American Politics

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Raoul said:
Its a weak article. Vox trying to draw attention to themselves as usual.
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I haven't seen the film, so I can't make any judgements on it, but the unexpected popularity of it is itself quite a political story. As a very atypical blockbuster, it's popularity must be at least partially attributed to its Hoo-Ra 'heartland' sentiment, surely?

Even if it's more diplomatic a story than I've been lead to believe (and again, having not seen it, it may well be) it's clearly been recieved the way it has due to a lust for a certain type of black and white heroism.
 
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Article from a fellow Marine who was actually there where Kyle made his name.

http://www.telesurtv.net/english/opinion/American-Sniper-20150110-0019.html

American Sniper?

by Ross Caputi

Chris Kyle built his reputation as a sniper during one of the most criminal operations of the entire occupation of Iraq, the 2nd siege of Fallujah.


What American Sniper offers us — more than a heart-wrenching tale about Chris Kyle’s struggle to be a soldier, a husband, and a father; more than an action packed story about America’s most lethal sniper — is an exposure of the often hidden side of American war culture. The criminality that has characterized American military engagements since the American Indian Wars, and most recently in Iraq and Afghanistan, is hardly noticeable in this film. And that’s exactly my point.



Your average American viewer might be surprised to find out that Chris Kyle built his reputation as a sniper during one of the most criminal operations of the entire occupation of Iraq, the 2nd siege of Fallujah. He or she certainly won’t learn this by watching American Sniper, which doesn’t even hint that Chris Kyle ever did anything in Iraq except kill bad guys and defend America. And this speaks volumes about how little we understand the wars that our country fights around the world.



Perhaps my argument seems strange — that the most insightful part of this film is what is not in it. However, I believe that these omissions reflect more than just what the director decided to be irrelevant to the plot. These omissions reveal an unconscious psychological process that shields our ideas about who we are as individuals and as a nation. This process, known as “moral disengagement”, is extremely common in militaristic societies. But what is fascinating about American Sniper is how these omissions survive in the face of overwhelming evidence of the crimes that Chris Kyle participated in. The fact that a man who participated in the 2nd siege of Fallujah — an operation that killed between 4,000 to 6,000 civilians, displaced 200,000, and may have created an epidemic of birth defects and cancers — can come home, be embraced as a hero, be celebrated for the number of people he has killed, write a bestselling BOOK based on that experience, and have it made into a Hollywood film is something that we need to reflect on as a society.



It is not my intention to accuse Chris Kyle of committing war crimes as an individual, or to attack his character in any way. Some critics have pointed out the many racist and anti-Islamic comments that Chris made in his autobiography (these comments are significantly toned down in the film). Others have noted his jingoistic beliefs. However, I too participated in the 2nd siege of Fallujah as a US Marine. And like Chris, I said some racist and despicable things while I was in Iraq. I am in no position to judge this man, nor do I think it is important to do so. I am far more interested in our reaction as a society to Chris Kyle, than I am in the nuances of his personality.



In both the BOOK and the film, Chris Kyle comes off as a man who is slightly embarrassed by the labels that his comrades-in-arms and his society throw upon him, such as “legend” or “hero”. This comes off as very selfless and humble of him. But the more important point is that we are the ones who cast him into this designation as hero. And the financial success of Chris Kyle’s autobiography and Clint Eastwood’s cinematic adaptation of it reveals just how willing America is to embrace this man and his story, despite its factual inaccuracies.



Perhaps the only thing that I think is import to say about Chris Kyle the individual is that a man like Chris has the power to legitimize this sanitized version of events in Iraq that not all veterans have. Somehow in our culture, combat experience is mistaken for knowledge about a war. And Chris Kyle’s status as a Navy SEAL with mountains of medals and ribbons, multiple deployments to Iraq, and battle field accolades that are unmatched makes him an authority on the topic of Iraq to those who don’t know better.



I sympathize with Chris, because I believed many of the same things he believed while I was in Iraq: That Saddam Hussein had Weapons of Mass Destruction. That our mission was just and good. That the people we were fighting against in Iraq wanted to kill Americans because of some irrational political ideology or fanatical religious beliefs. And that most Iraqis wanted us in their country.



Notice how within this ideological framework, the emotional turmoil that Chris goes through and the strain that his multiple deployments put on his family gets interpreted as a sacrifice that he bravely and consciously makes for a noble cause. Our mission in Iraq is, of course, understood as a peace keeping and nation building operation, not as the imposition of a political and economic project against the will of the majority of Iraqis. Similarly, “hearts and minds” become an object to be won, rather than something to be respected. The lives that Chris ends are interpreted as “confirmed kills”, not murder. And the people he kills are interpreted as “terrorists”, not as people defending their country from a foreign, invading and occupying army.



This ideological framework is America’s war culture. Absent these ideological assumptions, the suffering that Chris and his family go through, and his tally of confirmed kills, do not get interpreted as brave sacrifices or heroic acts—they can only be tragic.



Let me reiterate, I am not accusing Chris of being guilty of war crimes, nor am I saying that he was a bad person. But I am arguing that he was not a hero. He and I both participate in an illegal and immoral war and occupation, and that deserves no praise or recognition. In particular, we both have the same blood on our hands for helping to destroy the city of Fallujah.



It was not the actions of individuals that made the 2nd siege of Fallujah the atrocity that was. It was the way the mission was structured and orchestrated. The US did not treat military action as a last resort. The peace negotiations with the leadership in Fallujah were canceled by the US. And almost no effort was taken to make a distinction between civilian men and combatants. In fact, in many instances civilians and combatants were deliberately conflated. All military aged males were forced to stay within the city limits of Fallujah (women and children were warned to flee the city) regardless of whether there was any evidence that they had picked up arms against the Americans. Also, water and electricity was cut to the entire city, and humanitarian aid was turned away. Thus, an estimated 50,000 civilians were trapped in their city during this month long siege without water or electricity and very limited supplies of food. They also had to survive a ground siege that was conducted with indiscriminate tactics and weapons, like the use of reconnaissance-by-fire, white phosphorous, and the bombing of residential neighborhoods. The main hospital was also treated as a military target. The end result was a human tragedy, an event that should be remembered alongside other US atrocities like the massacres at Wounded Knee or My Lai.



But none of these documented facts come through in American Sniper. Instead, the plot is guided by Chris Kyle’s autobiography, in which his narration of his life story describes the Iraq war and occupation through the lens of a number of common, but false, beliefs—like, for example, that the people we were fighting against were evil because Islam taught them to kill Americans. . . . (cont)







 
What of Susana Martinez? Can she garner enough support to overcome the Jeb Bush campaign?

Back in 2012 i remember that those in Republican circles were tipping her for great things.
 
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Nick 0208 Ldn said:
What of Susana Martinez? Can she garner enough support to overcome the Jeb Bush campaign?

Back in 2012 i remember that those in Republican circles were tipping her for great thigns.
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Don't know much about her. At this point the momentum is rapidly snowballing towards Bush being anointed, mainly because the rest of the field are clowns.
 
Raoul said:
Don't know much about her. At this point the momentum is rapidly snowballing towards Bush being anointed, mainly because the rest of the field are clowns.
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Just a few weeks ago the name Gannicus was dragged through the mud here because I had the audacity to suggest that the smart money was on Bush to win the Rep nomination.

To be clear, nothing is inevitable and this nomination is locked in, but anyone who argues that Raoul and Gannicus are wrong with respect to Jeb Bush (not Stuart) being the favorite for the Rep nomination is simply missing out on what's really going on.

Stumbles do happen (failure to pay SSN for nannies, DUIs coming to light and the like) and maybe we'll learn that Jeb was a serial rapist in college, but on the basis of the currently known facts it's going to be Jeb Bush v Hillary Clinton. And it's way too early to make a sound prediction on how that's going to go.
 
Surely, there has to another serious contender though? Mitt Romney and Marco Rubio were outsiders early on as well right? R Paul, Scott Walker, Chris Christie, there has to be a serious challenger to Jeb
 
fishfingers15 said:
Surely, there has to another serious contender though? Mitt Romney and Marco Rubio were outsiders early on as well right? R Paul, Scott Walker, Chris Christie, there has to be a serious challenger to Jeb
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Can't see any of those seriously challenging him. Rubio might, but then again he may end up on Jeb's VP ticket. The rest of them are too proprietary to have sufficient national appeal.
 
Raoul said:
Can't see any of those seriously challenging him. Rubio might, but then again he may end up on Jeb's VP ticket. The rest of them are too proprietary to have sufficient national appeal.
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With Mitch Mac working in tandem, I thought Paul was a shoo in, but Bush appears to be the clear front runner now. Still, stranger things have happened.
 
fishfingers15 said:
With Mitch Mac working in tandem, I thought Paul was a shoo in, but Bush appears to be the clear front runner now. Still, stranger things have happened.
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Paul has a bit of crossover appeal because of some of his Libertarian positions, but would get hammered for those same positions by right wing Hawks during the primaries.
 


Brilliant speech once again from Sarah Palin :lol:
Hope she will be the one running for the Republicans. No way in hell would the Democrats lose out to that.
 
I wonder who Jeb and Hillary will select for their VPs. Would Jeb, err, the GOP/TP/Kochs allow/want him to pick a minority and/or female VP to counter Hillary?
 
It's stiill early days, but the odds on favorite for the Reps has to Jeb Bush. The other Rep, however, who may just defy (or vindicate!) the gods is Marco Rubio. Rubio is the only Rep whom both the Establishment and the tea partyers are comfortable with, but it remains to be seen if he has the voice for run. Jeb has the voice, but I wouldn't rule out the tea partyers unifying against him.

For me, it goes in this order of likelihood.

Bush
Rubio
Walker

If Kasich jumps in, do not underestimate him. But I suspect he'll stay out and play for veep.

No other Reps need even bother apply, although they're filling out their applications as we speak. Christie is done, Paul is a known buffoon, Perry is a moron (I know his principal handler and he's alown as well) and you who dream of Palin filling out her application will be sorely disappointed. Even Sean Hannity realizes now the woman is an empty suit twat. A hot twat, but a twat.

On the Dem side, Hillary is as close to having locked up the nomination as is humanly possible. There's always the chance of a shock revelation (I know of one unrevealed shocking truth directly from staff from the Clinton White House, but don't bother asking me) but I just don't see anything that can knock Hillary off the Dem perch.

As for November 2016, stay tuned!
 
Gannicus said:
It's stiill early days, but the odds on favorite for the Reps has to Jeb Bush. The other Rep, however, who may just defy (or vindicate!) the gods is Marco Rubio. Rubio is the only Rep whom both the Establishment and the tea partyers are comfortable with, but it remains to be seen if he has the voice for run. Jeb has the voice, but I wouldn't rule out the tea partyers unifying against him.

For me, it goes in this order of likelihood.

Bush
Rubio
Walker

If Kasich jumps in, do not underestimate him. But I suspect he'll stay out and play for veep.

No other Reps need even bother apply, although they're filling out their applications as we speak. Christie is done, Paul is a known buffoon, Perry is a moron (I know his principal handler and he's alown as well) and you who dream of Palin filling out her application will be sorely disappointed. Even Sean Hannity realizes now the woman is an empty suit twat. A hot twat, but a twat.

On the Dem side, Hillary is as close to having locked up the nomination as is humanly possible. There's always the chance of a shock revelation (I know of one unrevealed shocking truth directly from staff from the Clinton White House, but don't bother asking me) but I just don't see anything that can knock Hillary off the Dem perch.

As for November 2016, stay tuned!
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:eek: Monica is her daughter?
 
Gannicus said:
Just a few weeks ago the name Gannicus was dragged through the mud here because I had the audacity to suggest that the smart money was on Bush to win the Rep nomination.
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I don't know what you are referring to but you are hardly the only genius that has predicted this.

Mick1991 said:
The repub primaries are a special time for all who like a bit of a chuckle! Agreed, he's their best shot.

Could be lookin' at Clinton v Bush II.
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Raoul said:
This is pretty much turning into a Clinton v Bush election.
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Ole's_toe_poke said:
Yeah, can't see it being anything other than Clinton V Bush part 2.
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Ole's_toe_poke said:
I don't know what you are referring to but you are hardly the only genius that has predicted this.
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From what I remember the way he phrased it was that the "smart money" was on Bush to beat Clinton.

Ah yes, here we go:

Gannicus said:
The two issues where Jeb would be considered too "moderate" are Common Core and education.

Common Core is a non-issue in a potus campaign. Conservative critics of CC have a point, but Rep voters in primaries are not going to decide who their man to lead the free world will be over this issue.

Immigration is a more serious threat to Jeb, however. He's right on the merits and most Rep voters know it, but the test partyers will have none of it. Problem is, the Reps are going to do a deal with Obama, or at least offer a deal that will put Dems in a very hard spot, in 2015. Jeb will be on the right side of the issue, leaving the tea partyers fuming but in a hopeless position.

Anything can go wrong, but Jeb starts out with a very strong hand and is the best bet for the nomination. And in a matchup with Hillary, the smart money says Jeb. But we've got a long road to travel before November 2016.
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So it's either atrocious phrasing or bad memory.
 
What would his title be? First Man? First Gentleman? First Bloke? Billy Big Bollocks?
 
So if it ends up being Jeb v Hillary which news outlet will be the first to declare the race as Bush v Mega-bush?
 
^Scary.

On a similar note, hearing a lot about Ben Carson these days in the race for the GOP nomination. Does he stand a chance? They did an interview with him on Newsnight a couple of weeks back and he essentially said he didn't believe in evolution. He's a neuroscientist. I genuinely don't understand how these things occur.
 
Ubik said:
^Scary.

On a similar note, hearing a lot about Ben Carson these days in the race for the GOP nomination. Does he stand a chance? They did an interview with him on Newsnight a couple of weeks back and he essentially said he didn't believe in evolution. He's a neuroscientist. I genuinely don't understand how these things occur.
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Well, religious brainwashing its a very strong and potent thing. That's how I attempt to understand people like him.
 
Ubik said:
^Scary.

On a similar note, hearing a lot about Ben Carson these days in the race for the GOP nomination. Does he stand a chance? They did an interview with him on Newsnight a couple of weeks back and he essentially said he didn't believe in evolution. He's a neuroscientist. I genuinely don't understand how these things occur.
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I have a higher chance than Carson.

Bush, Walker, the field - that's the GOP betting order for me.
 
MrMarcello said:
I have a higher chance than Carson.

Bush, Walker, the field - that's the GOP betting order for me.
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Its a shame Donald Trump's threats to run amount to nothing, id pay good money to see him have a crack at it If only for the entertainment value of watching him embarrass himself beyond repair.
 
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