American politics used to be an amateur sport. But somewhere along the way, we handed over to professionals all the things people used to do for free.
Bob SchiefferRead
The Iraq war was fought by one-half of one percent of us. And unless we were part of that small group or had a relative who was, we went about our lives as usual most of the time: no draft, no new taxes, no changes. Not so for the small group who fought the war and their families.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the disconnect between those who served in the Iraq War and the general public's experience during that time.
Bob Schieffer's quote emphasizes the disparity in experiences between the small percentage of Americans who actively participated in the Iraq War and the larger population who went about their daily lives unaffected by the conflict. It critiques the lack of widespread engagement or sacrifice from the majority, pointing to the social and political implications of a volunteer military and the challenges faced by those who served and their families.
Themes
Iraq WarDisconnectionMilitarySacrificePublic Experience
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on military service, you might reference the quote to highlight the sacrifices of veterans.
More from Bob Schieffer
All quotes →I've had a lot of fun, and when I talk to kids in journalism schools, I say, look, I know what the journalism teachers tell you that this is a great way to perform public service and all that, but I say the main reason, if you decide what you want to do is be a reporter, the main reason you want to do it is because it's just so much fun.
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