Just Venting

[Mongol-Swedes]

Today I attended a Fort Stewart tree-planting ceremony.

 

Now, for those of you who aren't familiar with Fort Stewart customs, we have a grove of trees that's over 300 tress now, with each tree representing a fallen 3rd Infantry Division Soldier who was killed in Iraq. This is a unique, living memorial of eastern redbud trees (which are just now sprouting pink blossoms) that is dedicated to the fallen, lives who, unfortunately, may have been lost in vain. Only time will tell.

 

Today, two young privates that I had worked with through much of last year had trees planted in their name, granite blocks set with their name, rank, and posting at death. They were both very fresh from training and worked their hardest to make something of themselves, and I knew both of them to be outstanding Soldiers.

 

I was passed up for escort duty with one of the families (I'm on the division color guard, instead), but I got a chance to talk to a Captain who does the whole "bad news visit" thing and also does the family escorting, and he told me that he has to pray all the time just to get through the days. He's on permenant rear deatchment these days, but in the past he served as an Infantry lieutenant and the S-1 (personnel operations) of my unit, and has a lot of experience with this stuff.

 

Anyway, it pains me to hear about these things all the time. It pains me to know that that the lucky ones who survive aren't necessarily so 'lucky', given the utter sh*te support services here that turn away veterans all the time once they're out of the service. How people who come back messed up with PTSD are instead told that they have a 'personality disorder', something they always had or whatever, or even employees of the Veterans Affairs that tell servicemembers that they don't work with 'nutcases', as if people who come back affected by war are 'nutcases'.

 

The casualties are greater than many think; too often the unseen scars of battle are left untreated, and a veteran is left to suffer through this throughout the remaining days of their lives, many of whom from the current conflict don't even feel as though they fought for freedom, but merely for survival, in a politically charged war that has become the shining example of a laissez faire free-market paradise.

 

Just consider the timing of the invasion of Iraq, and the recent rhetoric against Iran. Iraq was planning on doing something that would bring down the entire United States economy, by selling its oil flow by the Euro, or petroeuro, instead of the Dollar, or petrodollar. Siince the value of the dollar is backed by the world's oil reserves (and not gold anymore, since Nixon), this would bring about a rapid declination of the hegemonic foreign policies of the United States neo-conservative elements of the IMF and the World Bank,who have long attempted to supress much of South America's developing economies, as well as the global oil market.

 

Well, since 9/11 conveniently happened (the neo-cons were calling for another Pearl Harbor in 2000), the excuse of defeating terrorism was immediately put forth to justify the invasion and occupation of Iraq, with several key neo-conservative individuals immediately being placed at the top of Iraq's new oil ministry. Recently, Halliburton has been making moves to maximize its profits from the oil flow by successfully engaging Iraq's government to monopolize and centralize the control of Iraq's oil profits by distributing the flow to foreign multinationals with some affiliation to Halliburton or the Bush Administration.

 

And with their recent move to Dubai, Halliburton can enjoy American tax cuts without really having to pay all of the American taxes they used to be obligated under.

 

Now this hate-rhetoric and fearmongering is being used to paint Iran in the same light, who is also planning to sell its oil by the Euro.

 

And in the middle of all of this, the lives of military folks from many countries around the world are being wagered on a free-market gamble.

[Damak Var]

Sorry to hear that MS, much respect to you and all US servicemen/women. War is business and business will be around as long as man is.

[Phil VII]

well it's Nixon's own fault for pegging it to such a variable resource such as Oil... of course oil is going to fluctuate, you've enjoyed the economic benefits of it being friendly towards you, now you should live with the economic downside rather than invading countries who refuse to do what you want.

 

I'm glad i know you M-S, it gives me so much more faith in the American system to know it actually has intelligent people in the military system who can see further than the next 'threat' to home security.

 

I won't believe all these conspiricies about 9/11, no matter how screwed up the american system is i refuse to believe a government in the public eye that much would do that just to protect its oil interests, maybe i'm naive, but i have to have some faith in humanity...

 

But anyway, condolences to those privates M-S, always sad when people have to die for causes like this... Just lets hope karma does exist eh.