Are we at war or what?

• Author: Bresler, Robert J.
• Position: STATE OF THE NATION

IF THE NEW YORK TIMES HAD DISCLOSED in 1943 that Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt had authorized the FBI to tap all overseas calls, can you imagine the outrage--not at the President, but at the press? It is highly unlikely, however, that, in 1943, even if The New York Times had known such a thing, that the one-time newspaper of record would have made such a disclosure. We were at war, and everybody knew it. More than 16,000,000 served in the armed forces. People at home gave blood, bought war bonds, planted victory gardens, accepted gas and meat rationing, sent their sons into battle with pride, and suffered quietly at their losses. Thousands of men died bravely at places Americans never had heard of before (and now never will forget). Hollywood films such "Bataan," "Pride of the Marines," "The Best Years of Our Lives," and "They Were Expendable" celebrated those who sacrificed as heroes of a worthy cause, not pitiable victims. No Gold Star Mother camped out at Hyde Park to protest her son's death. The popular culture reflected America's willingness to pay the price of defending our country and liberties without flinching. Even comic strip heroes--Joe Palooka, Buzz Sawyer, and Mickey Finn--went to war because their creators knew children never would respect them otherwise. After Pearl Harbor, no one dreamed of asking, "Why do they hate us?"

Sixty years later, we once more are at war, and men again are dying in places we never heard of. Yet, the atmosphere at home is light-years away from that of World War II: The

New York Times and Washington Post publish leaks about the most sensitive intelligence operations; Hollywood produces films where the real villain is some CIA operative, not an A1 Qaeda fanatic; Cindy Sheehan's grief over her son's death in Iraq becomes a rallying point for anti-war activists.

Soon after the events of 9/11, I wrote that the new ethic of the day must be determination, vigilance, and self-sacrifice, not self-indulgence and self-absorption. I thought that perhaps the spirit of the World War II home front would reappear. How wrong I have been.

For most Americans, the war against Islamic fascism in Iraq and Afghanistan is an unpleasant intrusion. After a brief outburst of outrage and patriotism following 9/11, our politics and popular culture have reverted to form. Liberals save most of their outrage for Pres. George W. Bush and Vice Pres. Dick Cheney and their passion for keeping the government from tapping overseas phone...