Regular readers will know that I often pick up blog-worthy items from Andrew Sullivan. Why do I read him? I mean, he's a pompous right-wing blow-hard... but he did turn against Bush in the recent election, he's done the right thing on Abu Ghraib while others have ignored it, and... oh, I don't know, maybe it's that gay chic thing, you know? "Queer Eye for the Political Guy".... And then Terry nails him with a directness that jerks me out of my composure.
It starts with Sully's "QUOTE FOR THE DAY: 'I'd much rather be doing this than figthing [sic] a war,' - helicopter pilot Lt. Cmdr. William Whitsitt, helping the survivors of the south Asian tsunami. Earth to Whitsitt: you're a soldier.
This earns Sully a swift rebuke from Terry: "having been to a war, and having helped people, I'd rather be doing the latter than the former. If Sullivan wants to question why... I'll be more than willing to hand him a rifle, a flack vest, and a Basic Load, and take him for a couple of long walks in Falluja."
Apparently Sully caught a ton of flak for this piece, and he had the good grace to include a couple of responses on the front page and the feedback section. Sully bleats pitifully that his "point is that the military is primarily about fighting and winning wars" - but does that mean that a soldier has to prefer killing to helping?! Does Sully want a soldiery composed of amoral robots with no compassion or humanity?
(Why did that last point remind me of Rumsfeld? Anyway, from now on Sully has to earn my readership.)
Posted by geoff2 at January 4, 2005 11:00 PMWhat's interesting is that if Mr. Sullivan beleives that ours is a military designed or intended only for violence, or that he means for it to only be used so, why is he not outraged at the continued American presence in so many places free of combat -- Kosovo and Bosnia are two, but the list has included the likes of Timor, Sinai, counter-drug operations and the like. Truly, if it is how he feels, he needs to realize, accept, and act on the full implications of this change of views.
But what the hell would I know - I'm just one of his "servants" that has, repeatedly, answered the call of the Republic and gone where asked, done what directed.
Posted by: Abu Zavi at January 5, 2005 08:40 AM