I understand that people who join usually intend to serve their country, but I just find it hard to view most of what our leadership chooses to do as being representative of that.FEOS wrote:
I had to delete what I first wrote. I realized you didn't mean to demean those who serve...
Our military isn't used by policy makers in a consistent manner, but those who serve always serve their nation and it's interests, just as those who serve in a purely defensive force (if such a creature even exists) do.
The politicians who get to decide what our military does seem to be more focused on their own profit than in any true protection of our country.
Good point. That would also explain the behavior of many Russians I've encountered online with regard to this conflict...FEOS wrote:
I'd say the current conflict (Libya) is benefiting Russia more than anyone. As long as the flow of oil from Libya remains in question, they are the supplier of choice for Europe. It's in their interest for this conflict to continue--probably why they are starting to balk at the expansion beyond the NFZ, as it tips things beyond a stalemate.
Well, we also seem to have this unrealistic view of war. People bitch and moan when civilians die, but it doesn't make much sense. It's fucking war. Of course people are going to die left and right.FEOS wrote:
Interventionism without clear purpose is generally more expensive than it's worth--since without a clear purpose, you don't know why you're intervening to begin with. That, and constantly changing goals lead to quagmires and money pits--the end result of most Western interventions over the past several decades.
The public needs to more realistically assess war for what it is. If they want to support it, they've got to own up to the fact that a lot of "collateral damage" will be involved. If they want to avoid said damage, then you can't support the war to begin with.
It almost reminds me of this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Battle_of_Bull_Run
The retreat was relatively orderly up to the Bull Run crossings, but it was poorly managed by the Union officers. A Union wagon was overturned by artillery fire on a bridge spanning Cub Run Creek and incited panic in McDowell's force. As the soldiers streamed uncontrollably toward Centreville, discarding their arms and equipment, McDowell ordered Col. Dixon S. Miles's division to act as a rear guard, but it was impossible to rally the army short of Washington. In the disorder that followed, hundreds of Union troops were taken prisoner. The wealthy elite of nearby Washington, including congressmen and their families, expecting an easy Union victory, had come to picnic and watch the battle. When the Union army was driven back in a running disorder, the roads back to Washington were blocked by panicked civilians attempting to flee in their carriages.
Picnicking at a fucking war... unbelievable.