Comments on: Drafty http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/ Exposing the ugly truths about the Bush Administration. Mon, 01 Dec 2008 22:48:06 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.1.3 by: The Mahablog » It’s Easy Being Right http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-264466 Sat, 21 Jul 2007 23:45:54 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-264466 [...] Barnett really hates it when somebody reminds us that the soldiers are sons, daughters, husbands, wives, parents, or have any other identity outside of “soldier.” Awhile back he threw a snit when Nancy Pelosi referred to a 22-year-old Marine as a “young man.” [...] […] Barnett really hates it when somebody reminds us that the soldiers are sons, daughters, husbands, wives, parents, or have any other identity outside of “soldier.” Awhile back he threw a snit when Nancy Pelosi referred to a 22-year-old Marine as a “young man.” […]

]]> by: BillyX http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74307 Wed, 24 Jan 2007 20:52:27 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74307 get him out!!! SUPPORT PROJECT BUSHWHACKED <a HREF="www.viraltags.com/bushwhacked" rel="nofollow">PROJECT BUSHWHACKED</a> get him out!!!

SUPPORT PROJECT BUSHWHACKED
PROJECT BUSHWHACKED

]]> by: Doug Hughes http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74064 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 23:19:56 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74064 There is a story about a drill Sergeant with recruits in the time of Nam. He asks a recruit to name the 2 kinds of soldiers on the battlefield (answer: the quick and the dead) and he immediately replied: the poor and minorities. Funny, but also true. The sons of the rich were exempted in a number of ways from the draft. (Can you say 'deferment"?) So if we are talking about a draft, will it be totally impartial, or riddled with exemptions for the rich? I mean TOTALLY impartial! The draft lottery was based on birth dates selected at random. If you are the son of a congressman, admitted to Yale and your number comes up - tough shit. You report. Democratic congressmen want to exempt their sons as much as neocons do. So my idea does not stand a chance in hell. And I am therefore opposed to a draft that will discriminate in favor of the rich and connected. I feel the same way about bans on abortion. Back in the back of his mind, a righite Senator KNOWS that if his wife gets pregnant and it's obviously not his - or his daughter gets pregnant and it IS his, he has the money to send her to Norway or somewhere the deed can be done safely and privately. It's the gal without means who gets caught in the prohibition. There is a story about a drill Sergeant with recruits in the time of Nam. He asks a recruit to name the 2 kinds of soldiers on the battlefield (answer: the quick and the dead) and he immediately replied: the poor and minorities. Funny, but also true. The sons of the rich were exempted in a number of ways from the draft. (Can you say ‘deferment”?)

So if we are talking about a draft, will it be totally impartial, or riddled with exemptions for the rich? I mean TOTALLY impartial! The draft lottery was based on birth dates selected at random. If you are the son of a congressman, admitted to Yale and your number comes up - tough shit. You report.

Democratic congressmen want to exempt their sons as much as neocons do. So my idea does not stand a chance in hell. And I am therefore opposed to a draft that will discriminate in favor of the rich and connected.

I feel the same way about bans on abortion. Back in the back of his mind, a righite Senator KNOWS that if his wife gets pregnant and it’s obviously not his - or his daughter gets pregnant and it IS his, he has the money to send her to Norway or somewhere the deed can be done safely and privately. It’s the gal without means who gets caught in the prohibition.

]]> by: Gordon http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74024 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 16:43:54 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74024 Kevin Phillips Wealth and Democracy convinced me that our days of empire are very close to ending. The only real question is how hard the landing will be. I am (in theory) in favor of a period of mandatory gov't service. Those who want to play with guns can go to boot camp. Others can go to some Outward Bound like program, then work in hospitals, parks, homeless shelters... Lots of stuff to be done, and some of the children of privilege might learn something. Yeah, like that's going to happen. One other point: Love of things military is a very natural phase (probably hormonally driven) in most children. Most outgrow it. I bring this up because some pacifists act like it is a disease. It's not. It's normal, it can be healthy (learn discipline, get in shape). Learning to be a warrior doesn't mean you have to have wars. (This is not directed towards anyone in particular, but the tone of some of the comments brought it to mind). Kevin Phillips Wealth and Democracy convinced me that our days of empire are very close to ending. The only real question is how hard the landing will be.

I am (in theory) in favor of a period of mandatory gov’t service. Those who want to play with guns can go to boot camp. Others can go to some Outward Bound like program, then work in hospitals, parks, homeless shelters… Lots of stuff to be done, and some of the children of privilege might learn something. Yeah, like that’s going to happen.

One other point: Love of things military is a very natural phase (probably hormonally driven) in most children. Most outgrow it. I bring this up because some pacifists act like it is a disease. It’s not. It’s normal, it can be healthy (learn discipline, get in shape). Learning to be a warrior doesn’t mean you have to have wars. (This is not directed towards anyone in particular, but the tone of some of the comments brought it to mind).

]]> by: ironranger http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74022 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 16:04:13 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74022 To further numb americans to violence, cable media offers (flood the airwaves) for our viewing pleasure such fare as The Military Channel, prison life, real life murder stories in excruciating detail, The History Channel which has seemed to become all things war, young boxers beating the crap out of each other &#38; more. Gosh, if one was paranoid, one might think we were being conditioned to be not only indifferent to but enthralled with war &#38; violence. I read a lot about "family values" groups freaking out over anything having to do with sex on tv or video games. War &#38; violence, not so much. To further numb americans to violence, cable media offers (flood the airwaves) for our viewing pleasure such fare as The Military Channel, prison life, real life murder stories in excruciating detail, The History Channel which has seemed to become all things war, young boxers beating the crap out of each other & more. Gosh, if one was paranoid, one might think we were being conditioned to be not only indifferent to but enthralled with war & violence.
I read a lot about “family values” groups freaking out over anything having to do with sex on tv or video games. War & violence, not so much.

]]> by: maha http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74019 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:27:35 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74019 <i>and we haven’t had Julius Caesar yet.</i> I think we skipped Julius Caesar and went straight to Nero. and we haven’t had Julius Caesar yet.

I think we skipped Julius Caesar and went straight to Nero.

]]> by: D.R. Marvel http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74018 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:07:59 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74018 I must quibble a little with Jim from Raliegh... The "war" in Vietnam started when two batallions of Marines landed at Danang in Feb. or Mar. of '65...While there had been a concerted "build-up" the previous year, Americans were not participating in combat operations before early '65... I joined the Marines in March of '64...LBJ ran for election on his own in '64 as the "Peace" candidate... I can remember my Mother saying: "If Goldwater is elected, wew'll be in a war within a year"...So LBJ won and I was in the war a little over a year later... And, while I'm at it...Our Founding Fathers all had a real abhorrence for "Standing Armies"...They knew that the only "Soldiers" who are worth a damn are "Citizen-Soldiers" like the ones who served so well in WWII... I must quibble a little with Jim from Raliegh…

The “war” in Vietnam started when two batallions of Marines landed at Danang in Feb. or Mar. of ‘65…While there had been a concerted “build-up” the previous year, Americans were not participating in combat operations before early ‘65…

I joined the Marines in March of ‘64…LBJ ran for election on his own in ‘64 as the “Peace” candidate…

I can remember my Mother saying: “If Goldwater is elected, wew’ll be in a war within a year”…So LBJ won and I was in the war a little over a year later…

And, while I’m at it…Our Founding Fathers all had a real abhorrence for “Standing Armies”…They knew that the only “Soldiers” who are worth a damn are “Citizen-Soldiers” like the ones who served so well in WWII…

]]> by: jman http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74011 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 14:09:41 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74011 Chalmers Johnson's article, "Republic or Empire A National Intelligence Estimate on the United States" was in the January issue of <a href="http://www.harpers.org/Newsstand200701.html" rel="nofollow">Harper's</a>....(my mistake) Chalmers Johnson’s article, “Republic or Empire
A National Intelligence Estimate on the United States” was in the January issue of Harper’s….(my mistake)

]]> by: Donna http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74010 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 13:58:34 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-74010 I am thinking that there is an intentional disconnect between our military and our larger society. The larger public, to BushCo, are targeted, passive consumers of marketable 'security' delivered by the 'ship of state' piloted by the decider himself. Bush has demonstrated that he does not understand democracy as much as he understands corporatocracy. In fact, BushCo most reminds me of Enron . Those at the top lock up decision-making and huge monies for themselves, build 'brand name' on hype and inside deals and untenable debt, use lies to create espanding markets [wars] to keep the scheme going [hiding failure in a complexity of 'new products'], screw over the subjects of their power/money game [California energy consumers, Iraqis, American public], and blithely risk the future of their employees [soldiers] and investors [citizen taxpayers]. Enron created its power by manipulating the energy market while BushCo created its power by manipulating the 'national security' market. If BushCo attains oil control in the middle east, they know that those in the top circle are secure for life and especially able to game the world-wide market. American taxpayers, meanwhile, are free to foot the bill for generations to come, but not free to be in on decision-making, which might be demanded should the whole country be on a war-footing. I am thinking that there is an intentional disconnect between our military and our larger society. The larger public, to BushCo, are targeted, passive consumers of marketable ’security’ delivered by the ’ship of state’ piloted by the decider himself. Bush has demonstrated that he does not understand democracy as much as he understands corporatocracy.

In fact, BushCo most reminds me of Enron . Those at the top lock up decision-making and huge monies for themselves, build ‘brand name’ on hype and inside deals and untenable debt, use lies to create espanding markets [wars] to keep the scheme going [hiding failure in a complexity of ‘new products’], screw over the subjects of their power/money game [California energy consumers, Iraqis, American public], and blithely risk the future of their employees [soldiers] and investors [citizen taxpayers].

Enron created its power by manipulating the energy market while BushCo created its power by manipulating the ‘national security’ market. If BushCo attains oil control in the middle east, they know that those in the top circle are secure for life and especially able to game the world-wide market.
American taxpayers, meanwhile, are free to foot the bill for generations to come, but not free to be in on decision-making, which might be demanded should the whole country be on a war-footing.

]]> by: marijam http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-73991 Mon, 22 Jan 2007 11:30:37 +0000 http://www.mahablog.com/2007/01/21/drafty/#comment-73991 Whenever a Republican accuses a Democrat of not wanting to win this thing, the Democrat should look the Republican straight in the eye and say, "Well, you don't want to win this thing either. Otherwise, you would urge your party to institute a draft in order to get the numbers of troops necessary to end this war in Iraq." No political will you say? Well, I thought this war was supposed to be for freedom and democracy and so we don't have to fight them over here. Not important enough to call a draft? Thought so. Tell me about how Democrats don't want to win again. Whenever a Republican accuses a Democrat of not wanting to win this thing, the Democrat should look the Republican straight in the eye and say, “Well, you don’t want to win this thing either. Otherwise, you would urge your party to institute a draft in order to get the numbers of troops necessary to end this war in Iraq.” No political will you say? Well, I thought this war was supposed to be for freedom and democracy and so we don’t have to fight them over here. Not important enough to call a draft? Thought so. Tell me about how Democrats don’t want to win again.

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