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Military Times: After 15 years of war, America's military has about had it with 'nation building'
Most American military personnel are deeply skeptical of the United States' nation-building missions overseas and would prefer to see leaders in Washington focus the country's resources on less ambiguous missions like killing terrorists and protecting the homeland, according to a new first-of-its-kind survey.
The poll of more than 2,200 active-duty troops, a collaboration between Military Times and Syracuse University's Institute for Veterans and Military Families, gauged service members’ opinions on U.S. foreign policy priorities. It was conducted in early September. Other questions assessed service members' political views as the nation prepares to elect a new president.
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WNU Editor: There are no surprises in this poll.
13 comments:
Nation building is a long term endeavor.
It wouldn't matter, if we went in subdued the enemy and turned it over to the UN and NGOs.
As it is the NGOs and UN would get pushed aside as they were in Somalia. Thus the need for the military and thus the prolonged conflict.
Most people are not with the CINC or the military on any long term war. 1/3rd are not with the CINC from the get go. The fence sitters, are convinced by the compliant and supine media shortly thereafter. Like Sun Tzu said, the war has to be fought here in America 1st.
Need to do it like the Brits used to. ...and the Spanish.
In Somali, the UNSR worked out a Peace agreement with the Tribal Elders, ( the traditional mediators and rulers of the tribes), to allow aid distribution, rebuilding,
But then the military Operation Restore Hope came ashore, replete with images of Marines wading ashore from landing craft, cut deals with the Warlords, ( gutting the tribal councils) and everything went sideways as US supplied aid, money and arms, reignited the Somali Civil War.
After the Western Militaries fled Somalia due to a litany of WarCrimes and Defeats, a hybrid group, the ICU, ( merging the traditional Islamic Courts and the tribal elders) started to restore law and order to Somalia and defeat the Warlords, and the UNSR started distributing aid and assistance to through the ICU.
The US decided that wouldn't do, started drone strikes and air strikes against the ICU, doubled down on arming the Warlords, and then when that failed, gave millions of dollars in arms and aid to the Ethiopian's and Kenyans to invade and occupy Somalia.
That of course, didn't work, either.
The only surprise is that ANYONE supports this stuff. This is part of the appeal of Donald Trump. Under his Administration there's going to be a complete reevaluation of everything including foreign policy.
Now, as for doing it the way the Brits and Spaniards used to, this is impossible for America for the following reasons. 1.) America does not have the culture necessary to impose it's values on anyone. 2.) America currently suffers from "cultural Stockholm Syndrone" to the point that even basic national defense is problematic. Let alone natikn building. 3.) America lives under a large and often hostile media microscope meaning carrying out the kind of operations neccessary are virtually impossible. 4.) International organizations such as the UN and the World Court are generally hostile to America. As such, working in concert with the media any American personnel doing it the way the Brits and the Spanish used to do it would find themselves being tried and convicted of war crimes. 5.) Even if the first 4 issues can be resolved which they couldn't in any reasonable time frame, many of the nations America would be fighting are backed up by Russia and China the world's most powerful countries.
To "do it" the way the Brits and Spaniards used to do it is impossible for America.
Actually I'm quite thankful for how and where the Brits "did it". Even the wars we fought (and won) with them. With the help of the French, no less! Less so fir the Spanish, but I'd rather have a wave of Catholic immigrants than a wave of Muslim ones. Although most urban parts of Canada are fairly heavily populated with Muslims. A far greater population percentage than in the US.
http://exiledonline.com/when-pigs-fly-and-scold-brits-lecturing-sri-lanka/all/1/
>>What’s sick about this is that the British establishment destroyed the Sinhalese people completely. Completely and purposely, sadistically. Stole their land, humiliated and massacred their government, made it Imperial policy to erase every shred of self-respect the Sinhalese had left. You can talk about the Nazis all day long, but for my money nothing they did was as gross as what you find out when you actually look into the history of British-Sinhalese relations. If you can even call them “relations”; I guess a murder-rape is a relation, sort of.<<
http://exiledonline.com/wn-day-25-monty-python-burning-kikuyu-skit/
>>If there’s one iron law of history, it’s: Don’t be the tribe occupying a piece of land British people take a liking to. Way back in the 19th century, the local British agent said (people were more honest about this stuff back then): “The only way to improve the Kikuyu is to wipe them out, but unfortunately we depend on them for food supplies.” Yup, it was the old dilemma: exterminate them or use’em as slaves. Laziness won out; they let the Kikuyu live so they could do all the actual work, while the Brits settled into plantation life, a 20th-c. version of the Old South. The settlers turned out to be even more degenerate than the old plantation South—I remember reading that at one plantation in Kenya, the first thing a guest was offered was a tray (carried by a Kikuyu maid) with a hypo full of morphine and a little packet of cocaine, and whichever you picked, they’d keep it coming as long as you were there. Colonial hospitality.<<
The low count of British Colonialism is 678,000,000 dead, the high count, 1.1 billion.
Where Leopold screwed up with the Congo, was that he didn't hire British PR firms to cover up his genocide. They were after all, the best in the world.
Hopefully, the Chinese will feel the same when they engage in "nation building" in the US.
Yep, that's how it was done. Sorry, but I don't feel all that bad about it. We'd all be living is a much different North America if today's sensibilities were forced on past British wars and colonies. In fact, this form of "presentism" as I call it, would force us to villianise every single regime or ruler in history because he either committed genocide, or owned slaves or married his cousin, or some other horrible atrocity. However if one is overcome with guilt at his own good fortune, there are folks who would gladly accept recompense. ;)
I'm looking forward to the Chinese effort at Nation Building in the US in a few decades, when we get to lose 330 million "surplus" Americans.
Since WWII, US effort's at "nation building" have always failed, because they picked the wrong people to attempt to "nation build".
Japan and Germany worked, because they co-opted the Nazi dregs and Imperialist dregs, who had already been involved in "unique" Nation building exercises. In Korea and Vietnam, they failed because they chose to side with the Colonial collaberators, not anyone interested in nation building.
In Somalia and Afghanistan, they went with the Waords who had no interest in "the Nation", just money and power.
In Iraq, they picked the same ConMen who sold them BS for decades.
LMAO. An entire nation populated by rubes and suckers, soon enough to face "nation building" by China.
It's a tiny fraction of the numbers of people killed by US policies since WWII.
"Yep, that's how it was done. Sorry, but I don't feel all that bad about it. We'd all be living is a much different North America if today's sensibilities were forced on past British wars and colonies"
"To wish genocide upon 330 "surplus" Americans is just pure evil, Jay."
Jay,
It's time to stop arguing and time to start building that wall.
I'll meet ya outside of Home Hardware in the morning. Maybe we can get YC to fly in and help mix the concrete. I mean, if he's not too busy being a bloodthirsty Communist.
Walls already started:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sCyzdD0vYOw
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