US Military.... why?

reply to post by pollovonfollo


International law is a joke to everyone who's given it enough thought. But, firstly, those people from the Balkans who are at the Hague couldn't have been there without American-led NATO intervention. That's the fact of the matter.

But beyond that, international law and the UN are failures. Collective security was seen to be a failure nearly a century ago, because it demands that all nations respond to what's deemed a threat in the same way, with the same measure of response. That assumes that all nations share the same risk, and that obviously isn't true. So there is breaks down and never recovers. It happened in Greece in 1923, and, more stunningly, it happened in Ethiopia in 1935. The UN is, at this point, entirely a tautological structure. When strong nations want to listen to it and use it, it's important. When they don't, it's not. Pointless. The UN has no job, it has no purpose; it just asks for money sometimes and wants a ride- like that cousin we all have. And that's the authority behind international law? You think a a system like that can work?

And ya know, it makes me partly ashamed to be an American. Why? The saddest part is this dumb**** Wilsonianism spread from the US to Europe, when we could've been spreading normal looking jeans or female armpit shaving. Disraeli, Metternich, Bismark- they all must be rolling in their graves. If you would've told a 19th century European statesman that in the future, they and their constituents would view war as an engagement where one side was "right" and the other was "wrong" they would've looked at you in disbelief. So would your average educated Englishman or Frenchman. War was seen as a natural result of competing and clashing national interests. But that ****ing Wilson. Worst ***hole ever, now everyone is an armchair moralist.

But you don't really want to talk about IR, do you? You just want a soapbox.

reply to post by pollovonfollo


I also consider international law a joke.

As for the Hague courts, there wouldn't be a Hague court if not for the US.

You have a bug up your butt over the behavior of the US. That irritation is entirely different from trying to suggest a differing moral response to events that require military action.

You have a political problem - solve it politically.

You have a military problem - that means some folks need killing. War must be efficient, and I don't give a fuzzy rat's ass what your moral standpoint is, there's just no nice way to kill your enemies.

To be most merciful, you must be most ruthless. Get to the enemy, bring everything you have, overload your enemy, kill him in the greatest numbers, as efficiently as you can, in the greatest concentrations, and the war is quickly over.

There is a number of enemy, that must be killed before they quit. No one but the enemy determines what that number is.

The faster you reach that number, the quicker its over.

Morality in war?

Victory.

Not persistence.

Originally posted by mf_luder
Hello all.

I am sick of seeing the bashing going on in other places about the US military and how we all supposedly act and treat other human beings.

I want your opinions. I want to know what you really think about the US military, why you think that way and what kind of encounter you've had with us to back your point up.

I will refrain from unleashing my rants on my own thread. So...

Again, tell me what you think, why you think that way and provide me with either PERSONAL EXPERIENCES or FACTS to give weight to your side of the issue.

Thanks.

Great idea for a thread sir! I too could very easily "go on a rant" however I too shall refrain! Watching Obama's address last night, I could not help but let out a huge *sigh* (not of relief) when he turned to Gitmo, and the alleged "torture". When an individual or group, no matter the size, attacks this nation... ALL RULES ARE OFF!

There is a sign on a country road here just outside of town, obviously they have a family member in the Military...the sign simply reads:

"This is the LAND of the FREE...BECAUSE of the BRAVE"

Amen, and Godspeed to all the Men and Women who serve this Great Nation!

reply to post by glimmerman


Thanks for your support kind sir!

reply to post by glimmerman


"This is the LAND of the FREE...BECAUSE of the BRAVE"

More like the land of:

Slavery.
False Flag Operations
Consumerism
High School Shootings
Obesity
Illiteracy
Poverty
Genocide Of It's Native Population
Corporate Controle Of Government
Foreig Debt

Because of:

Corporate Controle Of Government
People Willing To Let Themselves Be Tools
Consumerism
CitiGroup
Corporate Greed
Corruption Put In A System (Lobbyism and Election Funding)
Media Brainwashing (FOXNews)

Im no fan of Michael Moore, but here's a glimps of what the U.S could have if it wasn't so damn stupid that they let the corporate bastards let you play war so they can make money. The point isn't to make $$$$$ but to preserve the population, the U.S has, I mean had no real enemies but still are fighting wars all over the world. How hard can it possibly be to se the connection?
And don't come blahblah'ing about 9/11, after killing a couple houndred thousand in Iraq and Afghanistan your thirst for revenge should be sattisfied, even if you just made yourself a bigger target through doing so.
And also all your b.s about how when in a situation you just do what is necessary, you should never have been in that situation in the first place, it's that easy.
Good luck to you guys in the army, I wish you and your loved ones the best.

Originally posted by SkurkNilsen
More like the land of:

Slavery.
False Flag Operations
Consumerism
High School Shootings
Obesity
Illiteracy
Poverty
Genocide Of It's Native Population
Corporate Controle Of Government
Foreig Debt

Please list countries that have none of those things. I'm sure you'll find that none of them are solely found in the US.

Because of:

Corporate Controle Of Government
People Willing To Let Themselves Be Tools
Consumerism
CitiGroup
Corporate Greed
Corruption Put In A System (Lobbyism and Election Funding)
Media Brainwashing (FOXNews)

Same as above. Also, it's worth pointing out that none of these are caused by the military so I'm not sure I see the relevance between those and the topic of the thread. But it's late here so perhaps that is the cause of my confusion there.

As for not having enemies prior to the wars, I'd say it's a safe bet that we did. People all over the world hated us before the war in Iraq and they will continue to hate us long after it's over. The problem seems to be that we responded at all to the attacks against our country and our people. Perhaps if we had all just cowered in the corners after 9/11 the world wouldn't have such a big problem with us.

And no, socialized healthcare is not the answer to our problems. Socialized anything isn't the answer to our problems.

Bump

To answer the OP's first Thread Qusetions in the form of:

WikiLeaks Video Released

Which along with others mentioned here, may explain why some feel unsure of the men who represent their countries.

Elf