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Message
We Need a Drastic Assessment/Revision of the Use of Our Military in Foreign Policy
Posted on 10/24/20 at 5:29 am
Posted on 10/24/20 at 5:29 am
In 1821, John Adams warned that Americans should “Not go abroad in search of monsters to destroy”. Adams proclaimed the United States “the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all” but “the champion and vindicator only of her own.” We have turned away from this sage advice and sought enemies throughout the world – and the last two decades have shown the recklessness of this hubris. If you stop and think about it, what have we accomplished? What do we have to show for it, except a more uncertain and unstable world?
Like many of you, my entire time on active duty was consumed with the War on Terror, primarily in the middle east and Afghanistan. I realized on my first deployment in the mid-2000s, and on each one after, that we were a part of an enterprise with no real goal, and our approach in each of these countries, at all stages of the operations, was incredibly bloated and unguided.
The Facts
The United States has conducted combat operations in 24 different countries since 2001 and remains officially at war in at least seven. But by our country’s own standards, the War on Terror has failed - the number of Sunni Islamist militants around the world has quadrupled between 2001 and 2018.
The taxpayer bill for these wars is almost $6 Trillion – money that could have been spend on infrastructure, education, clean energy, public health, or to pay off our national debt. The burdens of these wars fell disproportionately on U.S. soldiers and their families. Since 9/11, 2.77 million service members have served 5.4 million deployments. More than 60,000 U.S. service members have been killed or wounded. Many have come home with permanent, life-altering injuries. 83% of post-9/11 veterans have post-traumatic stress disorder.
How Do We Fix It?
The only remedy? I believe we have to elect leaders who will reckon with the scale of the disaster that we have helped inflict on the world—and on our own country—through the past three presidencies.
Statistically only 1% of you have served in uniform. But any taxpayer should feel obligated to right this ship – you don’t have to be on the front lines to see that 20 years of misguided (or unguided) DoD policy, at the helm of the Executive branch, has become more dangerous to our national security than any terrorist plot before or since 9/11.
Like many of you, my entire time on active duty was consumed with the War on Terror, primarily in the middle east and Afghanistan. I realized on my first deployment in the mid-2000s, and on each one after, that we were a part of an enterprise with no real goal, and our approach in each of these countries, at all stages of the operations, was incredibly bloated and unguided.
The Facts
The United States has conducted combat operations in 24 different countries since 2001 and remains officially at war in at least seven. But by our country’s own standards, the War on Terror has failed - the number of Sunni Islamist militants around the world has quadrupled between 2001 and 2018.
The taxpayer bill for these wars is almost $6 Trillion – money that could have been spend on infrastructure, education, clean energy, public health, or to pay off our national debt. The burdens of these wars fell disproportionately on U.S. soldiers and their families. Since 9/11, 2.77 million service members have served 5.4 million deployments. More than 60,000 U.S. service members have been killed or wounded. Many have come home with permanent, life-altering injuries. 83% of post-9/11 veterans have post-traumatic stress disorder.
How Do We Fix It?
The only remedy? I believe we have to elect leaders who will reckon with the scale of the disaster that we have helped inflict on the world—and on our own country—through the past three presidencies.
Statistically only 1% of you have served in uniform. But any taxpayer should feel obligated to right this ship – you don’t have to be on the front lines to see that 20 years of misguided (or unguided) DoD policy, at the helm of the Executive branch, has become more dangerous to our national security than any terrorist plot before or since 9/11.
This post was edited on 10/24/20 at 5:37 am
8
Posted on 10/24/20 at 5:37 am to Bushman
in short,
Vote Trump
Vote Trump
Posted on 10/24/20 at 5:47 am to Bushman
Trump
Posted on 10/24/20 at 5:52 am to Bushman
quote:
that we were a part of an enterprise with no real goal,
You were certainly part of a goal, the enrichment of career politicians, high ranking officers and their masters in international high finance that control the military industrial complex.
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:02 am to Strannix
True - my question is, will we hold them accountable?
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:20 am to Bushman
i don't see any paradigm shift on the horizon
us military mission will remain the same - Globalist Police Force paid for by the US taxpayer
us military mission will remain the same - Globalist Police Force paid for by the US taxpayer
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:21 am to Bushman
The drastic reassessment you crave has already happened. Donald Trump has shifted America away from foreign entanglements.
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:22 am to Bushman
quote:
True - my question is, will we hold them accountable?
absolutely not
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:42 am to Bushman
The right answer is somewhere between Isolationism and Interventionism. It’s obvious that invading countries and attempting to occupy them until they develop a stable ideal government is extremely foolish and waste countless lives and treasure. Doing the bidding of globalists by taking out uncooperative leaders, such as what occurred in Libya, has to stop. However, we cannot give up our sprawling global military infrastructure and blue water navy and recluse. Ever since WW2 when we replaced the British Empire we have enjoyed the economic and geopolitical advantages of being the global superpower by having a presence globally. If we give that up then we simply leave a vacuum for countries like China to fill we succumb to their will. Isolation is not a viable option in the post WW2 global economy.
Posted on 10/24/20 at 9:45 am to Penrod
quote:
The drastic reassessment you crave has already happened. Donald Trump has shifted America away from foreign entanglements.
This isn’t true. Trump has increased our entanglements by creating military alliances in East Asia to counter China— which I support by the way. What he has done is avoided creating unnecessary wars and conflict.
Posted on 10/24/20 at 10:29 am to Bushman
Also revise foreign aid. Send more products/food rather than cash.
Products made in America.
I’m convinced several dems. enriched themselves off of those pallets of cash sent to Iran.
Products made in America.
I’m convinced several dems. enriched themselves off of those pallets of cash sent to Iran.
Posted on 10/24/20 at 10:31 am to Bushman
Slightly off topic. I remember the bulk of CGSC focusing on Nagorno-Karabakh in 2010.
Now that's the center of the current conflict in the news.
Now that's the center of the current conflict in the news.
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