-----Original Message----- Steven McGraw [mailto:stmcgraw at vt.edu]
>thoroughly indoctrinated and highly motivated professionals
>
>How many military enlisted do you actually know personally?
Current enlisted personnel? None. Former enlisted personnel? Many. By "thoroughly indoctrinated and highly motivated" I am not referring to bloodthirsty warriors who spend their off hours reading Clausewitz and Ernst Junger. I mean ideologically reliable volunteers who are so immersed in the standard American mythology that they can be counted upon to follow orders and not question the justice of our imperial adventures. Among veterans of my acquaintance, only Vietnam draftees, and a couple of African-American vets who served more recently, do not fall within the category I described. Perhaps my experience is not representative, but I doubt it.