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San Diego at a Crossroads: Examining the Military Post-9/11

We continue our special coverage of San Diego in a post-9/11 world. We speak with local retired military analysts about the city’s unique military community and how military families’ lives have cha

San Diego at a Crossroads: Examining the Military Post-9/11

(File Photo: Marines and Sailors "Man the Rails" while departing San Diego on a tour of duty. U.S. Marine Corps )

Tom Fudge: San Diego is a military town, and that means the aftermath of 9/11 has had a huge impact on us. When I talk about the aftermath, I'm referring mainly to the Iraq War. Now, it's a good question whether this war should have been part of the 9/11 aftermath at all. People argue, convincingly, that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11, and our invasion of that country after the attack was ill-advised. 

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But we are there. And it's hard not to view the Iraq War as an extension of changes of 9/11. As we reflect on the crossroads of 9/11, we'll think about how the presence of the military in San Diego and lives of military families have changed.

Guests

  • Thomas A. Richards, retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, chairman of the United Veterans Council of San Diego County and executive director of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Museum.