As I've gotten older, I've come around to the idea that perhaps there was some nobility to fully entering World War II. But every subsequent military conflict has been motivated by economic empire building. If "fellow Americans" want to "survive", the straightforward answer is to not sign up for an organization that attacks and occupies foreign lands.

Every "reduced risk" for the military is an increased incentive to launch a new war.

And preemptively responding to "But what about real threats that could need to be defended against (eg China)" - if this is your bigger concern, then you need to figure out how to mitigate the moral hazards that have eroded trust in the institution.