Mark Bowden with The Atlantic magazine says among other things:
“…In 20 years of writing about the military, I have never heard officers in high positions express such alarm about a president. Trump’s pronouncements and orders have already risked catastrophic and unnecessary wars in the Middle East and Asia, and have created severe problems for field commanders engaged in combat operations. Frequently caught unawares by Trump’s statements, senior military officers have scrambled, in their aftermath, to steer the country away from tragedy. How many times can they successfully do that before faltering?”
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I guess you guys have heard this story, but earlier in this Presidency at a briefing by his military personnel (Generals, I guess it was) T rump was shown a night time picture of North and South Korea. T rump thought the dark space was ocean. He was informed that North Korea doesn’t have night lighting. T rump became alarmed when he was shown the bright lights of Seoul immediately adjacent to North Korea. T rump then pronounced “They have to move!” (He was referring to Seoul, modern city of 25 million people.) I guess these words stunned whoever was present. Then T rump repeated, “They have to move!”
In the spirit of Christmas (which we don’t seem to be having a war on this year, or any other, that I know of), I well desist from further examples of T rump’s inadequacies, at this time.
As a humanist who would rather have a world without wars, it is high time we stop making the President the Commander-in-Chief of the US Military. Martial skill is not an acumen we need for America’s CEO.
I think that is an idea worth considering. Though, I am not sure how it would decrease wars, except in cases like now, where the Commander in Chief is likely to make whimsical, self-serving, non-reality based decisions that may lead to worse wars.
Based on what I have read, there are some 200,000 US troops stationed around the world. Every time Trump wants to move troops out of conflict zones to fulfill his promise to snuff out endless wars, the generals reposition them in other places.
Most of the troops stationed around the world are part of NATO forces that have so far, prevented the recurrence of another World War. T rump may well accomplish Putin’s dream of the US withdrawing from NATO. The world instability that will likely ensue, is more likely to lead to more intensive wars. But we would have a lot of troops home for the meanwhile.
In Syria, T rump wanted to please Putin, and the Turks, and to portray that he was fulfilling a campaign promise, by jerking our troops out of Northern Syria, and betraying our allies the Kurds. T rump claimed he was withdrawing the troops because he had promised to. But the generals apparently dangled a useless oil field in Southern Syria as a sparkly object for T rump to agree to keep troops there. The thing is, the generals probably weren’t motivated by being war-mongers. They probably believe we need troops there to help stimey the almost guaranteed re-emergence of Al Quaeda and ISIS.
Life is not so simple as “War is Bad” “Peace is Good.” Those are true facts, but we humans have warlike tendencies at times. Sure, if all humans decided to never make war again, peace would reign supreme. But that’s not going to happen anytime soon. If some humans don’t want to recognize these facts, and advocate Peace at any cost, then those humans will be subjugated by the humans who are fine with continuing wars and violence.
Even if the violent despots then completely took over the world, there would not be peace, because the despots are geared toward getting their way through violence. When the Peace created by subjugation fails, the war-like subjugators will find something else to have war about.
You seem to support the US military stance we have taken since WW2 up to the present day. There is always a reason to maim and kill people in foreign places to protect the homeland. We are by far the most powerful, both economically and militarily, on the planet; and yet, we fear subjugation by folks who are nowhere as capable and warlike as us. China has one outdated aircraft carrier while we have 13. The US is a $20 trillion economic power compared to Russia’s that is more or less like that of poverty stricken India. You don’t think our preoccupation with self-defense is pathological?
Every time Trump wants to move troops out of conflict zones to fulfill his promise to snuff out endless wars, the generals reposition them in other places.
This is why I care about using evidence and logic to make decisions. It effects the lives of millions of people when you believe things like this. Not you individually, but there are millions like you.
The lives of millions of people can only be affected by twists of fate. The notion that one person, or even the entire human race, for that matter, can make a difference in the scheme of things is delusion.
Why do you say I am not serious, Lausten? I say what I mean. If you can’t get it, just let it slide. Self-importance is a human flaw in all of us, including our President.
I "get it" just fine. You don't know what you are talking about, or you do and you are just here to disrupt, so you make up stuff about what's a "delusion".
Lausten said: “I “get it” just fine. You don’t know what you are talking about, or you do and you are just here to disrupt, so you make up stuff about what’s a “delusion”.”
Make up stuff? Perhaps, you should widen your field of knowledge. I know it’s hard to force oneself to read; especially, books on matters outside one’s area of interest. “Delusion” has an unflattering connotation. I was not using that word to insult you.
Self-determination and free will are western values. In everyday life, we use free will all the time to get things done and to impact others around us. Just the other day on Christmas Eve at a crammed car park of a store, I saw a guy jumped out of his car in a fit of rage and berated the driver of the car blocking his. Thank God, that incident did not erupt into a gunfight. On reflection, what happened in that car park was no different from a volcanic eruption or earthquake - no willful actors. This is Chuangtzu.
"Delusion” has an unflattering connotation. I was not using that word to insult you.
I didn't think you were insulting me. You said that a person can't make a difference, that it's a delusion to think they can. Even under the strictest of applications of the argument against free will, it's wrong to say that individuals can't take actions that effect their environment. Whether or not those actions are predetermined is a different discussion. The words "cause" and "effect" still have meaning.
You say I should “widen my field of knowledge”, but you use eastern philosophy to shut down conversation. I’ve studied the Tao. You are using to obfuscate.
Lausten said: “You say I should “widen my field of knowledge”, but you use eastern philosophy to shut down conversation. I’ve studied the Tao. You are using to obfuscate.”
I would never shut down any conversation; especially, with someone clutching an opposing viewpoint. As for the Tao, the western version of it that you have studied has less to learn from than The Wizard of Oz. Comparative studies is a preoccupation of academics who think they can cross the cultural divide. Jane Goodall believes she understands chimps.
If you believe individuals have free will and can take action to bring about change for the better, you will create a bigger mess. Chuangtzu said this. Not personally, because he is a mythic figure.
Lausten said: “How do you know what I studied? You make the most basic mistake of dialog. It seems almost like you do it on purpose.”
I had to make an educated guess, to move the conversation along. Surprise me and tell me that you studied the Chinese texts with native scholars in China.
Sree: Jane Goodall believes she understands chimps.
I don't think Jane Goodall claims to know everything about chimps. I also dare say that the claims she does make, she frames very carefully and that she has amassed a good deal of data supporting those nuanced conclusions.
I dare say Jane Goodall understands light years more about chimps than you or I.
Citizen said: “I dare say Jane Goodall understands light years more about chimps than you or I.”
I doubt that. By “understand”, I meant crossing the cultural divide and getting into chimpland. We never seem to learn from animal attacks to wise up to the fact that the dumb beasts are us.
Sree writes: the notion that one person, or even the entire human race, for that matter, can make a difference in the scheme of things is delusion.
So, Sree, in the “grand scheme of things” from your perspective it doesn’t seem to matter if T rump takes dictatorial power over the USA and makes decisions that elicit a civilization ending global thermonuclear war. It’s no big whoop, right? Not in the “grand scheme of things”.