The storyline in the movie Lincoln transpires at the end of America’s Civil War (1861- 65). That cinematic historical tranche represents a tiny splinter of America’s almost continuous historical experience with war and violence.
From 1774 until 2013, a total of 239 years, essentially the United States has been free of some form of war engagement for 82 years (about one-third of its entire history).
America has engaged in no fewer than 72 wars and other violent internal and external engagements. In total, casualties include 848,163 battle dead and 1,531,036 wounded.
The 72 wars do not include other confrontations, for example, the 1859 “Pig War” whereby the United States stole the San Juan Islands (near Victoria) from British Canada; nor the almost war after 1844 in what was the Oregon Boundary dispute — the “54-40” battle cry which still resonates among Oregon’s extremist Tea Partyers. This would have stripped Western Canada of all territory north of the 54-40 parallel (in line with Prince Rupert in north central B.C.).
And skirmishes like border raids in the Windsor-Niagara regions in the 1830s are not included in America’s foreign wars.
America’s formal Civil War was most costly in terms of lives lost and wounded. It is estimated that total civil war dead at 212,938, while wounded, for which only the North/Union figures are available, totalled 338,226.
By comparison, America’s involvement in the Vietnam War recorded 58,272 dead (names on Vietnam War memorial in Washington, DC) and 304,000-plus wounded.
For this latter war, which lasted 10 years (1965-75), there is a sombre memorial in Washington DC. The memorial includes the names of eight women who died in the Vietnam War.
Ironically, while the Vietnam memorial honours those who died in that conflict, nobody seems prepared to recognize those who have died in America’s ongoing internal civil war between, perhaps, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and its adherents and America’s civil society.
You see, apparently over the last 10 years (same duration as the Vietnam War), America has endured 130,000-plus deaths and 750,000-plus wounded from gun violence. The figures are almost double the dead and wounded in Vietnam. America’s ongoing, re-renewed, civil war places America among the more dangerous places in the entire world.
Tragically, a large proportion of dead in this continuing American civil war have been women and children. And, because many have died in obscure and often brutal conditions, the publicity and shock impact of their diverse deaths is muted. Of course, mass murders of children and youths does draw temporary shock attention to the continuity of America’s domestic civil war.
On the whole, however, Americans appear capable of ignoring the aggregate deaths and wounded. For, in some segments of American society, an obsessive passion for a version of rights alleged to exist under the U.S. Constitution’s 2nd Amendment widely prevails. If Americans could be confined to “protecting” themselves with the weapons available when the Amendment was passed in 1791, life might just be a tad more civilized in America.
Unfortunately, as recently as 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court (DC vs. Heller) provided about as broad an interpretation to the 2nd Amendment as any NRA gun lover could have wished.
Perhaps, given Americans entrenched gun culture and its apparent perpetual civil war, it might be time to consider another sombre war memorial to all those who have died in America domestic gun violence.
Surely America ’s civilian dead deserve some commemoration in parallel with those who died in Vietnam.