And let me add, that I am sick of those who say they won't support Biden because of. his support of Israel. Yes. Nettie is like Trump but where were those people who are so outraged over Israel, when the US killed over 350,000 civilians during the so called war on terror?
I strongly opposed those wars as well. I marched against them. I campaigned against those who supported them,
Biden included. Being then of age, I had plans in place in case a draft should be reinstated. I boycotted my campus cafeteria because paying more or going hungry were preferable to giving Halliburton a dime, because despite what the news may have told you, campus divestment is not a newfangled invention. I undermined the ideology of state violence through my daily work in education. By the same means, I helped the veterans in my community, no less victims of the conflict, recover their lives and start real careers when they finally got to come home. Many were exactly the same age as me, but six to eight years behind on their careers because they believed the lies they were told about Afghanistan and Iraq and thought they had to fight to save their families, when they did not. Or believed the lies of some recruiter who promised them a job and a future in exchange for temporary servitude, though there was never a plan to insure any such future for them. Many now had drug addictions or mental trauma to contend with as additional barriers to their success. Once the waves of veterans had come through, it was time for a new wave of victims to help, Afghanis and Iraqis who in exchange for sacrficing their lives on your behalf were falsely promised a good life in the United States as a reward for their service, only to discover that they are despised second class citizens in this country, expected to survive on a laughable pittance despite being nearly unhirable on account of their race and creed. These days I do my best to help them, too. In this and many other ways, I have dedicated much of my life to an active rejection of the entire concept of a "war on terror" (which somehow never seems to make Americans any less terrified of Islam than they were before they went to war) and my advocacy is always for the victims of such a wicked concept, not sympathy for those who start the next round. The question of why I still do is no mystery.
The more quixotic question is why
you have turned your back on human rights and now endorse the war that Trump and his cabal of dictatorial allies intentionally escalated in Israel. Is it really worth it to you to throw away every moral concept you once embraced, just because a "Democrat" is now telling you to do it instead of a "Republican"? When the cameras are off, these polticians laugh at the game of partisanship. It is useful to them to maintain the fiction of ideological conviction, when their families' social and economic interests will always be the true drivers of their actions.
The question of why I continue to oppose purposeless state violence is simple and consistent. In taking innocent lives, governments steal what they never had any true right to, the hearts and bodies of citizens who have no choice but to be born into that vicious political construct we call a nation, that sees them as fodder to be traded instead of souls to be respected. I have never approved of state-sponsored religious ethnocide in any context, nor for that matter have I ever supported US adventurism abroad to begin with. We have enough problems at home without starting wars in other nations. Modern garland wars cannot be "won", only set aside when both sides finally tire of the slaughter and go home.
I don't and have never supported any war. I mentioned that I wished Biden would withdraw his support of Israel but I never judge a president based on one thing that I don't like. I just realize that this is how humans act and it's pretty hopeless to expect things to change. I've demonstrated during my youth and it was worthless, imo. I was horrified when Bush started the War on Terror. My son was could have been drafted if that was brought back and he is a very gentle, harmless type person, who never could have adjusted to being in the military. Still, I don't judge those who did what they thought was right at the time or were forced to do. I marched with veterans who returned home from Nam, after becoming anti war, btw. I read yesterday that our generals supported an Afghanistan native who tortured or killed anyone he suspected of being involved with the Taliban, regardless of the lack of evidence. This went on under several presidents. I have no idea if they knew about it, but the generals did know what he was doing and then the man was assassinated in 2018. The NYT did a long investigation and discovered the horrific things the man had done. War is hell. One reason I said this is complicated is because more than half of the country currently supports Israel and it's very difficult for any president to know how to react in such difficult situations. Nothing is ever easy when it comes to many of the things that Biden is dealing with or what any president faces. All I know is that he is doing a decent job for the most part, and if Trump becomes president, we are in danger of becoming an autocracy. Sadly almost his entire party supports his cruelty, and incompetence. So, I'll take a less than perfect president over a psychopathic dangerous one any day. I can't count the number of times I've voted for someone, not because I've agree with all of their policies but because they were a much better choice compared to the alternative. Anyone who refuses to vote for Biden is poorly informed and acting emotionally instead of rationally.
Where I lived at the time, there were no demonstrations against the War on Terror, which as you know was based on massive misinformation. Most wars have been horrible mistakes in retrospect, but as I said before, as a species, we are fucking, violent apes and I don't see that changing. Plus, I see no differnce between soldiers who are killed in wars or civilians who are killed in wars. Both are horrible. The survivors suffer greatly and the survivors of wars often end up like my late father who suffered from severe PTSD, which I've mentioned before, probably more times than necessary. Btw, he put his American flag in the distress position when Bush went into Iraq and some asshole cut it down at night. My father told me that my generation was right for being against the Viet Nam War, but the truth is that not all of my generation was against the war. We often were confronted with screams against us when we demonstrated. Very few of my generation went from liberal to conservative. That's a lie. We may have become more realistic and less idealistic, but we are still the same as we were before when it comes to how we vote. All of my boomer friends always vote for the Blue party. regardless if we agree with all of the policies of the person we support.
But what did we accomplish by our demonstrations? Nothing! And, a least where I lived, the demonstrations were always peaceful. WE didn't set up encampments, take over property or destroy property. We didn't interrupt graduations ceremonies. That never helps. In fact, it hurts what you're trying to accomplish. It's self righteous, imo, to think that one's opinion is the only right one, and your actions are going to help solve anything. I'd have a lot more respect for those who are tearing things up, if they unified to support the many organizations that are tying to provide some relief instead of acting like idiots. At least that might help even one person get a meal or a bit of needed medical care. I have much more respect for organizations like Doctors Without Borders or the groups that try to being food into Palestine. They are putting their lives on the line without tearing up property. Ok. I already said I didn't want to argue about this and you've already misjudged me, so let's call a truce and stop this nonsense. I know you mean well, but you seem not to be able to understand how others feel, which is why, despite my personal feelings about what's going on in the Mideast, I understand the complexities and I also understand there are plenty of other horrific things that are going on in the world, but nobody reacts to those things. We live in sad, dangerous times and it will only get a lot worse, if Trump has another term, or two or three as he is threatening. I don't want to believe that could happen, but history says it's possible so my primary goal and concern is that the worst president ever will get elected this November.
I just read another article about his plans to round up undocumented immigrants, including those who have been living here for decades and contributing to society. FDR has always been praised for the good things he did, but he also locked up Japanese residents in interment camps, simple because of their ethnicity. Point being, that all of our past presidents have done harmful things to innocent people. But Trump is the greatest danger to the country since its early days......So, if these demonstrators don't support Biden, they are fools.
Sorry for going all over the place with this rant. I'm just mad as hell at what's going on all over the world and I certainly don't blame a president who has been trying to reason with a far right maniac. If Hamas would release the remaining hostages, that would certainly help. Nettie can't stop Hamas by what he's doing anymore than the US could stop the Taliban by what we did. There is no easy way out of this mess. Okay. I promised to stop....I'll try.....
