“In a condition of war, civil liberties tend to get overridden. The current war on terror, now over 11 years old, shows this. For any number of reasons, this war shows no signs of ending. It is actually spreading to more lands. The connection to an “organization” or “persons” that are in any way linked to 9/11 is now exceedingly remote, but the use of military force continues. This is not logical. It is not legal. It’s happening nonetheless because the pro-war forces are driving it. There is no apparent political force that is stopping it. Under these conditions, the prognosis for civil liberties is anything but good.”
Michael S. Rozeff
May 15, 2013
We are constantly bombarded with the demand to, “Support our troops!” I see it on bumper stickers, I hear it in church, I read it on military discount offers at stores, I experience it at public events when our troops are ordered to stand and everyone present is strongly compelled to applaud their service.
I suspect that the term, service, is merely a remnant of a time when troops were drafted, known in the USA as Selective Service, and paid very little to risk their lives, ostensibly in defense of the nation, but quite often merely to expand The Empire.
Since January 27, 1973, as the Vietnam War drew to a close, the Selective Service announced that there would be no further draft calls. So, for more than 43 years, every person entering the military has done so voluntarily. At some level, these volunteers all know that the military is not in the business of peace, the military is in the business of killing people. “And cousin, business is a-booming.”
Google Chart: Lockheed-Martin vs SP 500
As I have written in a previous article regarding the current state of our elections, media, government, and nation, “Nobody is ready, willing, or able to ask and/or answer questions of substance.” So, I wanted to post this article, today, to ask a hard question, and as an opportunity for veterans of voluntary military service since 1973, active duty military, their families, and really anyone to respond to the question and to make the case for why, exactly, Americans should support our troops in 2016.
Here are a few excerpts with hyperlinks to items that I feel might be useful in fueling this discussion.
The Soldiers’ Honor Fallacy. The ancient fallacy that all who wore a uniform, fought hard and followed orders are worthy of some special honor or glory or are even “heroes,” whether they fought for freedom or fought to defend slavery, marched under Grant or Lee, Hitler, Stalin or McArthur, fought to defend their homes, fought for oil or to spread empire, or even fought against and killed U.S. soldiers!. A corrupt argument from ethos (that of a soldier), closely related to the “Finish the Job” fallacy (“Sure, he died for a lie, but he deserves honor because he followed orders and did his job to the end!”). See also “Heroes All.” This fallacy was recognized and decisively refuted at the Nuremburg Trials after World War II but remains powerful to this day nonetheless. See also “Blind Loyalty.” Related is the State Actor Fallacy, that those who fight and die for a country (America, Russia, Iran, the Third Reich, etc.) are worthy of honor or at least pardonable while those who fight for a non-state actor (abolitionists, guerrillas, freedom-fighters, jihadis) are not and remain “terrorists” no matter how noble or vile their cause, until or unless they are adopted by a state after the fact.
Standing armies are controlled by the governments, which are now so obviously controlled by the elite, and are very much a force of tyranny. You see, local militias are controlled by The People, not the government, and are indeed, “necessary to the security of a free State.” I understand that many of our nation’s founders agree with me on these points.
A two-star general who was found dead at an Army base this summer died by suicide…
A total of 265 active-duty troops died by suicide in 2015, according to a Defense Department report from May. The Army had a suicide rate of nearly 30 suicides per 100,000. By comparison, the national rate in 2014 was about 13 per 100,000 citizens, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Rossi was scheduled to take over as commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and Army Forces Strategic Command, the Associated Press reported.
Special forces operations in Iraq and Syria are reportedly hamstrung by fears over war crimes prosecutions being brought against them retrospectively.
The elite soldiers are fearful of legal reprisals in what critics of full legal oversight are framing as a climate of litigation.
The UK is currently embroiled in a row over attempts to hold troops to account in relation to allegations of abuse and even murder from recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In fact, the dozens of Vietnam vets I have spoken to ALL strongly support America’s war against Muslims.
I also want to reiterate five of the steps in my Revolutionary Call to Arms that I strongly believe are highly relevant to this discussion, and further contemplation of this topic. I have successfully encouraged my sons, and many of their teenage friends, to take these steps during high school, when they are being exposed to intensive military recruiting. I hope many readers are able to do the same.
8. Read, 1984, by George Orwell.
15. Research your two senators and one congressman at http://ift.tt/UqgJ9B Make a list of their 10 biggest donors, and send the list to your “representative” in an email or letter.
16. Read, War is a Racket, by Smedley D. Butler.
17. Read, On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society, by Dave Grossman.
18. Watch the online video of the TED Talk, A radical experiment in empathy, by Sam Richards.
Peace!
h_h
via http://ift.tt/2eMBlhx hedgeless_horseman