I'm afraid that Trump will fire all reasonable generals and replace them with generals that'll be fine with ordering soldiers to shoot non-violent protesters.
I'm hoping he puts people in who have actually seen combat. I'm also hoping he listens to Tulsi Gabbard on these things. I just really, really want to stop the dying. For energy. All of it is for energy. How much is life worth to these people? Not very much.
I don’t see that human life is very important to Trump, after his comments about letting Netanyahu “finish the job”, but maybe it’s just that he doesn’t see those people as human. It doesn’t matter though. With him in the WH it won’t take long for Israel to kill off the rest of those poor people, or most of them.
Great article! I wanted to reinforce one part of it while articulating some constructive dissent with another.
You are absolutely right that any generals fired (or purged, or otherwise dismissed) will find ample opportunities in the private sector. That is a locus of profound corruption to which too many have deferred for too long. I discussed the pattern of military-industrial corruption at some further length in an article last year that both specifically addressed the war in Ukraine and a particular weapons system that takes the proverbial cake: https://shahidbuttar.substack.com/p/anybody-seen-a-fighter-plane.
That said, I had a question with respect to an earlier part of your analysis. You note the importance of civilian command over the military, which is a bedrock feature of modern democracy. What does it mean, however, when the military grows more conscious of the human rights principles that—in a sane country—we would normally expect civilian leaders to insist upon? In other words, when the military is the source of accountability constraining imperial politicians, should the analysis shift?
So has your view changed now that Trump has proposed a Christian Nationalist for SoD who has stated that "attacks" (that is, public criticism) on "Christians, conservatives, patriots and everyday Americans will stop on DAY ONE" under a Trump-led Department of Defense (DoD)?
And didn't Trump long ago stating that he could put US troops on the streets of America in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act give you pause that perhaps the proposed "purging" of the Joint Chiefs might not be business as usual and an actual threat of a military takeover of civilian government lead by Trump?
"I’m skeptical as to whether Waltz (or Trump) can shorten that list much past Ukraine, but it will be interesting to see play out."
If they begin to describe the situation honestly, that will be a start.
I am with you Ken. Call a halt to endless war.
✊
I'm afraid that Trump will fire all reasonable generals and replace them with generals that'll be fine with ordering soldiers to shoot non-violent protesters.
Like he said he would? Yeah me too.
I'm hoping he puts people in who have actually seen combat. I'm also hoping he listens to Tulsi Gabbard on these things. I just really, really want to stop the dying. For energy. All of it is for energy. How much is life worth to these people? Not very much.
I don’t see that human life is very important to Trump, after his comments about letting Netanyahu “finish the job”, but maybe it’s just that he doesn’t see those people as human. It doesn’t matter though. With him in the WH it won’t take long for Israel to kill off the rest of those poor people, or most of them.
Great article! I wanted to reinforce one part of it while articulating some constructive dissent with another.
You are absolutely right that any generals fired (or purged, or otherwise dismissed) will find ample opportunities in the private sector. That is a locus of profound corruption to which too many have deferred for too long. I discussed the pattern of military-industrial corruption at some further length in an article last year that both specifically addressed the war in Ukraine and a particular weapons system that takes the proverbial cake: https://shahidbuttar.substack.com/p/anybody-seen-a-fighter-plane.
That said, I had a question with respect to an earlier part of your analysis. You note the importance of civilian command over the military, which is a bedrock feature of modern democracy. What does it mean, however, when the military grows more conscious of the human rights principles that—in a sane country—we would normally expect civilian leaders to insist upon? In other words, when the military is the source of accountability constraining imperial politicians, should the analysis shift?
So has your view changed now that Trump has proposed a Christian Nationalist for SoD who has stated that "attacks" (that is, public criticism) on "Christians, conservatives, patriots and everyday Americans will stop on DAY ONE" under a Trump-led Department of Defense (DoD)?
And didn't Trump long ago stating that he could put US troops on the streets of America in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act give you pause that perhaps the proposed "purging" of the Joint Chiefs might not be business as usual and an actual threat of a military takeover of civilian government lead by Trump?