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President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

theguardian.com

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Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#51

Post by snikeris »

DyslexicAtheist wrote: post #20
fsloth wrote: post #2

It is extremely rare for the head of state to die as a direct result of battlefield engagement.

skin in the game. there is something incredibly honorable about it. Can anyone picture BoJo, Trump or Biden jumping off a chopper in Overtheristan killing locals? In the West we use the term "who live by the sword shall die by the sword" (Matthew) but only as a warning. I think it illustrates the disconnect between these worlds. What is warning in one place/religion is a _promise_ in the other. My wife (Japanese) wou…

I think the doctrine of an eye for an eye is alive and well in the West. It seems to be a part of the human condition.

However, rejecting it isn't cowardice. It's spiritual growth.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#52

Post by fsloth »

hourislate wrote: post #21

It should be mandatory for all Presidents to be on the battle field. It should also be mandatory for all members of congress and the senate to rotate in and out of the battle field.

So you propose a military junta? I hear it's been tried a few times in world history.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#53

Post by pradn »

dragontamer wrote: post #29
hourislate wrote: post #21

It should be mandatory for all Presidents to be on the battle field. It should also be mandatory for all members of congress and the senate to rotate in and out of the battle field.

Then the Battle of Agincourt happens and you lose something like 1/2 of all of your leaders. Then your status as a world power is lost forever. Besides, I don't think anyone wants a government based on military service today. Military is important, but not as important as say, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, technology, engineering, or a myriad of other government services today. I'd rather have more government o…

The French still win the Hundred Years' War even after the Battle of Agincourt, and are clearly the dominant force in Western Europe until the advent of industrialization.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#54

Post by dragontamer »

capableweb wrote: post #45
dragontamer wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then the Battle of Agincourt happens and you lose something like 1/2 of all of your leaders. Then your status as a world power is lost forever. Besides, I don't think anyone wants a government based on military service today. Military is important, but not as important as say, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, technology, engineering, or a myriad of other government services today. I'd rather have more government o…

> Besides, I don't think anyone wants a government based on military service today. Military is important, but not as important as say, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, technology, engineering, or a myriad of other government services today. I think the fact that one of the world powers today is all about military and projected power disproves this. Almost 50% of the population of that country made it clear that t…

And the USA has rules preventing military from becoming politicians unless there's a break period. Because the risks of a politicized military are off the charts.

Politics and military do NOT mix. And the current status where military is subservient to politicians is superior to many other setups we've seen.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#55

Post by Aeolun »

dragontamer wrote: post #29
hourislate wrote: post #21

It should be mandatory for all Presidents to be on the battle field. It should also be mandatory for all members of congress and the senate to rotate in and out of the battle field.

Then the Battle of Agincourt happens and you lose something like 1/2 of all of your leaders. Then your status as a world power is lost forever. Besides, I don't think anyone wants a government based on military service today. Military is important, but not as important as say, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, technology, engineering, or a myriad of other government services today. I'd rather have more government o…

I don’t think your status as a world power comes from 50% of your political leaders.

At least, if that status was lost after that battle I’d seriously look into other reasons.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#56

Post by booleandilemma »

voldacar wrote: post #44

Imagine if international disputes were settled by one-on-one combat between world leaders. Our ruling class of flabby fiftysomething bureaucrats would disappear fast

To be replaced by macho 20-30 year olds who excel at one-on-one combat?

I'm not sure if this is better. Particularly when the 20 year old killing machine is put in charge of the nuclear arsenal, I think we'd all disappear fast.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#57

Post by kingsuper20 »

DyslexicAtheist wrote: post #20
fsloth wrote: post #2

It is extremely rare for the head of state to die as a direct result of battlefield engagement.

skin in the game. there is something incredibly honorable about it. Can anyone picture BoJo, Trump or Biden jumping off a chopper in Overtheristan killing locals? In the West we use the term "who live by the sword shall die by the sword" (Matthew) but only as a warning. I think it illustrates the disconnect between these worlds. What is warning in one place/religion is a _promise_ in the other. My wife (Japanese) wou…

> Can anyone picture BoJo, Trump or Biden jumping off a chopper in Overtheristan killing locals?

Of course not, but given their age and the extreme-high risk aversion of modern people, yer not going to see that anytime soon. Not that many people have three sons (the third going into the military) in any case.

Nothing new here. I just assume that a sclerotic ruling class is simply a sign of late-stage empire. Eventually you'll see an interregnum followed by one of the other models for large scale social integration.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#58

Post by gph »

koolba wrote: post #33
hourislate wrote: post #21

It should be mandatory for all Presidents to be on the battle field. It should also be mandatory for all members of congress and the senate to rotate in and out of the battle field.

I’d prefer requiring they have children that serve in the armed forces. Nothing makes you think twice about sending people to die in foreign lands as much as your own child being right there with them.

Then you'd just be optimizing even more for sociopathic politicians. It's not like caring more about your children than power is some universal behavior in humans.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#59

Post by drran »

hourislate wrote: post #21

It should be mandatory for all Presidents to be on the battle field. It should also be mandatory for all members of congress and the senate to rotate in and out of the battle field.

On October 7, 1916, near Bapaume, France, Hitler was wounded in the leg by a shell blast. On October 14, 1918, Corporal Adolf Hitler was temporarily blinded by a British gas shell. This experience helped him a lot to start WWW II.

Re: President of Chad Killed on the Battlefield

#60

Post by snypher »

dragontamer wrote: post #46
voldacar wrote: post #44

Imagine if international disputes were settled by one-on-one combat between world leaders. Our ruling class of flabby fiftysomething bureaucrats would disappear fast

You mean like when Alexander Hamilton was killed in a duel by a rival politician? And Hamilton's son was killed in a duel as well? All you get are the blood of pacifists. As pacifists are forced into duels and their opponents shoot them. Do you want all the pacifist politicians dead or retired? The duelist era of American politics led to Andrew Jackson. A man who forced the trail of tears on his opponents. Live by th…

Yes, I'd probably trade some pacifist politicians for all collateral damage caused worldwide from war, both people and environment.
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