Hard to know where to put the opprobrium for our current dismal war -- the military, the political leaders, the civilian "dealers" (Boeing, GE, etc), the neo-cons, the obsequious media and politicians, as you point out. Whoever developed and adopted the technology to kill people at night from 8,000 miles away would be my choice.
BobW
--- Carl Remick <carlremick at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 9/16/07, Andy F <andy274 at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > On 9/16/07, Carl Remick <carlremick at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > > [I see a noteworthy new criterion has been added
> to liberals'
> > > definition of success regarding Iraq -- i.e.
> pounding the shit out of
> > > MoveOn. Yes, Frank Rich indeed presents a
> Profile in Courage and
> > > stands as the very embodiment of a responsible
> grown-up.]
> >
> > I noticed this too. It seemed to start with the
> interminable
> > denouncements by Reps before the testimony,
> followed by disavowals by
> > Dems, followed by great concern on NPR that the
> general's feelings may
> > had been hurt. A stupid cheap shot it may have
> been, but Jesus H.,
> > you'd think Petraeus was some sensitive 8 year old
> on the playground
> > from the concern you hear.
>
> The more cheap shots, the better. During the
> Vietnam era, public
> discourse was thick with the acrid odor of cheap
> shots at the
> military, and a good thing it was. The aim was to
> ridicule the
> military as savage and inept, strip away its
> pretenses of public
> service and honor, and express utter contempt for it
> as an
> institution. Vietnam protests wasted no time
> expressing the slightest
> degree of respect for the nation's armed forces.
>
> Today, public discourse is positively constipated
> with veneration for
> the military. Even the media's bolder voices of
> dissent, like Chris
> Matthews or Keith Olbermann, feel the need
> ritualistically to
> genuflect when they interview some four-star
> blowhard: "Thank you,
> sir, for your service to our country!" Wrong. All
> officer-corps
> personnel should feel no doubt that public sentiment
> increasingly sees
> them as war criminals, connivers and dolts.
>
> Four years years ago, the US military strutted on
> the world stage with
> "shock and awe." Today, using the faux
> ingenuousness of Gen.
> Pretentious (Mister Rogers' evil nephew) the
> military is trying to
> slink off that stage and evade all responsibility
> for the Iraq fiasco
> with shuck and jive. They should be hooted and
> jeered at as they go,
> not saluted.
>
> Carl
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