I never served in the military. My mother thought it would be just ducky if I had gone to either the United States Military Academy at West Point or the Naval Academy at Annapolis but I told her in exceptionally clear terms that that was not going to happen. I thought the best thing the military could do at the time would be to shrink, a lot. I think that the US military wastes unbelievable amounts of money in return for which it provides a tool which is for the most part poorly utilized in order to further the least noble of American causes, hegemony. That does not mean that I consider a military unnecessary and it does not mean that I think that soldiers, sailors and Marines should be abused.
Abuse is exactly what is happening in the military in the US right now. I'm referring to the retention of men and women after their enlistment dates are up. This op-ed talks about it fairly eloquently. It's slavery. The Bush administration is engaging in slavery (it's been done by others, but never to such a degree). It should be abolished because it is taking advantage of people because of their powerlessness. Please read the article.
Posted by Alan at 02.06.04 10:58