SocraticGadfly: NickKristof - naive about 'lefty military'

June 15, 2011

NickKristof - naive about 'lefty military'

Kristof tries to call the U.S. armed forces "the lefty military."

Of course, there is PLENTY of truth he's missing:
1. The religious indoctrination so hugely prevalent at the Air Force;
2. The larger evangelical Christian bias elsewhere in the military, as "Rock the Fort" and the underhanded cancellation of "Rock Beyond Belief" show;
3. Demographic polling that shows the enlisted ranks of the U.S. military, not just commissioned officers, are more religious, and more conservative, than the country as a whole;
4. The strong opposition of many officers, especially in the Marines, to the proposed ending of don't ask, don't tell.

I haven't had this much of a laugh at self-inflicted naivete since Kos claimed the CIA was actually a liberal institution.

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There's other good stuff from commenters on his column.

Among them:
1. The military is orders-based; it's easy to get "equality" by dictate;
2. It's "socialist" in the amount of money we "redistribute" to it, but, with mercenaries, etc., threatening to become more and more capitalist;
3. Corporations are becoming more militarized in their hierarchical structure;

1 comment:

Sheldon said...

He has his points, but also, with the exception of a minority of dissenting soldiers, the Military is, after all, pro-WAR! Helloooooo!