Support Our Troops: Vote Core

Cite your sources. -A real journalist.

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/07/ron-paul---stil.html

So we now know that, measured in terms of financial support, Ron Paul, the one GOP candidate who actually backs individual liberty against government power, is now ahead of Huckabee, Brownback, Gilmore, Thompson (Tommy), and Tancredo. He's the alternative to the Big Three. But guess who are among his strongest supporters? The US military, now being shamelessly coopted by the stab-in-the-back righties. Paul has a staggering 52.53 percent of all military contributions. Here's the data:

52.53% Ron Paul
35.4% McCain
7.9% Romney
5.2% Giuliani
2.2% Hunter
2.6% Others

Oh the irony of those italics, anonymous.

Nathan,
Fair enough. I stand by what I said: you can't make a shocking statement like that and not back it up with a link. Thanks for doing so in your reply. However, looking at those figures shows that the majority of money was given to Paul, not that "more than fifty percent of our current active military personnel want Ron Paul to be president of the United States." Impressive nonetheless, but you still make a likely incorrect assumption.

People like you only "support" those military men and women who share your political perspective. Meanwhile, you insult the other 50% by implying that anyone who believes in this war is either a moron or the naive victim of a political snowjob. My husband is deployed overseas for the second time and I assure you that he is doing more than "shooting brown people". He believes in what our country has accomplished and will continue to accomplish; he must be a moron. He must be so moronic that he's willing to put his life on the line for no good reason. Hitler never attacked the U.S., either. I wonder how that whole thing would've turned out if our country had been full of "core" individuals like yourself. How about you try "supporting the troops" by not pissing all over the many, many servicemen who are proud to fight and die for what they believe is a good cause.

A few things for U.S. Marine wife:

1. The U.S. never declared war on Germany. Germany was the one that declared war.

2. It did however declare war on Japan. Which did attack, in case you were wondering.

3. How is it 'pissing on the servicemen' to advocate a leader who wouldn't go sending them into pointless wars which have no benefit for anyone concerned?

Dear Proud Wife of a US Marine: I am sorry if I insulted you because I believe that if you love this war that you are the naive victim of a snow job. However, please refrain from ever accusing me of holding our soldiers in a less than high regard. I'd have gone myself if they had taken me (I was in a mental hospital for a while--long story) and all of the men in my family serve. I may have insulted you, but think of it as collateral damage or blow back. I believe what I believe and I never once said I don't believe in our boys.

Also, why the hell are you such a big fan of the war?

Nate, I fully support your right to your own beliefs about this war, the next presidential election, and everything else. (I also support that right for the Iraqi people, who have it now thanks to our efforts.) I even understand your point of view. I felt insulted not because I disagree with you but because you honestly feel that my husband and I have been tricked somehow into feeling the way we do. (You still don't deny that you believe we've been snowed.) We are not stupid, nor are we uneducated, and we are certainly not naive! It is incredibly arrogant to think that you somehow have a better fix on the realities of this war than my husband, who is finishing up his second 18-month tour. We believe in it because my husband has seen with his own eyes the effects of Saddam Hussein's dictatorship on the people of Iraq and the improvements being made every day thanks to our military presence in that country. The evening news loves to report casualties and failures, but our work over there is much on the plus side. Schools and hospitals are being built, much needed water purification and waste disposal systems are being brought to some of the poorest areas, and dangerous neighborhoods are safer for the civilians that live there. When Iraqi militants open fire, civilian women and children run to my husband and the other soldiers for protection. Random Iraqis thank him for his help. These aspects of the war are sadly under-reported. There is a long way to go to in Iraq, it's true, and not everyone feels that it's the responsibility of the U.S. to help. The strain on our resources is enormous; I understand why so many want to give up. I don't see it that way, though. If you saw a man beating a woman in an alley, would you intervene or walk on by because it wasn't your problem? I hope you would stop and help; I believe that the strong have a responsibility to defend those who are unable to defend themselves. For the U.S., or any powerful nation, to stand by and watch an evil dictator abuse his people, oppress certain segments of the population based on their tribe or religion, and also allow him to thumb his nose at the rest of the world when asked to comply with the regulations he agreed to when getting his ass kicked the first time around . . . it would be a shameful dereliction of duty. Whether you think the liberation of a population that needed help has been worth it or not is up to you. I only ask that you not make ridiculous assumptions about your own intellectual superiority in comparison to me, my husband, or anyone else who supports the war. We have a persepective on this that you can't get from reading "Newsweek". If you still think we're just twits that have been led around by the nose, maybe you'd be willing to enlighten my husband when he gets back from eating sand and dodging bullets. You know, tell him all the stuff that you know about this war that he missed in the 36 months spent fighting in it.

P.S. Dave, I have a degree in history and work for a museum. My specialty? World Wars I & II - I spend five days a week both studying and teaching it. You're in over your head. Let it go.