HOOSER: Just say ‘no’ to more wars, military expansion

The U.S. war in Afghanistan began on Oct. 7, 2001, with airstrikes against the terror group Al Qaida in retaliation for the Sept. 11 attacks on the twin towers in New York City. That attack killed 2,976 American civilians.

Per The Associated Press, the resulting 20-year war in Afghanistan has to date killed 172,390 people: 47,245 Afghan civilians, 2,448 American soldiers, 3,846 U.S. contractors, 66,000 Afghan national military and police, 1,144 NATO allies, 51,191 Taliban and other opposition fighters, 444 aid workers and 72 journalists.

In 2011, Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was killed in neighboring Pakistan.

The financial cost of the Afghan war ranges from an $824.9 billion estimate provided by the Pentagon to over $5 trillion as estimated by Harvard and Brown university researchers.

The current situation, the threats to personal safety and the emotional trauma unfolding today in Afghanistan are beyond our comprehension. While continuing occupation of the country is not an option, we must somehow fulfill our promise of assistance to those who were made that pledge.

Each of us who claim America as our home is responsible to some extent for this 20-year tragedy. We let it happen.

While some stood up and spoke out in opposition, most were cowed into silence by the pervasive outrage and calls for retribution following the tragedy of 9/11.

Just days after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, California U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee cast the lone “no” vote on a resolution to authorize military force in Afghanistan against those responsible for 9/11. The vote was 420 to 1. In the Senate the vote was unanimous.

We cannot avoid this historic stain on our legacy, but we can say “never again.”

And we can start here at home by pushing back against ongoing attempts to expand the military’s presence in Hawai‘i. At some point, and that point is now — we must say “enough already. No more military expansion in Hawai‘i.” We need to reduce the military’s footprint in our islands, not expand it.

Here on Kaua‘i, there is a push to grow the Pacific Missile Range Facility even larger via the construction of a multi-billion-dollar radar facility. The Pentagon itself says it doesn’t want it and it isn’t needed. Unfortunately, our Congressional delegation has found it necessary to force the item into the defense budget.

The Kaua‘i system is being heavily promoted by the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, a 501c4 nonprofit whose mission is to “make the world safer by advocating for the development and deployment of missile-defense systems to defend the United States, its armed forces and its allies against missile threats.”

You can be sure that defense contractors General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, BAE, Raytheon, Boeing and Lockheed Martin, to name just a few, are big supporters of MDAA, as they were undoubtedly also major profiteers from the 20-year Afghan war. You can also be sure that these same entities are generous contributors to the political campaigns of those with decision-making authority over this project and the technology and machinery of war in general.

“In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex…,” said Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th president, in his 1961 farewell address. Think about the wisdom in these words.

In addition to expanding its war machine on the Garden Island, the U.S. military is seeking to renew its activities on the Big Island and on O‘ahu.

In Hawai‘i County, the Pohakuloa Training Area covers nearly 36 square miles and is the largest contiguous live-fire range and maneuver training area in Hawaii. The Army paid $1 for the original 65-year lease which is set to expire in 2029. They held a virtual meeting on Sept. 23, 2020, to provide an online presentation and receive comments.

On O‘ahu, the Army leases 4,370 acres at Poamoho Training Area in the Ko‘olau Mountains in north-central O‘ahu and 1,170 acres of state land called the Kahuku Training Area.

Makua Military Reservation in northwest O‘ahu has been used for military training for almost a century, and the Army has leased 760 acres from the state for the past 57 years. These leases also are set to expire in 2029. The Army is soliciting oral or written public comments on the proposed renewal of leases for three sites at bit.ly/armyoahu through Sept. 1.

My father was a career Navy man, a chief boatswain’s mate who served honorably for over 30 years. I have friends and relatives who are veterans and who have served in the Middle East. I am proud and thankful for their service, and I believe the United States must maintain a strong defense.

However, enough is enough.

We must learn from Afghanistan and reverse the path we have been on for far too many years that has destroyed far too many lives.

What can we, just simple citizens living simple lives, actually do to stop this madness?

Emulating California Rep. Lee would be a good place to start. Have the courage of your convictions and reach out and share your concerns with those members of Congress that you elected to serve you in Washington, D.C. Tell them to please learn from Afghanistan, reverse the path of endless war and destruction, and start beating our swords into plowshares.

Yes, it’s complicated, and no, it’s not really that complicated. I get it that the path forward is not simple nor easy, but it starts with simply saying “no more.”

Correction: This guest column was updated at 10:15 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 18, 2021, to clarify when a meeting regarding the Pohakuloa Training Area would be held. It was Sept. 23, 2020, not 2021.

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Gary Hooser is the former vice-chair of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i, and served eight years in the state Senate, where he was majority leader. He also served for eight years on the Kaua‘i County Council, and was the former director of the state Office of Environmental Quality Control. He serves presently in a volunteer capacity as board president of the Hawai‘i Alliance for Progressive Action and is executive director of the Pono Hawai‘i Initiative.