanger other soldiers” and that “newspapers reported threats by Iraqi insurgents to kill or kidnap Harry.” It is possible that insurgents just might kidnap or kill him because of his status. But what about the possibility of the average “non-royal,” Joe and Jane Schmoe being kidnapped or killed because they are opposing soldiers? That’s also very likely. Does Bush have a sense of compassion for the average soldier who may possibly lose his or her life in the war? Who knows.
Because Harry is going to Iraq soon, he will be in the war zone with all of the other soldiers who are fighting for their country and will share the same experience with the other soldiers, whether people like it or not. The fear of Harry “endangering other soldiers” and threats of killing or kidnapping him were just excuses to not sending Harry to war.
It is refreshing to see someone with money like Harry want to go to Iraq, and he is setting a good example to his fellow people and to the elite U.S. citizens because he is taking that courageous step to go to war.
Unfortunately, it seems that in our society, there is a fine line between the lower and middle-class individuals and the elite and royal that may never be erased. But if soldiers come together to fight for the same cause, they should do just that without special treatment. The line dividing groups must be erased in order to fight together as one for their country.
