(Untitled)

[benchilada]

You ever wonder if it's better to say that you support the soldiers, but not the war or the army? Or the army, but not the war and soldiers? What exactly are the exact semantics?

Watch this--and thank

Comments

[city_of_dis]

There's a part of me that says, "Shit, we need to hit the streets - bitching and finger-pointing online won't stop this," but another part of me says "How many protests were you a part of over the last 6 or so years? What good did any of them do? What good was done by all of Sheehan's protets? It all falls on deaf ears."

Obviously, the Dems we elected in November have no testes, either. What, then?

[benchilada]

Dude, it's been five months.
Give them a bit more time.
It's hard to be the ones thrown into the cage with the bear.

[city_of_dis]

True, true. They've got until I'm in the voting booth to restore my confidence in them, but...that's going to take a lot and I'm SO ready to consider third options at this point.

[theweaselking]

There are no third options. There are only Democrats and Republicans. Your entire electoral system is built around the premise that only two parties can exist, and a third party can *only* be either irrelevant, or a spoiiler causing the party closest to it's own views to lose.

You're not a fascist. Vote Democrat, or your vote goes to a Republican by default. Period. Think the system sucks? It does. The American electoral system was backwards and obsolete a century ago - now it's completely archaic. Good luck changing it, though, since in order to do so within the system you need one of the two parties to win a vast majority *and then* cripple the machinery that allowed them to win their vast majority, guaranteeing a loss of power in the next election.

[auroracita]

What. Little. Fuckers.

Now, what do we do?

[bdar]

What we asked the Majority Cowardice Party to do in 2006--get the troops the hell out of there. Not only because they shouldn't be trapped over there in Iraq, but that increasingly the Iraqis shouldn't be trapped over there with them...the morale and discipline is only going to break down further as more war-traumatized twenty year-olds go blood simple.

As for us...I don't know. M-A is right in that we can't get anybody with the capacity to influence policy to listen to simple human reason. Armed insurrection seems the only effective option, but it could also probably be a point of no return for the nation.

[auroracita]

Gear up, me hearties, yo ho.

This nation was founded as a place of the people. It is no longer that. It is a place for the rich to rule those they deem to be less than them. It is a place where the poor breed like rabbits while the middle class can't afford to because they're paying for the children of the poor. It is a place where an idiot can be president if he's rich enough, the middle class is disappearing, and 85% of Americans can disapprove of a president and a war and STILL be the minority.

Governments should fear their people. Terrorism is not the answer. A full out coup may be.

[zentiger]

It is a place where the poor breed like rabbits while the middle class can't afford to because they're paying for the children of the poor. It is a place where an idiot can be president if he's rich enough, the middle class is disappearing, and 85% of Americans can disapprove of a president and a war and STILL be the minority.

Wait, what?

Governments should fear their people. Terrorism is not the answer. A full out coup may be.

Don't put your trust in revolution. They call it that because it just keeps coming around and dropping you in the cacky.

[pseudonymjones]

I wonder how well the audio would sync up if it was dubbed over some 9/11 footage?

[benchilada]

Get on it.

[city_of_dis]

Hot DAMN I love you.

[jimmahgee]

HELL YEAH SHOOTING PEOPLE RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUULLESSS

[benchilada]

So...next Prime Minister?
Tell me what you WANT him/her to be and what they'll REALLY be.

[jimmahgee]

I want them to address rising levels of violence and poverty, poor education and the nuisance of every immigrant being illiterate and unable to speak English. I know the latter sounds like nitpicking but it's a nuisance and helps to segregate immigrants from... well, anyone who speaks English. And that's a problem, one that I feel could be addressed - especially with the rising number of people coming here. In the broader sense I would of course like the Prime Minister to be charismatic, resourceful and in touch with the populace. I'd like him him to be honest, or rather a good enough liar that he appears honest. I'd like him to do me proud because much like Americans feel of Bush, Blair is kind of shameful

[benchilada]

Man, I love you...

[_nefertari_]

It's so easy to say what we would or wouldn't do if we were in a soldier's shoes. It's easy to point fingers and blame.

Fact of the matter is, it's not so simple and it's certainly not a black and white situation.

I've been seeing a man who was a Staff Sgt. for the Spec. Ops Army Rangers. (He's out due to getting his knee shot and sitting in a hole for 30+ hours waiting to be rescued) Believe me, what I thought I knew isn't even close. What these men and women are going through changes them forever and they say and do things that don't even make sense to them. War is an awful ugly thing to endure.

[benchilada]

I've relatives who've been there and friends as well and from what I've gathered this isn't really how people act all the time.

That having been said, I've heard of some pretty fucked-up things going on over there, enough to balance all the good things I've heard from people who are back now.

There's something wrong with a system of warfare that encourages this sort of celebration. And no, I'll never pretend to know what it's like to wonder if today will be the day that an IED blows up your truck. At some point, though, some soldier has to say, "Wait, if we rocket this mosque, isn't it gonna make MORE people want to kill us?"

[_nefertari_]

Yes, common sense would tell one that, however, I don't think all are playing with a full deck, obviously. I suppose it's frustration because a soldier can't enter a mosque to pull out the enemy. I'm guessing there are a ton of reasons we don't know about, not having been in those shoes.

People do dumb things when they're scared.

[_nefertari_]

One more thing...terrorists like to hide their weapons in mosques. (Just got that info first hand from the Ranger-man). ;)