Military culture rooted in geography
WASHINGTON -- Many military families around the country expressed frustration during last year's presidential campaign. Worried about the progress of the war in Iraq, and especially whether soldiers were adequately protected, they were receptive to Senator John F. Kerry's arguments.
Still, most said they would vote for a president who seemed more attuned to the culture of the military, its loyalty to the chain of command, its patriotic sense of the rightness of America's mission in the world, its commitment to maintaining a supportive home front.
President Bush's understanding of the military culture came across in his words. But it also came through in his Texas manner, the way he looked, acted, and spoke.
To many military families -- even in places like Ohio, West Virginia, and western Pennsylvania -- military culture is almost synonymous with the culture of the South and Southwest. Patriotism is expressed with a Southern twang, while nagging questions are raised in a Northeastern whine. Even a Vietnam War hero from the Northeast came across as too steeped in intellectualism and internationalism to understand military families.
These days, it is hard to tell how many military values are intrinsic to the military and how many are simply native to the South and Southwest, where so many active-duty soldiers are stationed. Attitudes widely regarded as military are common to many in the Sun Belt, and military families probably picked them up there.
By contrast, there are not a lot of children in New England with a father or mother wearing a military uniform every day. The majority of children in New England are growing up without classmates whose parents are in active-duty service. Having a mom or dad working on an Army base may seem as exotic as having them work at a Buddhist temple.
In 1988, 30,600 active-duty military personnel were stationed in New England; today, fewer than 12,700 wear the uniform every day. Bases that were almost entire towns, such as Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire and Loring Air Force Base in Maine, were closed; in Massachusetts, active-duty operations ended at Fort Devens in Ayer, South Weymouth Naval Air Station, and parts of Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford.
This week, the Defense Department is likely to announce its latest schedule of base closings, and members of Congress around the country are preparing to argue why bases in their districts should be spared. In Massachusetts, the most intensive efforts are focused on Hanscom, where the state is offering to invest in the area around the base to keep it viable as a magnet for high-tech research.
The effort, a joint venture of Governor Mitt Romney and the state's congressional delegation, may pay off. But there are larger reasons to preserve the remaining bases in New England, from Hanscom to the region's only remaining active-duty air base in Brunswick, Maine, and the naval base in New London, Conn.
Many politicians and analysts note that having the military centered in the Republican-dominated South and Southwest serves to widen divisions in a country already split along regional lines. It turns the military into a Sun Belt industry, like making textiles or growing oranges. It furthers the process of turning military values into Southern values.
Stationing a disproportionate share of military families in the Sun Belt reduces pressure on both parties to compete for military votes in national politics. The GOP can claim to be the only party that understands the military way of life, and military families will vote Republican whether they agree with GOP policies or not. When identity politics takes root, critical thinking -- among voters and politicians -- is diminished.
So far, the country has been fortunate that red state/blue state divisions have sparked anger only in politics: Regional tensions have not played out as fiercely on the ground, in terms of actual prejudices and resentments.
The cause of national understanding cannot be furthered by clustering military installations in warmer climates, any more than it would be furthered by having all universities pack up and move north. This week's decisions on base closings could have implications for the whole country, not just cities and towns with bases on the chopping block.
Peter S. Canellos is the Globe's Washington bureau chief. National Perspective is his weekly analysis of events in the capital and beyond. 