Cynthia Enloe has put our current military engagements and out the militaristic values in our culture in perspective for me. Her explanation of militarization and the way it impacts all of us, both directly and indirectly, helps me understand my own connections to the military. A feminist view on militarization begs the question of what a “less militarized military” and thus society would be like:
“A less militarized military would be one less imbued with an institutional culture of masculinized violence. It would be a military less committed to a hierarchical, threat-filled worldview; having an “enemy” wouldn’t be so central to the military’s raison d’être.” (Enloe 2007, 7)
Doesn’t this apply to society as a whole? And is militarization the reason for this? Wouldn’t we be more likely to value historically and biologically priceless short grass prairie lands if we cared less about being right? Focused more on peace than violence? Encouraged equality among our citizens and considered the impacts on everyone and not just those with the most power? This may be a stretch, but it cannot be denied that the issues we have been discussing are a part of a larger “societal ill,” so to speak. When is enough, enough? Whether you identify it as a conscience, a moral code rooted in us by some higher being, or just an evolutionarily embedded differentiation of right and wrong, it is something we all have. How we choose to use this very valuable tool, in my opinion, is what can make or break us as a society.
