Death and a beginning

It's been a rough day. I found out today that a friend from school died this month in Iraq. He was a good man, with a good heart and strong morals, and it's sad that he died fighting a cause that was morally corrupt and heartless. I wonder if the government official who sponsored him to join the army also voted for the war, and if so, did he know that such an exemplary individual would lose his life in the process, and for what?