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The Fighter

nytimes.com

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Re: The Fighter

#41

Post by dumb-saint »

13of40 wrote: post #38
dumb-saint wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With no lack of empathy for the veterans (of all countries) and the horrible things they go through... Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Why you have "generations of veterans", even though you have by far the most powerful military force to ever have existed? There is no credible conventional threat to the US, and there is no unconventional one that can be mitigated by fighting a war. Not pa…

> Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Actually, I'm a veteran, son of a veteran, son of a son of a veteran, and we all served in between wars, so we're not exactly "always at war". But all bullshit aside, why would you lay that kind of blame on the people who rolled the dice (choosing between enlisting and working at DQ to pay off their double-wide) and now have to go out and do the job, versu…

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers.

When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you.

PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

Re: The Fighter

#42

Post by james-watson »

dumb-saint wrote: post #41
13of40 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Actually, I'm a veteran, son of a veteran, son of a son of a veteran, and we all served in between wars, so we're not exactly "always at war". But all bullshit aside, why would you lay that kind of blame on the people who rolled the dice (choosing between enlisting and working at DQ to pay off their double-wide) and now have to go out and do the job, versu…

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers. When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you. PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

Ah yes, because average Americans control US geopolitical strategy.

Re: The Fighter

#43

Post by james-watson »

ryanmarsh wrote: post #24
AndrewKemendo wrote: post #14

As an Iraq War veteran myself I'm pretty sick of these stories being what get headlines and pages of coverage about military members. People read these pieces and think it defines an entire generation of War Veterans. It doesn't. No hit on the authors, they all seem to be genuinely wanting to help/tell a compelling story - but I think it comes with some kind of fetish for war that they are trying to get in touch with…

> We take care of our own as best we can, and people fall through the cracks This statement disgusts me. I struggled immensely transitioning from combat to civilian life. Nobody helped until years later I got lucky and someone referred me to a preacher who was also a therapist. The VA threw pills at myself and my brothers. Some of them are dead now. Some took their own lives on purpose, others on accident living dang…

Tell me, friend, how does a group of people enforce their rights within a country against those who wish to deny those rights?

ISIS wants a global Islamic caliphate, along with a Caliph at its head and Sharia law. They want this in the US, Europe, and every other country on the planet. They do not negotiate, because they believe they carry out the will of an omnipotent deity. And most importantly, they will brutally slaughter anyone who stands in their way.

So, how do we defend our rights to a different way of life, against those who would kill us for it?

Oh, and a cursory glance at history would be educational. Pacifism is a great idea, until it isn't.

Re: The Fighter

#44

Post by dumb-saint »

james-watson wrote: post #42
dumb-saint wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers. When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you. PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

Ah yes, because average Americans control US geopolitical strategy.

So you gave up on democracy?

Re: The Fighter

#45

Post by steverb »

AndrewKemendo wrote: post #14

As an Iraq War veteran myself I'm pretty sick of these stories being what get headlines and pages of coverage about military members. People read these pieces and think it defines an entire generation of War Veterans. It doesn't. No hit on the authors, they all seem to be genuinely wanting to help/tell a compelling story - but I think it comes with some kind of fetish for war that they are trying to get in touch with…

I think it's telling that all of your examples of war vets who are successful are officers.

As a vet myself, I suspect the percentages of officers who have trouble acclimating is markedly lower than that of enlisted.

Re: The Fighter

#46

Post by sjg007 »

dumb-saint wrote: post #41
13of40 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Actually, I'm a veteran, son of a veteran, son of a son of a veteran, and we all served in between wars, so we're not exactly "always at war". But all bullshit aside, why would you lay that kind of blame on the people who rolled the dice (choosing between enlisting and working at DQ to pay off their double-wide) and now have to go out and do the job, versu…

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers. When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you. PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

It is the President who declares war... one guy for better or worse.

Re: The Fighter

#47

Post by rayiner »

dumb-saint wrote: post #32
ryanmarsh wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We take care of our own as best we can, and people fall through the cracks This statement disgusts me. I struggled immensely transitioning from combat to civilian life. Nobody helped until years later I got lucky and someone referred me to a preacher who was also a therapist. The VA threw pills at myself and my brothers. Some of them are dead now. Some took their own lives on purpose, others on accident living dang…

With no lack of empathy for the veterans (of all countries) and the horrible things they go through... Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Why you have "generations of veterans", even though you have by far the most powerful military force to ever have existed? There is no credible conventional threat to the US, and there is no unconventional one that can be mitigated by fighting a war. Not pa…

> Don't you guys ask yourself how come you are always at war? Why you have "generations of veterans", even though you have by far the most powerful military force to ever have existed?

We have the most powerful military ever because we've decided to take in the role of global hegemon. Now maybe that's a bad idea--but it's much bigger than just getting into specific wars that may or may not be particularly necessary. We live in a world order built on the American military maintaining the status quo.

Re: The Fighter

#48

Post by mereWords »

james-watson wrote: post #43
ryanmarsh wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> We take care of our own as best we can, and people fall through the cracks This statement disgusts me. I struggled immensely transitioning from combat to civilian life. Nobody helped until years later I got lucky and someone referred me to a preacher who was also a therapist. The VA threw pills at myself and my brothers. Some of them are dead now. Some took their own lives on purpose, others on accident living dang…

Tell me, friend, how does a group of people enforce their rights within a country against those who wish to deny those rights? ISIS wants a global Islamic caliphate, along with a Caliph at its head and Sharia law. They want this in the US, Europe, and every other country on the planet. They do not negotiate, because they believe they carry out the will of an omnipotent deity. And most importantly, they will brutally…

History, history, history.

Observed as an apparition conjured in a vacuum, ISIS really looks like such a beast, that no one could have created it or prevented it, right?

It seems like such an alien organization, that it must have always existed, but we know that's not true.

But let's suspend disbelief, cast aside rational thought, grab a gun and do something, because something like this requires direct action before it's too late!

Not really. It's just smoke an mirrors.

The country was deliberately destroyed for no reason. Iraq has been transformed into the mutilated free fire zone it is, because there was a good excuse for it, at the time, and there might never have been a better chance like that, to get away with destroying Iraq like there was at that moment.

So now panic about ISIS, right?

Panic about the bad guys.

Let people initiate opportunistic wars in 2003, so we can panic about the results in 2016?

Doesn't something about that seem a little odd?

Re: The Fighter

#49

Post by sigzero »

sjg007 wrote: post #46
dumb-saint wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers. When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you. PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

It is the President who declares war... one guy for better or worse.

No, in the United States, Congress declares war (a bunch of guys).

Re: The Fighter

#50

Post by nothrabannosir »

sjg007 wrote: post #46
dumb-saint wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, I think you misunderstood me. I don't blame the people who enlist at all. I also point my finger at the profit-makers. When I say "you guys" I mean "Americans". All of you. PS: What a weird thing to down vote this post -- it simply clarifies my initial message.

It is the President who declares war... one guy for better or worse.

Not without the blessing of congress. Not officially, at least.
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