by Summary:
Overseas, the United States is engaged in real wars in which bombs are dropped, missiles are launched, and people (generally not Americans) are killed, wounded, uprooted, and displaced. Yet here at home, there’s nothing real about those wars. Here, it’s phony war all the way. In the last 17 years of “forever war,” this nation hasn’t for one second been mobilized. Taxes are being cut instead of raised. Wartime rationing is a faint memory from the World War II era. No one is being required to sacrifice a thing.Now, ask yourself a simple question: What sort of war requires no sacrifice? What sort of war requires that almost no one in the country waging it take the slightest notice of it? The subjects of an empire seldom are much concerned about wars on the periphery to maintain and
Topics:
Mike Norman considers the following as important: American Empire
This could be interesting, too:
Overseas, the United States is engaged in real wars in which bombs are dropped, missiles are launched, and people (generally not Americans) are killed, wounded, uprooted, and displaced. Yet here at home, there’s nothing real about those wars. Here, it’s phony war all the way. In the last 17 years of “forever war,” this nation hasn’t for one second been mobilized. Taxes are being cut instead of raised. Wartime rationing is a faint memory from the World War II era. No one is being required to sacrifice a thing.Now, ask yourself a simple question: What sort of war requires no sacrifice? What sort of war requires that almost no one in the country waging it take the slightest notice of it? The subjects of an empire seldom are much concerned about wars on the periphery to maintain and
Topics:
Mike Norman considers the following as important: American Empire
This could be interesting, too:
Mike Norman writes “America Exists Today to Make War” — Lawrence Wilkerson on Endless War & American Empire
Mike Norman writes The Empire, Trump and Intra-Ruling Class Conflict — Gary Olson
Mike Norman writes The Great Switch: The Geo-Politics of Looming Recession — Alastair Crooke
Mike Norman writes Pepe Escobar — How to kill 10 million Afghans and not win
Overseas, the United States is engaged in real wars in which bombs are dropped, missiles are launched, and people (generally not Americans) are killed, wounded, uprooted, and displaced. Yet here at home, there’s nothing real about those wars. Here, it’s phony war all the way. In the last 17 years of “forever war,” this nation hasn’t for one second been mobilized. Taxes are being cut instead of raised. Wartime rationing is a faint memory from the World War II era. No one is being required to sacrifice a thing.The subjects of an empire seldom are much concerned about wars on the periphery to maintain and extend territory unless it directly affects their interests and imperial propaganda glorifies the undertaking. Same old, same old.
Now, ask yourself a simple question: What sort of war requires no sacrifice? What sort of war requires that almost no one in the country waging it take the slightest notice of it?
This takes place when contract military is used rather than conscript. Then citizens are not directly affected and take little interest.
But when ordinary people's interests are directly affected, ….
A professional military, especially one that also employs private contractors, is the death of democracy and the beginning of empire.
Tom Dispatch