Modern Warfare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Modern Warfare - Essay Example There does not seem to be the romanticized notion of patriotism so often heralded by authors within the working class. This is especially so with respect to the Vietnam war. In the draft during the Vietnam War, the middle class were almost protected. "Vietnam was more limited, and the military was determined to channel bourgeois and even middle-class youth away from combat" (Appy 1993). Indeed, it has traditionally been the working class that have been convinced that their servitude would benefit them when in fact the benefit fell to the higher classes. Promises such as forgiven student loans, GI Bills, medical insurance, a ten thousand dollar sign up bonus, promises of training that will lead to promising civilian careers and a multitude of other benefits seem like a miracle for a group of people who are not economically exposed to such seeming luxuries. Consistently, the working class, already a group accustomed to taking orders is taken advantage of. The Cold War saw miners in Canada loosing their jobs without any benefits. At first, miners were encouraged to retire with the introduction of benefit packages. However as time progressed, miners who were on the edge of retirement had to literally "hang on" in the hopes of receiving their full benefit package. Mines were operating at far less than a five day week. There was also a drop in the need of railway steam coal. World War I found the entry of women into the work force. While not at battle, women were in operation making clothes, sending supplies and still supporting their families. Thus economically speaking, the working class women were able to add to their economic circumstance. During the time between World War I and World War II, there was a loss of markets for what is considered to be staple industries. These industries included coal, iron, steel, ship making and textiles. This loss combined with technological advances which allowed for increases in production culminated in the loss of over a million jobs for the working class. The touted gains from these two wars did nothing to balm the suffering of the working class. In the Iraq war, which still looms, stop-loss (the practice of unilaterally extending a soilder's stay in his or her station) has been consistently upheld in the courts. Working class soldiers have seen that contracts are absolutely meaningless in their military and civilian world. Perhaps this is why there is not so much shock when a stop-loss tactic is pulled against them. After all, at home in civilian life, most working class employees must put in their mandatory overtime hours or they risk loosing their jobs. Fairness and promises are not concepts that the working class are accustomed to in either their military or civilian roles. Further, the working class members fail to see any of the benefits that they are promised. Veterans consistently see cutbacks in their benefits. Scandal after scandal results in exposing the utter lack of care or compassion that veterans receive. This is also so for unemployment in the working class. The New Deal Era brought many programs such as unem ployment. However, as the economy now stands, improperly