I posted that here because I like and respect Foer and found his defense pretty weak. I also think it would be funny if it were true, given the whole Stephen Glass phenomena...
But don't conservatives think that everyone not chanting in support of the war should just shut up? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I don't think so. A lot of Republicans might think that, but most Republicans aren't conservatives, in my opinion. Also, what I was referring to in the above post is the obvious fact that a soldier in the US army willingly made himself a part of an ideological debate. That's absolutely forbidden by the armed services, and so this guy should shut up or quit being a soldier...
Too late - soldiers in the military have been used as a campaign backdrops and ideological props far too many times without consequence, by Rove&Co. That ship has sailed.
You're really like a broken record, you know that? For you, everything comes back to one political party and one administration, everything can be rationalized away by pointing to other, more gross examples of what you consider to be the same behavior. It would be tragic if it weren't so predictable and boring. For the record, your post also ignores the fact that there is a serious difference between an idealogical politician giving a speech in front of troops or on the deck of an aircraft carrier (Yes, we all remember that) and a soldier "reporting" from the front and offering up an opinion he is not supposed to express. But such distinctions are obviously lost on you in your rush to further condemn the condemned and cast clumsy stones at easy-to-hit targets that are already bleeding from your previous efforts...
My post ignores no such thing. You are reading into it, according to your inability to not read into things. On the contrary - I am remembering not only speeches using soldiers as props, but also interviews with soldiers and letters from soldiers and podium presences of soldiers on leave and so forth, on TV and radio and in my local paper - the distinctions between these various different kinds of employments of soldiers in support of Republican campaigns and Republican political efforts is clear to me. Soldiers have been willingly making themselves part of domestic ideological debates - on the Republican, or pro-war, side - since this war began, and sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
What soldiers do on their own time is their own business, but when they are at the front their actions are controlled by the military and they are not supposed to talk to the media or report on anything unless they are given explicit permission. Some occassionally comment when asked by imbedded reporters and such, but running a blog with your own take on the war, whether it be pro or con, is a big no-no and very much different than the stateside actions you refer to. I trust you see the difference.
