First off, the fact that this war is being fought by National Guardsmen and reservists is just a travesty.
Second, it is insane the amount of time that these good people are being forced to stay deployed.
Lastly, it is criminal that we take these people, put their boots on the ground for longer than any other group that is deployed in Iraq today, then bring them home just ONE DAY SHORT of them receiving extended deployment benefits. And the Rush Limbaugh following has the nerve to say that the vets that oppose the war are not really soldiers!
OK here’s the deal: October 2, Star Tribune Minneapolis-St. Paul reports that about 1100 troops deployed from the MSP National Guard are being brought home exactly ONE DAY SHORT of 730 days… the line at which the are either eligible or not to enroll in the Chapter 30 Montgomery GI Bill. This would have given them about $200 more per month towards their education, raising their total take-home after their service $894 per month. Never mind the fact that $894 per month is pretty pathetic as it is… but honestly I cannot imagine the minds of these people! To use the people up the way that they do, then save money and not take care of them as they have our country is just obscene. And then the right-wingnuts will say that we progressives and left-leaners “Dont support the troops” !!! How can any serviceman or woman look this administration in the face and not realize that they DONT GIVE A DAMN ABOUT YOU. In fact, if you die or are badly wounded, because of the way the benefits package works out it is considerably better for the budget.
IT’S BETTER FOR THE BUDGET IF YOU DIE OR ARE HORRIBLY WOUNDED.
The article can be found here: http://www.startribune.com/462/story/1460969.html
but there are a lot of people talking about it now, you won’t have any difficulty finding it.
I support our troops. I am moved and deeply respectful of anyone that is willing to jump into harms way for our country and our way of life. It is time for the country to realize that the best way to support our troops is not to spend another 190 billion on better armor… it is to BRING THEM HOME.
I really can agree with the intention of a lot of your points here.
Deploying troops to other countries who have never attacked us is completely unAmerican, against any idea of liberty and TOTALLY not the intention of the founders.
Thoman Jefferson said in his inaugural address March 4, 1801 “…honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none…”. Jefferson knew that by enganging in alliances that they would enventually lead us to big trouble. We started down a road during/after WWII that has lead us to where we are today. In a country where the consitution says the army is only to be raised when needed, and then only for 2 years, we now have troops occupying more than 130 countries world wide. We employ mercenaries, we have alliances with dictators. Jefferson was totally right when he suggested that a standing army was one of the biggest threats to liberty.
Here is a link to a liberal who is trying to give some scope to just the immense size of the American Imperial Armies that are occupying more than 130 countries world wide with more than 700 milirary bases and outposts.
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0115-08.htm
When you give people power, they WILL misuse it. It doesn’t matter what color of team they play for (red/blue or even libertarian). We must take the power back away from our government. We must stop them from waging war in other countries. Wars that do nothing than to create more enemies, kill our friends and family, and cost of huge amounts of money.
Great link Lup – and I so agree. There is a time and place to take up arms, particularly in the defense of your family or when your country is in for-reals mortal danger.
But we haven’t seen for-reals mortal danger for a long, long time and it is simply horrible how we use our muscle around the globe.
HOLY SHIT! We agree! LOL
I so agree with you. This country is becoming a fascist state right under our noses. When I say fascist, I don’t mean Hitler. I mean Mussolini’s Italy. Fascism is a form of corporate socialism. We now live in a corporatocracy that decides what is best for us (regardless of its effect upon us!). We must realize the tenets of fascism involve blind followers who slogan-up each day, vote for the team, and do no critical thinking. Sound like America today? It does to me. Who is this 29% who supports Bush? How about the other 71% that is just rolling over and playing dead? Folks, we’ve got to get going and make some serious changes or the black(water) shirts will be marching in our streets.
You bastards – you aren’t supposed to agree . Although in this instance it’s hard to disagree with either of you so the Kaptain will just jump in and agree as well.
He is glad, however, that he sicked Lupus on this blog because the comments you two toss back and forth are great.
Happy FYF!
@WillyP – It’s funny to me how people only associate fascism with Hitler, as opposed to understanding the notion of One Corporation, Indivisible, without Liberty or Justice for Anyone…
I think the main problem is that the sums of money and power are so very large, people cannot even get their arms around it anymore. People have been trained to give in… to feel disenfranchised and powerless, when in fact we still control the real power in this country if we’d just stop listening to the President when he says that, “[sic]the most patriotic thing we can do is go shopping.”
Perhaps what we need to do is start wearing Question Authority buttons again…
@ KK – thanks for pushing him this way – it’s great having someone here that differs with me on a lot, but not from a partisan perspective.
And happy FYF to you as well my friend!
Lupus said :”Wars that do nothing than to create more enemies, kill our friends and family, and cost of huge amounts of money.”
Yup. And, who gave the U.S. the sherrif’s badge and said to go police the world?
Good article Perk. The veterans of this nation have been sh@t upon. As one who was wounded twice (thankfully not seriously, at least in a physical sense) in another unpopular war, I have an abundance of empathy with our National Guardsmen.
The simple fact that the whole deal was built upon lies is itself upsetting. Then to treat our citizen soldiers in such a shabby way is…(for lack of a better term) deplorable.
It seems that our country has continued a trend of getting into firefights to 1. bolster the economy, or 2. ensure a supply of xxx comodity, or 3. get re-elected. None of these things are worth sending a son, daughter to die for.
**Sorry I’m late to the party.
My grandfather flew blimps over the pacific coast to protect us from Japanese submarines during WWII … that’s why I was interested in your post the other day (elsewhere). They came home to a hero’s welcome and were treated at least reasonably.
I do not understand how anyone in the service today can be pro-Bush (except for the few that WANT to be in harm’s way) because it just seems abundantly clear that the Bush administration is plenty happy to risk their lives, wellbeing, future and finances on a fool’s errands and with nothing in return. How do we support them over there… “Go Shopping?!?!?!” Are they F*&^ng kidding me? How about something REALLY SIMPLE like be willing to pay more taxes to support their armor, capabilities, finance when they return home and (should the unfortunate occur) their healthcare in the worst case? How’s that for a simple national sacrifice to take care of those that take care of us? We don’t even need to go as far as a draft to “feel the pain” of sacrifice for the middle east… just pull it out of the pockets of those a$$wipes and let’s see how long we keep the boys in blue in harm’s way. GGRRRRRrrrrr….
Well, ‘cannon fodder’ has been a real live fact for centuries. Even before there were cannons.
This regime seems to take it to an entirely new level of shoddiness.
I was a committed serviceman. Dedicated to the ‘flag and country’ concept. Hugely loyal.
When I returned to the U.S. (after nearly 3 years) I was, at first, amazed and disgusted at the reception. Not that I was a hero, but many were, just that we served and came home.
Later I learned the truth that had been so carefully kept from us while we were away. The U.S. propaganda machine was well and truly built. The power of dis- and mis-information directed at our servicemen (who like me, were believers) was huge.
Ah, well. I survived. I will forever remember my fallen friends.
Just in case I forget later, thank you for your service to our country, and therefore indirectly but no less meaningfully, to my family.
I regret that the marketing machinery of this country has produced an administration so contrary to your loyalty and to what our country should be that your gift was squandered and has been spat upon.
Shame on us for allowing it to happen once again. The gift of those that put themselves in harms way, to protect people like myself where they might have 180 degrees the opposite opinion, cannot be understated or ever forgotten.
It certainly won’t be by me or my family.