[lit-ideas] Re: Too painful to talk about?
- From: "Andy Amago" <aamago@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 15 Feb 2006 08:31:30 -0500
This is the attitude the ancient Spartans had toward sex. We want you to have
sex (gotta make little Spartans) so we encourage you to have sex, but if you
get caught, we beat you within an inch of your life, literally. Seems like
Catch 22's are built into war and war promoting institutions. If that doesn't
speak to the craziness inherent in war, what does?
----- Original Message -----
From: John Wager
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: 2/15/2006 6:59:12 AM
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Too painful to talk about?
Lawrence Helm wrote:
When I was in boot camp, some boot went AWOL and committed some crime. I can?t
recall what it was, but something very serious like murder or rape. All the
boots at MCRD were assembled and we had to stand at attention and witness the
ceremony of this fellow in full-dress uniform having all his brass buttons cut
off. There was some drumming also, slow beat, as he was marched off the field
in disgrace. There are always some who will engage in heinous acts, but in the
Marine Corps as well as the other branches of the American armed services, such
behavior is not condoned. When it is discovered it is punished.
Aye, there's the rub! "When it's discovered."
When I was in Basic Training, I got my only "real" lesson in military ethics
from our platoon training sergeant. A trainee asked the "dumb" question "Can I
go to the snack bar?" (The snack bar was strictly off limits to trainees; NO
trainee ever went to the snack bar.) The Drill Sergeant said "Sure you can go
to the snack bar!" We were all astounded. Later, when the trainee returned
munching his hamburger, the Drill Sergeant began yelling at the trainee and
inducing a round of 50 push-ups. Further, the trainee was told that he would
not be going on our first week-end pass, that he would be restricted to the
company area all week-end. "But you said I could go!" the trainee said. The
Drill Sergeant replied "Of course you can go to the snack bar any time you
want! I'm not punishing you for going to the snack bar; I'm punishing you for
getting caught going to the snack bar."
That was my real training in military ethics. It would be astounding if this
were not still true to a degree today. I'm also reminded of "midnight
requisitioning," something I HOPE U.S. forces still do--You do what you have to
to keep YOUR unit operating even if it's at the expense of another unit. NONE
of these things are particularly conducive to a genuine "moral" code.
To imply that heinous behavior is normative in the American armed forces is of
course a lie. There are some who make such an implication, but they lie. It
isn?t normative.
I agree with you 100% here. We ARE better than the Islamists, by a large
margin. We ARE worried by the actions of our troops, and we DO want to
discover where they are engaging in such abuse because such abuse does NOT make
the U.S. more secure. But there are two internal opposing forces in the
military, "official" policy and unofficial practice, and right now it looks to
me like the "unofficial" needs of the troops seems to have taken the upper
hand.
When the average sergeant sees the mood of the country as "Do what you can get
away with," it's sometimes tempting to follow suite.
The only forces whose targeting of children is normative are the paramilitary
organizations called Terrorists, Islamists, Militant Islamists, Radical
Islamists, Fundamentalist Islamists. They target civilians including children
as acts of terror. And after they commit their acts of terror there is no
stripping of buttons, no drumming, and no disgrace. They are considered great
heroes it they survive and martyrs worthy of heaven if they don?t. It is not
too painful to talk of what is normative for are military and what is normative
for theirs. We should do more of it.
--
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"Never attribute to malice that which can be
explained by incompetence and ignorance."
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John Wager john.wager1@xxxxxxxxxxx
Lisle, IL, USA
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