No kidding. -Gary
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jennifer [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
> Sent: Tuesday, September 18, 2001 11:34 AM
> To: CF-Community
> Subject: Re: Military Leaders (was RE: George W. Bush)
>
>
> Wow. Did you read my post and understand it? How about this. How
> about you
> chill out and reread my post later when you're feeling rational about it,
> ok? You'll see that many of your objections have already been
> covered in my
> post in ways that agree with you.
>
> At 10:19 AM 9/18/2001 -0500, you wrote:
> >Jennifer,
> >
> >What faulty logic. It amazes me that you can rationalize in
> your head the
> >things that you do. I was in the military and loved military action.
> >What's your opinion of me? I would really be interested to
> know. Why does
> >that mean that we automatically disagree? I know for a fact
> that we do, but
> >that has nothing to do with me being former military. I've had
> these views
> >for my entire life. But I guess that makes me some sort of defect right?
> >Someone that is not as enlightened as you. I understand that
> there is evil
> >in this world and that evil doesn't play by the same set of
> rules that the
> >rest of the world does. How do we deal with that? How do you deal with
> >people like bin Laden, Kim Jung-Il, Hussein, Milosovic, Hitler,
> Mussolini,
> >Stalin? They are nuts. They have no concept of civility or
> what it means
> >to fit in and play nice with the rest of the children. Do you
> sing Kumbaya
> >and hope that they stop because you can't see why people are
> like this? Go
> >stick a flower in the receiving end of an AK-47 in the hands of
> a terrorist
> >that hates America and Americans and see how fast that flower
> exits through
> >the back of your head. Just a few things that you should
> realize about the
> >sacrifices that military people make. Most of the soldiers that I worked
> >with were college educated. Among those most had bachelors
> degrees. I knew
> >three people who had their masters degrees. Two had law
> degrees, one from
> >Harvard. My best friend graduated from Tufts University. Just
> about every
> >one that I worked with knew at least one foreign language, most
> knew two or
> >more. They were all enlisted (i.e. privates and sergeants), not officers
> >(lieutenants, captains). Many live below the poverty line,
> housing on most
> >installations (including barracks) would normally be condemned
> because they
> >are a step above crack houses. I know because I lived in
> barracks that had
> >rats running through the ceilings. The female in the room next
> to me woke
> >up with one sitting on her desk. I know because I heard her
> scream. Ask an
> >yone that has been stationed at Pearl Harbor about the quality of the
> >housing there prior to 1997 when they finally got funding to
> build new ones
> >after the Secretary of the Navy's Wife was there on a tour and actually
> >cried when she saw the appalling conditions that families
> (including little
> >children) were living in and lobbied her husband for the funding
> to repair
> >all naval housing. Ask soldiers stationed at Schofield Barracks
> what it's
> >like to live in buildings that have been around since WW1 (yes WW ONE).
> >Mothers and fathers are deployed for months on end, even in times of
> >"peace". The US armed forces are in countries right now that you have
> >probably never heard of. Ask Chris Montgomery, he had to
> oversee the health
> >and welfare of these soldiers! It is the officers
> responsibility to oversee
> >that. You think its easy to know that the people that you are
> supposed to
> >be looking out for are living in such conditions? It's gut
> wrenching. Look
> >at a co worker sitting next to you and visualize them going home to a rat
> >infested home with only a little money and know that they have
> four mouths
> >to feed. But I guess according to you, there's something wrong upstairs
> >with people who volunteer to do this. You want to talk about ideologies?
> >What about ideologies that put your life in danger for someone
> else? What
> >about believing in something that is greater than yourself? These people
> >are out there sacrificing more than you could possibly imagine
> and you have
> >the nerve to sit here and pass judgment on them as if they are
> beneath you
> >because you don't understand how someone could have such different
> >ideologies than you. Shame on you. Shame on you for not only passing
> >judgement on those that you know nothing about, but for dishonoring those
> >that have given their lives for you and others that they never even met.
> >Shame on you for embodying that which you detest; prejudice and
> ignorance.
> >Hoo-ah for all of you out there that have made the sacrifice.
> And thank you
> >to those who appreciate it.
> >
> >Eyes Of Lightning!
> >
> >Michael Corrigan
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "Jennifer" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> >To: "CF-Community" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> >Sent: Monday, September 17, 2001 5:49 PM
> >Subject: Re: Military Leaders (was RE: George W. Bush)
> >
> >
> > > I'm extremely pacifist. I think that military action has a price way
> >beyond
> > > the casualties to our own people. We aren't used to paying
> that price but
> > > people who do are still people and I really feel for them.
> Some part of me
> > > questions why someone would become a military leader in a
> time of peace,
> >as
> > > opposed to choosing some other career. Obviously there are
> people who do
> > > this for good reasons, like to provide protection for the
> people they care
> > > about, for all of us. But those people are given a bad rap by
> people with
> > > an overactive Us. vs. Them mentality or an enjoyment of
> military action
> > > that I simply can't understand.
> > >
> > > My ideologies (among other things) keep me from being in a military
> > > leadership position and that makes me believe that people in such a
> > > position must have significantly different ideologies than I do. Which
> > > means that I'm basically going to disagree with them a lot.
> There has been
> > > a change in our military leadership recently in that we at
> least try to
> > > avoid killing civilians and I like that. I like that a lot. I
> wish that
> > > when military action were necessary, we could send everyone
> into a virtual
> > > reality game and decide the winner there with no losses.
> > >
> > > I think that Colin Powell is an excellent example in this case, as a
> > > military leader and as a person. He makes me feel like even though my
> > > priorities are different, they aren't being ignored as they would have
> >been
> > > ignored by previous military leaders. That's probably not
> even the case.
> > > I'm sure that he realizes that striking prematurely or
> unnecessarily will
> > > create more problems for us down the road and to me that
> shows wisdom and
> >a
> > > genuine understanding of the situation. It makes me realize that our
> > > military leaders aren't Them and that to our military leaders, I'm not
> > > Them. We can all be different and still respect each other
> and still admit
> > > that we agree on things.
> > >
> > > Maybe we should draft all war-gamers into military leadership
> positions.
> >;)
> > >
> > > At 03:55 PM 9/17/2001 -0500, you wrote:
> > > >Just curious, on what principal do you stand that causes you
> to want to
> > > >dislike military leaders?
> > > >
> > > >Chris Montgomery
> > > >Former military leader (no, I wasn't a general or admiral, just a
> >mid-grade
> > > >naval officer)
> > > >
> > > > > -----Original Message-----
> > > > > From: Jennifer [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
> > > > > Sent: Monday, September 17, 2001 3:00 PM
> > > >
> > > ><snip>
> > > > > As much as I want to dislike military leaders on principal
> > > ></snip>
> > > >
> > >
> >
>
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