Connection Across Time: War in Iraq

Although war is perhaps not so glorified as it was in the beginning of the 20th century(see Orpen painting and British Propaganda poster), when the U.S. invaded Iraq, many soldiers went with noble intentions. We were overthrowing a dictator, spreading democracy, investigating "weapons of mass destruction" to protect the rest of the world. It started at a time when everyone was rattled by the prospect of terrorism and eager to wage any war against it. In the early 1900s, Europe was uniting yet dividing itself by forming alliances, and it was a time when self-determination and nationalism and territorial claims were instead the explosive issues. Just as World War I was not expected to last more than a couple months, the United States most likely did not plan on staying on Iraq for over seven years. Like perhaps every since WWI, soldiers are left haunted by their experiences overseas. For example, on Grey's Anatomy, one of the surgeons, Dr. Hunt served as a trauma surgeon in Iraq. Although he is a skilled surgeon and good at thinking on his feet to save lives, he continues to suffer emotionally from what he saw and endured and this strains his personal relationships.