Letters submitted by BDN readers are verified by BDN Opinion Page staff. Send your letters to [email protected]
As a U.S. Army veteran, I’ve heard the promise of a “short war” before. Over the past week, I’ve watched the news with a sick sense of déjà vu as President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth launched a new war with Iran. Then the GOP-controlled Senate, including Sen. Susan Collins, voted down a war powers resolution that would have put guardrails on the president’s ability to escalate the conflict into another forever war in the Middle East.
When I deployed to Afghanistan in 2003, we were told the war was nearly finished. Taliban leaders had been killed, elections were coming, and the mission would soon wind down. Instead it dragged on for nearly two decades.
Mainers understand what those wars cost. For generations we’ve sent more than our fair share of young people to serve, which is why Maine has one of the highest veteran populations in the country. But for too long our senators — especially Susan Collins — have supported war after war without firsthand experience of its consequences.
That’s why I’m supporting Graham Platner for the Senate. He’s a Marine Corps infantry veteran who served multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and spent eight years in uniform. He knows what war asks of the people sent to fight it and has taken a clear, principled stand against rushing into new conflicts.
When the first U.S. strikes on Iran began, Platner organized a rally in Brewer and said plainly: “We cannot continue to get young Americans killed, just to serve the interests of someone in power.”
Perry O’Brien
Camden
