Good article but terrible statement. "He was not even focused on the Middle East in his work" Maybe dig a little more and do your research before incorrectly misinterpreting him. He received a letter which stated that he was mandatory required to go "serve" in Israel. The letter is all over, easily acquired. So does the "I will not be complicit in genocide" statement make more sense to you now? And let's say he didn't receive that letter, we've watched enough ppl explode into pieces to push us over the edge, we are ALL indirectly responsible/complicit in this gen0cide through our tax money. May Aaron rest in power
I really liked the article and it gives an interesting view into the machine 🤔
Oh, I'm not 100 but I think the helmet is spartan and the irony of "Freedom is what we reap" became really twisted because Sparta was a totalitarian state heavily focused on the military with slaves.
I got the wobbles for a few sentences there but I knew you weren't going to do more of the Dan Lamothe style "coverage". Thank you for this background.
Iinuma was in no "daze" either. Military BS. He was sent away to the Philippines because of his anger over Japan's attacks on China. Dec 7 put him over the top.
Speaking as a retired psychotherapist -- Aaron Bushnell was NOT mentally ill. In fact, in our sociopathic state, he had more sanity and compassion than the entire ruling class in DC and their owners in Tel Aviv.
Self-immolation has been a tool of resistance for a long time. The Buddhist monk who did so had a huge impact on breaking the lies of the Vietnam War. When a government is as deranged and murderous as ours, and the media is bought and paid for by some of the most evil elements of Israel and the US Zionist psyops, resistance can be pushed to such actions.
The Buddhist monk of long ago helped shorten the war and by doing so saved many from the US war machine. Perhaps -- or at least lets hope -- Aaron's brave act does the same now. Certainly the murderous behavior of the United States is the same.
Thich Quang Duc’s act of idiocy did nothing to shorten the Vietnam war unless you think 1963-75 is a short period of time. Aaron needed help. His suicide is a tragedy, not a heroic act.
Having lived through those years, I can say you are wrong. I grew up in a very conservative Republican home in Madison, Wisconsin, which was as politically active as UC Berkley. The images of Vietnamese protest, including the monk, the up-close broadcast street execution of a detainee, the young girl burned by our napalm, photos of the raped and executed at Mai Lai had a cumulative effect at eroding any pretense of American legitimacy or honor by shocking the public to awareness of just what we were doing ... and who we were.
Is Aaron's death a tragedy? No doubt. Absolutely. Would I have tried to talk him out of it? Yes. I would have urged him to direct his moral clarity and courage in another path.
Your judging dismissal of Thich Quang Duc as an "act of idiocy" gets the award for the most culturally obtuse, callous and cruel comment of the past month. The runners up are to be found among the tawdry White House, State Dept and War Dept spokes drones. Perhaps send in your resume.
Your mastery of hysterics is inspiring, but your love of conflation is tiresome. Actually covering the Vietnam war helped shorten it, not a bizarre suicide in 1963. If you believe Aaron’s sad demise will have any effect on the forever war machine you are a not very smart hysterical conflationist. (Yes, a made up word)...just for you. Maybe take a nap, or drink some wine, meditate, whatever gets you through..and consider carefully venerating this misguided young man. People in the digital age are more prone to copycat behavior and attention seeking than ever. A mental health professional should recognize this.
Um, Pauly, all those events were central to the news coverage of Vietnam. Forget the wine or some vegetative relief, head to the library when you get a chance.
Thanks for sharing this important perspective. Bushnell's self-sacrifice led me to learn about the Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh's letter to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, in 1963, in which he not only urged King to begin speaking out against the Vietnam War but also explained the philosophical and ethical meaning self-immolation. I find the letter prescient for us today. I published this piece on the subject, today: "Self-Sacrifice is Not Suicide: Understanding Aaron Bushnell's Self-Immolation with Help from the Humanities" https://jeffreynall.substack.com/p/self-sacrifice-is-not-suicide-understanding
I haven't seen anyone make the direct connection that his branch of the military acts as FedEx for weapons deliveries to Israel, obvious part of Aaron Bushnell's motivation and final statement. USTRANSCOM uses the USAF to ship all the military aid: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/photos-c-17s-israel-carrying-munitions/
I recognize Aaron Bushnell's commitment and courage. I am sorry he didn't see a way to take his stand in some other way, but we each do what we can. Some do a great deal. Aaron Bushnell, RIP.
When I make future protest contributions to such people, and media, who are challenging society's norms, I want to make it in Aaron Bushnell's name. For the charitable contributions, I would make them in memory of Hind Rajab.
This petition is what I can do. There must be a permanent ceasefire in Gaza in order to comply with the ICJ ruling. Not with Palestinians suffering under oppressive conditions, but as a place where all live with peace and equality. It is time for Pope Francis to do more than talk. He must go to Gaza and make a stand for peace and freedom.
I live in a military town, in the shadow of WPAFB. I know so many Aaron Bushnells and you nailed it., 99% of the responsibility to clean up the messes the elites, the folk in the USAF who wear metal on their epaulettes and collars,. with 1% of power. Many have security clearances so they don't talk about what they see and hear, but their eyes... their eyes tell stories their lips cannot.
"Think of the intelligence machine as something akin to a Niagara of incoming data, and knowledge creator, and a vast data center where the network plays the central role in moving information to each stage along the way (and then must act as a giant search engine to find that information). It is all essential.. [SNIP]
Really, Old Guy, read, read, read. I know it's hard to respond to facts and information when lost in a brutal cult, but you can begin here with a portrait I did of one of your heroes and some information and facts to ponder...
I make all my writing freely available and stepping up to challenge people with poisonous thinking is a perfectly acceptable thing to do. As a narcissist, you piddle whenever someone steps up to confront your bullying.
Thank you Ken. More people need to know Bushnell's story and the stories of others like him. In cases such as these, the first draft of history is often the only draft. I offered my own contribution to this history here: https://weirdcatastrophe.substack.com/p/the-self-immolation-of-aaron-bushnell
“we have totally spurned the ability to be morally serious people, along with the vulnerability, earnestness, and humanity which this requires”
Empathy is a superpower and simultaneously almost infinitely painful.
Good article but terrible statement. "He was not even focused on the Middle East in his work" Maybe dig a little more and do your research before incorrectly misinterpreting him. He received a letter which stated that he was mandatory required to go "serve" in Israel. The letter is all over, easily acquired. So does the "I will not be complicit in genocide" statement make more sense to you now? And let's say he didn't receive that letter, we've watched enough ppl explode into pieces to push us over the edge, we are ALL indirectly responsible/complicit in this gen0cide through our tax money. May Aaron rest in power
It's more helpful to post a link to a good source for the letter than be negative.
Hi Ken,
I really liked the article and it gives an interesting view into the machine 🤔
Oh, I'm not 100 but I think the helmet is spartan and the irony of "Freedom is what we reap" became really twisted because Sparta was a totalitarian state heavily focused on the military with slaves.
Kinda 👉👃 considering 😂🤣😅
I got the wobbles for a few sentences there but I knew you weren't going to do more of the Dan Lamothe style "coverage". Thank you for this background.
The day I learned of this I also learned of this story. These two are linked in history:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masaaki_Iinuma
Bushnell was not in a daze, though the Pentagon walking into a propeller would be parable.
Iinuma was in no "daze" either. Military BS. He was sent away to the Philippines because of his anger over Japan's attacks on China. Dec 7 put him over the top.
Speaking as a retired psychotherapist -- Aaron Bushnell was NOT mentally ill. In fact, in our sociopathic state, he had more sanity and compassion than the entire ruling class in DC and their owners in Tel Aviv.
Self-immolation has been a tool of resistance for a long time. The Buddhist monk who did so had a huge impact on breaking the lies of the Vietnam War. When a government is as deranged and murderous as ours, and the media is bought and paid for by some of the most evil elements of Israel and the US Zionist psyops, resistance can be pushed to such actions.
Here's my view on Aaron's moral clarity: "Flames Of Truth Burn In A Brutal, Collapsing Empire: '"I will no longer be complicit in genocide!'" .... https://mark192.substack.com/p/flames-of-truth-burn-in-a-brutal
The Buddhist monk of long ago helped shorten the war and by doing so saved many from the US war machine. Perhaps -- or at least lets hope -- Aaron's brave act does the same now. Certainly the murderous behavior of the United States is the same.
Thich Quang Duc’s act of idiocy did nothing to shorten the Vietnam war unless you think 1963-75 is a short period of time. Aaron needed help. His suicide is a tragedy, not a heroic act.
Would he only be a hero if he had died in uniform in fire fight over seas, or would that too, also be suicide?
Having lived through those years, I can say you are wrong. I grew up in a very conservative Republican home in Madison, Wisconsin, which was as politically active as UC Berkley. The images of Vietnamese protest, including the monk, the up-close broadcast street execution of a detainee, the young girl burned by our napalm, photos of the raped and executed at Mai Lai had a cumulative effect at eroding any pretense of American legitimacy or honor by shocking the public to awareness of just what we were doing ... and who we were.
Is Aaron's death a tragedy? No doubt. Absolutely. Would I have tried to talk him out of it? Yes. I would have urged him to direct his moral clarity and courage in another path.
Your judging dismissal of Thich Quang Duc as an "act of idiocy" gets the award for the most culturally obtuse, callous and cruel comment of the past month. The runners up are to be found among the tawdry White House, State Dept and War Dept spokes drones. Perhaps send in your resume.
Your mastery of hysterics is inspiring, but your love of conflation is tiresome. Actually covering the Vietnam war helped shorten it, not a bizarre suicide in 1963. If you believe Aaron’s sad demise will have any effect on the forever war machine you are a not very smart hysterical conflationist. (Yes, a made up word)...just for you. Maybe take a nap, or drink some wine, meditate, whatever gets you through..and consider carefully venerating this misguided young man. People in the digital age are more prone to copycat behavior and attention seeking than ever. A mental health professional should recognize this.
Um, Pauly, all those events were central to the news coverage of Vietnam. Forget the wine or some vegetative relief, head to the library when you get a chance.
Thanks for sharing this important perspective. Bushnell's self-sacrifice led me to learn about the Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh's letter to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, in 1963, in which he not only urged King to begin speaking out against the Vietnam War but also explained the philosophical and ethical meaning self-immolation. I find the letter prescient for us today. I published this piece on the subject, today: "Self-Sacrifice is Not Suicide: Understanding Aaron Bushnell's Self-Immolation with Help from the Humanities" https://jeffreynall.substack.com/p/self-sacrifice-is-not-suicide-understanding
He was a mentally deranged narcissist.
And you are a cold-blooded idiot.
I sent this piece to Mr. Lamothe just for his own edification. I apologize for not asking first. 🖤
I haven't seen anyone make the direct connection that his branch of the military acts as FedEx for weapons deliveries to Israel, obvious part of Aaron Bushnell's motivation and final statement. USTRANSCOM uses the USAF to ship all the military aid: https://www.airandspaceforces.com/photos-c-17s-israel-carrying-munitions/
I recognize Aaron Bushnell's commitment and courage. I am sorry he didn't see a way to take his stand in some other way, but we each do what we can. Some do a great deal. Aaron Bushnell, RIP.
When I make future protest contributions to such people, and media, who are challenging society's norms, I want to make it in Aaron Bushnell's name. For the charitable contributions, I would make them in memory of Hind Rajab.
This petition is what I can do. There must be a permanent ceasefire in Gaza in order to comply with the ICJ ruling. Not with Palestinians suffering under oppressive conditions, but as a place where all live with peace and equality. It is time for Pope Francis to do more than talk. He must go to Gaza and make a stand for peace and freedom.
Please sign the petition and share widely.
https://chng.it/CRQ7qw4Gzn
Code pink
https://www.codepink.org/cnngaza?utm_campaign=12_15_pali_update_alert_3&utm_medium=email&utm_source=codepink
Let us also support UNRWA. If our governments won’t act in accordance with humanity, then we will. https://www.unrwausa.org/donate
These are a few small things we can do. If we can do more, let us do more.
I live in a military town, in the shadow of WPAFB. I know so many Aaron Bushnells and you nailed it., 99% of the responsibility to clean up the messes the elites, the folk in the USAF who wear metal on their epaulettes and collars,. with 1% of power. Many have security clearances so they don't talk about what they see and hear, but their eyes... their eyes tell stories their lips cannot.
"Think of the intelligence machine as something akin to a Niagara of incoming data, and knowledge creator, and a vast data center where the network plays the central role in moving information to each stage along the way (and then must act as a giant search engine to find that information). It is all essential.. [SNIP]
I bet 80-90% of it is not.
Imagine the stories you’ll be writing about the horrific mental health issues people closer to the front lines of supporting genocide…. 💔🤬
Really, Old Guy, read, read, read. I know it's hard to respond to facts and information when lost in a brutal cult, but you can begin here with a portrait I did of one of your heroes and some information and facts to ponder...
"CARTOON: Children Scream While 'Genocide' Joe Keeps Licking Ice Cream"... https://mark192.substack.com/p/cartoon-children-scream-while-genocide
Or just keep talking to yourself in the mirror.
I make all my writing freely available and stepping up to challenge people with poisonous thinking is a perfectly acceptable thing to do. As a narcissist, you piddle whenever someone steps up to confront your bullying.
Let me guess the reporter who ask that was Dorothy Dixer.