And in the news, Marco Rubio has introduced a bill to “counter adversarial financial systems,” because “China, Russia, and Iran use alternate financial systems to evade U.S. sanctions.”
“Sanction enforcement is vital to enforcing our laws,” writes Rubio.
As Caitlin Johnstone put it, “‘Enforcing our laws.’ These Washington swamp monsters really, truly believe they own the planet.”
And Lindsey Graham has introduced “A joint resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against the Islamic Republic of Iran for threatening the national security of the United States through the development of nuclear weapons.” The quote, straight from the title of the bill. Can you say, WMD 2.0?
These lunatics really are hell-bent on setting off a nuclear war. We can see clearly enough that if Bibi nukes Lebanon, Syria and Iran, we’ll defend him to our own peril. Fools abound. How anyone can look at this beautiful and amazing celestial globe and want to do anything but offer it the highest stewardship possible befuddles me beyond belief.
Make a world where we stop motivating enemies to seek parity in terror!
I hear so much about the Samson option: Israeli nuclear detonations on "them". The reality is Hezbollah is so well dug in that Israel could expend all their war heads on bunker busting and Hezbollah still shot them up!
Bunker busting nukes even a small IDF amount would ruin huge parts of the earth!
Since the post goes back in time, I was taken back even further to Merton's words in “New Seeds of Contemplation” (1962). I believe a peace loving atheist can spot easily enough the truth of which he writes—perhaps easier than many a Christian in America. He wrote:
“It does not even seem to enter our minds that there might be some incongruity in praying to the God of peace, the God who told us to love one another as He had loved us, who warned us that they who took the sword would perish by it, and at the same time planning to annihilate not thousands but millions of civilians and soldiers, men, women and children without discrimination, even with the almost infallible certainty of inviting the same annihilation for ourselves!
“It may make sense for a sick man to pray for health and then take medicine, but I fail to see any sense at all in his praying for health and then drinking poison.
“When I pray for peace I pray God to pacify not only the Russians and the Chinese but above all my own nation and myself.
“When I pray for peace I pray to be protected not only from the Reds but also from the folly and blindness of my own country.
“When I pray for peace, I pray not only that the enemies of my country may cease to want war, but above all that my own country will cease to do the things that make war inevitable.
“In other words, when I pray for peace I am not just praying that the Russians will give up without a struggle and let us have our own way. I am praying that both we and the Russians may somehow be restored to sanity and learn how to work out our problems, as best we can, together, instead of preparing for global suicide.”
I doubt Merton, who clearly saw the catastrophe of war and our role in it, could have imagined how deadly we could inflict sanctions on the world—though it wouldn’t surprise him … I have my own word I wish would go away used by many Christians these days—prayer warriors. I pray Americans stop drinking the poison of militarism and genuflecting to the monsters sitting atop the “rules based order.”
Venezuelan refugees are popping up all over the place and we are told immigrants are an awful thing but we are sanctioning Venezuela as much as possible, driving people to leave.
American alleged Christians are oblivious to these 2 views in their Bibles since the US is the biggest arms merchant in the history of Nations making a killing off the Ukraine and Gaza WARS and other conflicts in this Material World. They are not Pro-Life for living people killed in US WARS with US weapons.
"This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying: 'Not by military force and not by physical strength, but by My spirit,' says the Lord of Hosts." Zechariah 4:6
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Matthew 5:9
Naturally, they would never think these words of Christ Jesus applies to them. They're not addressed to those Atheists who do not believe in God, but to those who think they do;
You hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, This people draws close to me with their mouth, and honours me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matthew 15:7-9
Ray, I've always found it peculiar that "pro-life" advocates generally advocate for the death penalty in our flawed judicial system and dominate states like Texas (where I lived most of my adult life), which had (and as far as I know still has) an infamously deplorable foster care system. After you are out of the womb, you're on your own. Then the pro-choice crowd, many of whom won't budge on time restrictions on abortions, advocate for no death penalty, but vote for every war. Blessed are the peacemakers, though if in America at best you'll be marginalized and at worst, assassinated.
Bill, I recall hearing that term - which still makes me angry every time I hear it - at about the same time you did. I was working in a very large aerospace company. Hearing the easy way it was spoken by the soft-handed "executive" in his expensive suit caused me to silently mouth a "F U" to him.
The men who served under me were sailors - trained for war but not one of them wanted to be in a war. Several had already - one having been a gunner on a PBR in the brown water Navy in Vietnam, and one of. the most haunted - an airborne trooper of several battles who later joined the Navy.
What can we expect from a country whose "leaders" cheer a mass murderer on the floor of the US Capitol and support genocide?
Yeah!!!!!Thank you for reprinting that! It's important for us to stop thinking about endless wars, and think about ways this country can help its citizens, as opposed to ordering other nations around. I was just telling my sons, after sending an article on military suicide, which is way higher than war deaths, that in the 30 plus years that I had a bookstore all the former soldiers that I came to know were emotionally damaged from their stint in the Viet Nam war and Afghanistan et al. It didn't matter if they were enlisted or officers, all of them carried emotional hurt and a sort of guilt over what they had been required to do. My nephew who was sent to Iraq was trained in computers and radio etc. so he didn't shoot anyone, but his platoon did, and he came back emotionally damaged by what he saw us do. It has taken years for him to get well, but he is much better now. I think it's very important for US citizens to understand just what we have been doing to our young people - especially those from poorer communities who join up to get work or to get trained in a skill. None of those happy kids I've seen in early photos of them before they went to war, came out of the maelstrom we sent them into with their souls unscarred. They aren't what they started out to be, unless they were one of the rare few who like killing. It's time we woke up to that fact.
I am not a military historian! I am German and the son of A German soldier who served four years in WW I and a relatively short stint in WW II because of age and his skill as a mechanic was needed by industry. As to the question of the best army, I do have some memories of the “German” perception of the GIs that occupied Germany and never left. The German biased view that I encountered as a child was not complimentary to put it mildly. My father served two years in France and two years in Russia during the first war and always expressed the highest regard for both “enemies”; he hated the dehumanization of military service and had little respect for the officers (and especially chaplains). German military thinking pre-world war one should be assessed from the geographic perspective of Germany. For centuries the states of Germany before 1870 and then the unified German federal state till 1914. The country had to contend with frequent invasions from the East and the West. One should consider how the USA would plan if it would have to face a similar situation - a powerful and revengeful Mexico and a growing aggressive Canada. I am pretty sure U.S. military thinking would probably be not much different from the German perspective which after Bismarck induced the Kaiser to commission a plan to prepare for a two front war - the Schlieffen Plan. WW II was a completely different situation, militarily and politically. For a very good assessment of that war I suggest reading WHEN TITANS CLASHED - HOW THE RED ARMY STOPPED HITLER (revised and expanded edition 2015) by David M. Glantz & Jonathan M. House. One quote from their in-depth study: “On the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy invasion, a U.S. news magazine featured a cover photo of General Dwight D. Eisenhower who was labeled as the man who defeated Hitler. If anyone one man deserved that label, it was Not ( my emphasis) Eisenhower but Zhukov, Vasilevsky, or perhaps Stalin himself.” Americans have a very unrealistic perspective not only of the real nature of the U.S. military but also of World War II in Europe. Unfortunately, a certain hubris has taken hold of U.S military leadership (the political leadership is just as deluded) that may lead to a confrontation that it will not win and as a result may lead to a nuclear catastrophe.
Very Well said, Karl: Especially the part about America confronting that kind of Mexico and Canada. That would definitely change everything, eh?
And Thank You for that Overview of German History, and at least one very important contributing factor to the rise to power of Hitler and the Nazis; and How and Why the German People enabled that to happen. Have You ever researched the role that America ~ and Wall Street, in particular ~ had in that rise?
And my bet is that that "certain hubris" had less to do with the American military's performance in Europe, than it had much, much more to do with its success in the Pacific Theatre.
When WWII ended in Europe, the stage was set for Cold War I, with the USSR and the Warsaw Bloc on one side, and the US and its Allies [such as they were in Europe after the War] on the other. And neither side had any reason, resources, or appetite for a Hot War there any time soon.
But the Real Action was in Asia. where the American military had successfully beaten back to shreds Japan's Empire Wannabe aspirations. And Mao's Revolution was in full progress and the French had begun their quest to reclaim its Colonies in Indochina, courtesy of Uncle Sam.
And then ~ after Hiroshima and Nagasaki [a Cold War I "Here We Are" advertisement] ~ there was first Korea, and then, after Dien Bien Phu, what the Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotians call "The American War."
And finally, You are absolutely correct: If Russia had been conquered by Germany, D-Day and VE Day would very likely have never happened.
I know more than enough about America’s role since 1917! I know again more than enough about how Hitler came to power. I also know how Hitler’s regime caused suicide and euthanasia in my immediate family and among my parents friends. I didn’t say or imply that Germany could have beaten Russia. The Red Army’s victory was inevitable. As General Erich Von Manstein said in his memoirs LOST VICTORIES “Hitler’s first mistake was underrating the resources of the Soviet Union and the fighting qualities of the Red Army. …” p. 175. If I recall correctly about 70% of the Wehrmacht was fighting in the east when D-Day started. Stalin’s offensive in 1944 known as BAGRATION devastated the Wehrmacht and was of significant help to the allies in the west. If those troops had been deployed in the west Eisenhower’s invasion would have been unsuccessful. The Pacific war against Japan was of a very different nature since the U.S. war effort concentrated mostly on air and sea power. The big mistake that Russia’s enemies have always made was/ is under estimating it.
Good point. The first mistake America made in Indochina was underestimating the resources and qualities of the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong Armies and People. Just like it underestimated the capability of the various Armies and the People of Afghanistan. Just like the Russians, the British, and a couple of other older Empires did.
True. Around 1840, I believe, the Afghans wiped out a whole British army - there may have been less than five survivors. The British were forced to end any further attempts of making the country part of the Empire. The Russians actually accomplished some good for the Afghan people by modernizing their social and educational system which unfortunately the American and British supported Mujahadeen/Taliban reversed. Interestingly, the Russians seem to have established, along with the Chinese, some kind of cooperation with the current Taliban establishment.
... people need get the America-military-pride-thing out-of-their-heads
... empire feeds off selling propaganda, keeping the whole con moving forward... trillions for more war, & increasing-conflict-casualties-destruction off-charts
... we need end this thinking of great-things being-done in-name-of-freedom .... HORSEFEATHERS - STOP-IT
Thanks for sharing your great piece from 2008 and for agitating against "warfighting" as a term anyone in their right mind would use. I would also like to nominate "warfighting domain" which is how the Pentagon likes to refer to outer space these days. Blech.
"we, as a people, are distancing ourselves from the realities of war."
So true. Add to it that the US can make war, even more than one, and there is no impact felt by most of the public. It really is a kind of entertainment. My years in TV news convinced me the same is true of the daily news. One can sit comfortably in one's home and watch videos of police visits in the ghetto where we get to safely view human disaster. This person gets shot, or that one, and then its time for sports and weather.
I marveled at how ABC made so much money off of OJ Simpson as a pro athlete, as a sports commentator, as a Hertz car rental salesman and then off of his antics in the police chase and his trial spectacle. Popular culture provides a gold mine in every celebrity.
As Neil Postman said with the title of one of his books, we are entertaining ourselves to death and in the case of war, entertaining ourselves with the deaths of others, in their thousands. But as long as life is good, or even just ok, let it be. Our government makes so much mayhem in the world and we kick back in the La-Z-Boy and observe, if we even care to do that. It is a luxury beyond the comprehension of those who suffer under our military projects.
And in the news, Marco Rubio has introduced a bill to “counter adversarial financial systems,” because “China, Russia, and Iran use alternate financial systems to evade U.S. sanctions.”
“Sanction enforcement is vital to enforcing our laws,” writes Rubio.
As Caitlin Johnstone put it, “‘Enforcing our laws.’ These Washington swamp monsters really, truly believe they own the planet.”
And Lindsey Graham has introduced “A joint resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against the Islamic Republic of Iran for threatening the national security of the United States through the development of nuclear weapons.” The quote, straight from the title of the bill. Can you say, WMD 2.0?
These lunatics really are hell-bent on setting off a nuclear war. We can see clearly enough that if Bibi nukes Lebanon, Syria and Iran, we’ll defend him to our own peril. Fools abound. How anyone can look at this beautiful and amazing celestial globe and want to do anything but offer it the highest stewardship possible befuddles me beyond belief.
Moral depravity leads to lunacy!
Make a world where we stop motivating enemies to seek parity in terror!
I hear so much about the Samson option: Israeli nuclear detonations on "them". The reality is Hezbollah is so well dug in that Israel could expend all their war heads on bunker busting and Hezbollah still shot them up!
Bunker busting nukes even a small IDF amount would ruin huge parts of the earth!
Lunacy come before depravity?
Since the post goes back in time, I was taken back even further to Merton's words in “New Seeds of Contemplation” (1962). I believe a peace loving atheist can spot easily enough the truth of which he writes—perhaps easier than many a Christian in America. He wrote:
“It does not even seem to enter our minds that there might be some incongruity in praying to the God of peace, the God who told us to love one another as He had loved us, who warned us that they who took the sword would perish by it, and at the same time planning to annihilate not thousands but millions of civilians and soldiers, men, women and children without discrimination, even with the almost infallible certainty of inviting the same annihilation for ourselves!
“It may make sense for a sick man to pray for health and then take medicine, but I fail to see any sense at all in his praying for health and then drinking poison.
“When I pray for peace I pray God to pacify not only the Russians and the Chinese but above all my own nation and myself.
“When I pray for peace I pray to be protected not only from the Reds but also from the folly and blindness of my own country.
“When I pray for peace, I pray not only that the enemies of my country may cease to want war, but above all that my own country will cease to do the things that make war inevitable.
“In other words, when I pray for peace I am not just praying that the Russians will give up without a struggle and let us have our own way. I am praying that both we and the Russians may somehow be restored to sanity and learn how to work out our problems, as best we can, together, instead of preparing for global suicide.”
I doubt Merton, who clearly saw the catastrophe of war and our role in it, could have imagined how deadly we could inflict sanctions on the world—though it wouldn’t surprise him … I have my own word I wish would go away used by many Christians these days—prayer warriors. I pray Americans stop drinking the poison of militarism and genuflecting to the monsters sitting atop the “rules based order.”
Venezuelan refugees are popping up all over the place and we are told immigrants are an awful thing but we are sanctioning Venezuela as much as possible, driving people to leave.
American alleged Christians are oblivious to these 2 views in their Bibles since the US is the biggest arms merchant in the history of Nations making a killing off the Ukraine and Gaza WARS and other conflicts in this Material World. They are not Pro-Life for living people killed in US WARS with US weapons.
"This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying: 'Not by military force and not by physical strength, but by My spirit,' says the Lord of Hosts." Zechariah 4:6
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Matthew 5:9
Naturally, they would never think these words of Christ Jesus applies to them. They're not addressed to those Atheists who do not believe in God, but to those who think they do;
You hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, This people draws close to me with their mouth, and honours me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matthew 15:7-9
Ray, I've always found it peculiar that "pro-life" advocates generally advocate for the death penalty in our flawed judicial system and dominate states like Texas (where I lived most of my adult life), which had (and as far as I know still has) an infamously deplorable foster care system. After you are out of the womb, you're on your own. Then the pro-choice crowd, many of whom won't budge on time restrictions on abortions, advocate for no death penalty, but vote for every war. Blessed are the peacemakers, though if in America at best you'll be marginalized and at worst, assassinated.
Thank You sharing that, TomG. Lots to ponder and reflect upon there.
Bill, I recall hearing that term - which still makes me angry every time I hear it - at about the same time you did. I was working in a very large aerospace company. Hearing the easy way it was spoken by the soft-handed "executive" in his expensive suit caused me to silently mouth a "F U" to him.
The men who served under me were sailors - trained for war but not one of them wanted to be in a war. Several had already - one having been a gunner on a PBR in the brown water Navy in Vietnam, and one of. the most haunted - an airborne trooper of several battles who later joined the Navy.
What can we expect from a country whose "leaders" cheer a mass murderer on the floor of the US Capitol and support genocide?
Yeah!!!!!Thank you for reprinting that! It's important for us to stop thinking about endless wars, and think about ways this country can help its citizens, as opposed to ordering other nations around. I was just telling my sons, after sending an article on military suicide, which is way higher than war deaths, that in the 30 plus years that I had a bookstore all the former soldiers that I came to know were emotionally damaged from their stint in the Viet Nam war and Afghanistan et al. It didn't matter if they were enlisted or officers, all of them carried emotional hurt and a sort of guilt over what they had been required to do. My nephew who was sent to Iraq was trained in computers and radio etc. so he didn't shoot anyone, but his platoon did, and he came back emotionally damaged by what he saw us do. It has taken years for him to get well, but he is much better now. I think it's very important for US citizens to understand just what we have been doing to our young people - especially those from poorer communities who join up to get work or to get trained in a skill. None of those happy kids I've seen in early photos of them before they went to war, came out of the maelstrom we sent them into with their souls unscarred. They aren't what they started out to be, unless they were one of the rare few who like killing. It's time we woke up to that fact.
Very, Very well said, ranney. Thank You for sharing those thoughts.
And it's very, Very important to remember that America is not the only Nation on this Planet with its own Army of Walking Wounded and Walking Dead.
I am not a military historian! I am German and the son of A German soldier who served four years in WW I and a relatively short stint in WW II because of age and his skill as a mechanic was needed by industry. As to the question of the best army, I do have some memories of the “German” perception of the GIs that occupied Germany and never left. The German biased view that I encountered as a child was not complimentary to put it mildly. My father served two years in France and two years in Russia during the first war and always expressed the highest regard for both “enemies”; he hated the dehumanization of military service and had little respect for the officers (and especially chaplains). German military thinking pre-world war one should be assessed from the geographic perspective of Germany. For centuries the states of Germany before 1870 and then the unified German federal state till 1914. The country had to contend with frequent invasions from the East and the West. One should consider how the USA would plan if it would have to face a similar situation - a powerful and revengeful Mexico and a growing aggressive Canada. I am pretty sure U.S. military thinking would probably be not much different from the German perspective which after Bismarck induced the Kaiser to commission a plan to prepare for a two front war - the Schlieffen Plan. WW II was a completely different situation, militarily and politically. For a very good assessment of that war I suggest reading WHEN TITANS CLASHED - HOW THE RED ARMY STOPPED HITLER (revised and expanded edition 2015) by David M. Glantz & Jonathan M. House. One quote from their in-depth study: “On the fiftieth anniversary of the Normandy invasion, a U.S. news magazine featured a cover photo of General Dwight D. Eisenhower who was labeled as the man who defeated Hitler. If anyone one man deserved that label, it was Not ( my emphasis) Eisenhower but Zhukov, Vasilevsky, or perhaps Stalin himself.” Americans have a very unrealistic perspective not only of the real nature of the U.S. military but also of World War II in Europe. Unfortunately, a certain hubris has taken hold of U.S military leadership (the political leadership is just as deluded) that may lead to a confrontation that it will not win and as a result may lead to a nuclear catastrophe.
Very Well said, Karl: Especially the part about America confronting that kind of Mexico and Canada. That would definitely change everything, eh?
And Thank You for that Overview of German History, and at least one very important contributing factor to the rise to power of Hitler and the Nazis; and How and Why the German People enabled that to happen. Have You ever researched the role that America ~ and Wall Street, in particular ~ had in that rise?
And my bet is that that "certain hubris" had less to do with the American military's performance in Europe, than it had much, much more to do with its success in the Pacific Theatre.
When WWII ended in Europe, the stage was set for Cold War I, with the USSR and the Warsaw Bloc on one side, and the US and its Allies [such as they were in Europe after the War] on the other. And neither side had any reason, resources, or appetite for a Hot War there any time soon.
But the Real Action was in Asia. where the American military had successfully beaten back to shreds Japan's Empire Wannabe aspirations. And Mao's Revolution was in full progress and the French had begun their quest to reclaim its Colonies in Indochina, courtesy of Uncle Sam.
And then ~ after Hiroshima and Nagasaki [a Cold War I "Here We Are" advertisement] ~ there was first Korea, and then, after Dien Bien Phu, what the Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Laotians call "The American War."
And finally, You are absolutely correct: If Russia had been conquered by Germany, D-Day and VE Day would very likely have never happened.
I know more than enough about America’s role since 1917! I know again more than enough about how Hitler came to power. I also know how Hitler’s regime caused suicide and euthanasia in my immediate family and among my parents friends. I didn’t say or imply that Germany could have beaten Russia. The Red Army’s victory was inevitable. As General Erich Von Manstein said in his memoirs LOST VICTORIES “Hitler’s first mistake was underrating the resources of the Soviet Union and the fighting qualities of the Red Army. …” p. 175. If I recall correctly about 70% of the Wehrmacht was fighting in the east when D-Day started. Stalin’s offensive in 1944 known as BAGRATION devastated the Wehrmacht and was of significant help to the allies in the west. If those troops had been deployed in the west Eisenhower’s invasion would have been unsuccessful. The Pacific war against Japan was of a very different nature since the U.S. war effort concentrated mostly on air and sea power. The big mistake that Russia’s enemies have always made was/ is under estimating it.
Good point. The first mistake America made in Indochina was underestimating the resources and qualities of the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong Armies and People. Just like it underestimated the capability of the various Armies and the People of Afghanistan. Just like the Russians, the British, and a couple of other older Empires did.
True. Around 1840, I believe, the Afghans wiped out a whole British army - there may have been less than five survivors. The British were forced to end any further attempts of making the country part of the Empire. The Russians actually accomplished some good for the Afghan people by modernizing their social and educational system which unfortunately the American and British supported Mujahadeen/Taliban reversed. Interestingly, the Russians seem to have established, along with the Chinese, some kind of cooperation with the current Taliban establishment.
... people need get the America-military-pride-thing out-of-their-heads
... empire feeds off selling propaganda, keeping the whole con moving forward... trillions for more war, & increasing-conflict-casualties-destruction off-charts
... we need end this thinking of great-things being-done in-name-of-freedom .... HORSEFEATHERS - STOP-IT
Thanks for sharing your great piece from 2008 and for agitating against "warfighting" as a term anyone in their right mind would use. I would also like to nominate "warfighting domain" which is how the Pentagon likes to refer to outer space these days. Blech.
We're led by warmongers and moral monsters.
"we, as a people, are distancing ourselves from the realities of war."
So true. Add to it that the US can make war, even more than one, and there is no impact felt by most of the public. It really is a kind of entertainment. My years in TV news convinced me the same is true of the daily news. One can sit comfortably in one's home and watch videos of police visits in the ghetto where we get to safely view human disaster. This person gets shot, or that one, and then its time for sports and weather.
I marveled at how ABC made so much money off of OJ Simpson as a pro athlete, as a sports commentator, as a Hertz car rental salesman and then off of his antics in the police chase and his trial spectacle. Popular culture provides a gold mine in every celebrity.
As Neil Postman said with the title of one of his books, we are entertaining ourselves to death and in the case of war, entertaining ourselves with the deaths of others, in their thousands. But as long as life is good, or even just ok, let it be. Our government makes so much mayhem in the world and we kick back in the La-Z-Boy and observe, if we even care to do that. It is a luxury beyond the comprehension of those who suffer under our military projects.
Well, we have the best propaganda.