9 years ago
22
There's Something About Bernie
The revolutionary zeal of the senator from Vermont is powering his improbable candidacy forward. There’s no way this man could be president, right? Just look at him: rumpled and scowling, bald pate topped by an entropic nimbus of white hair. Just listen to him: ranting, in his gravelly Brooklyn accent, about socialism. Socialism! And yet here we are: In the biggest surprise of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, this thoroughly implausible man, Bernie Sanders, is a sensation.
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+9Submitted 9 years ago by spaceghoti
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+9Submitted 9 years ago by Cobbydaler
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+3Submitted 9 years ago by Appaloosa
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I have this theory. If someone has to present their opponent's views in such a hyperbolic fashion to sway you toward their argument, then their argument must not stand up very well to their opponent's actual views.
It's even stranger to think that the idea of our military having only one tank and one machine gun is unequivocally a bad thing. Is it absolutely necessary that we be ready to kill someone at all times?
Honestly, a lot of the world relies on our military. If all of our military were suddenly reduced to one tank, all hell would break loose across the world. That said, our military definitely needs to improve its spending efficiency.
Horseshit. Most of the world resents our military and our common use of it to force on will on others. Nothing's worse than be 'liberated' by the American army. This whole ISIS thing is the result of the idiot Bush playing cowboy. I've been in the military and it's a major league sack of shit despite the silly hero worship going on these days. In 1973 I was harassed on a bus in San Francisco for being a 'baby killer' and they were right.
While your view has it's merits as there is definitely a general anti-US-army sentiment around Europe that does not hold true for the countries. Without the US having such a big military presence all around the globe either defense budgets elsewhere would blow up or a lot of international peacekeeping missions wouldnt get done. The US provides to backbone for most larger NATO operations and a lot of those wouldnt be doable without the US.
You say that like it's a bad thing.
It pretty much is. Iraq was quite certainly a mistake but things like fishing up refugees out of the mediteranean or protecting ships from pirates in Somalia are also done by military vessels. I'm certainly not a fan of unnecessary military action and dabbling in regions that should be left alone but there is a lot of stuff some large military force is needed for. Either that's the US or other countries have to step up their game. In this time isolationism isnt really an option anymore.
Recognizing arrogance, ignorance, hubris, failure and military cultism for what they are isn’t isolationism.
You're making excuses for us being the bully of the planet. And we do none of these things out of generosity or good will. It's own serving our own interests. Usually, resentment is earned.
Si vis pacem, para bellum.
To some extent, yes. But it seems even the threat of war is enough these days.
“You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war.” — Albert Einstein
The Irony of that old Roman phrase is never lost on me. Einstein also lamented that he told Rosevelt about atomic weapons. Same ironic situation.
Ideally, a military only exists to make itself irrelevant. That doesn't seem to be the case with America's military today. Look at our defense spending compared to that of the rest of the world.
It's like people are afraid even to entertain the notion of a world without war lest they be labeled a limp wristed hippy.
Let's not make him out to be a messiah. He's still just a man.
He is just a man. But he's a man who consistently represents the Left in a way we haven't seen in thirty years. I think we can be excused for getting excited about that, even if we don't expect him to win.
There's nothing wrong with a little enthusiasm. Obama definitely used his campaign and the media to create a cult of personality during the 2008 election. Nothing against Sanders, but I don't see him having the charisma to inspire the same. Everyone I know who supports Sanders does so for his positions on the issues. I think the main reason for his success is that the left has been marginalized and ignored since Dukakis lost to Bush in 88. It's nice to have someone at the fore representing your interests.
The trouble is Obama's rhetoric during the campaign and his inauguration hasn't translated into action. I watched the 2008 inauguration in an American book store in Prague. The atmosphere of hope was amazing. I know he's been obstructed throughout by the GOP, but more was expected of him given the rhetoric.
That's a piece of Bernie's rhetoric that sits very well with me: he always mentions when he speaks that an election won't change anything. Him getting elected (or not) to the Presidency, by itself, changes nothing. Change can only come through a grassroots political movement that includes all demographics of Americans standing up to billionaires and corporations and saying "We want our government back!"
It's a very inclusive message, and judging by the bar that he just packed in the pouring rain with hundreds of thousands of other people watching the same message in similar gatherings in every state in America, I'd say it's being well received!
I don't think being excited about a candidate who hasn't been bought and sold by corporate interests is the same as declaring him a 'messiah'. People are excited about Bernie because he has strong ideas, a voting record that backs them up, and he's not afraid to piss off America's corporate overlords. It's refreshing to see honesty and passion from a political candidate.
He is very clear on his ideals, and those ideals are resonating with many, many people. I wish there were more people like him in government. I'm not on board with all of his ideas, but a lot I am.