Why not reduce the military to pre-World War 1 levels ?

  Local talk radio reactionaries are aghast  at news that  our monster military machine-  the greatest force for peace and democracy and the American Way on earth, according to simple minded militarism and dumb patriotism- might be downsized. Better to focus   their  wrath on poor, jobless, hungry, desperate Americans and  " greedy " state workers than on the sacrosanct  Moloch that is always making the world safer for the ONE PERCENT ?

          To be sure, there will be no more  good wars.  We should reflect on the 100th anniversary of  World War 1 that began in August 1914 . You would think that the madness of Verdun would have inspired a century of pacifism instead of one of bloody horror. For  too many years now pacifists have been curiously mute in this country.  How much I miss the likes of  Professor Howard Zinn  who would  advise us today to " starve the beast " in the Pentagon - not just put it on a diet .

            To be sure, our war on terrorism is not less brainless than our eternal war on drugs.  The military could very sanely be cut back to pre World War 1 levels.

   And would not a draft at least be more  democratic  ?  Even  pacifists can serve in non-combat positions- in hospitals for example.

            Real democracy is the best protection for a truly democratic people.