Memorial Day: America’s military and civilian divide | This is America

By Al Jazeera English

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Memorial Day commemorations are taking place across the United States amid growing debate over America’s relationship with war, military service and patriotism. Only about 1.3 million of the United States’ 330 million people serve on active military duty, while Memorial Day — once a solemn moment of national reflection and remembrance — has increasingly become one of America’s biggest commercial shopping weekends. As ceremonies honour fallen troops, many Americans are also questioning the legacy of conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and the expanding confrontation with Iran. How are changing attitudes towards war reshaping American society and military recruitment? And has the growing distance between civilians and the armed forces made military intervention politically easier? Presenter: Rob Matheson Guests: Naveed Shah -- US Army veteran and political director of Common Defense Jeremy Mayer -- Associate professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason Universit

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