Ignorant Red Necks
The Washington Post today has an article called “Red-State Army?” written by Danielle Allen. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/14/AR2008121401815.html?wpisrc=newsletter
In the article she documents that the states which consistently vote Republican also have a much higher percent of veterans. And its not due just to retirees moving to Florida either.
Back during ancient history in the late 1960’s and 1970’s America was also in the habit of fighting senseless, foolish wars. This particular one was in southeast asia, mostly in the country of Vietnam. A great many more soldiers were required for this “conflict” that the current ones, so the country of America had a system of involuntary servitude, the draft. Whether you liked it or not, if your country wanted you to be in the military you HAD TO serve.
I helped my little brother write his application for conscientious objector (which he eventually won). Some people fled to Canada or Europe. Others went to jail rather than kill. Joan Baez’s husband David was an example. Most of us just ended up wearing the uniform and hoping for the best. And those of us who lived got the GI Bill to pay for most of our college expenses, and then the GI Bill also financed our first house too.
White people with PhD’s were serving right along side of poorly educated black kids from Harlem or Mississippi. It was all very democratic. And eye opening for everyone.
But now in the era of the All Volunteer Army mostly the poorly educated and financially distressed serve in America’s military. Sort of like mercenaries. We have a military made up mostly of young people with dark colored skin and ignorant poorly educated whites.
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Of course the elite officer corps still has lots of people with PhD’s. This pattern does not bode at all well for the country.
Now this lady Danielle Allen has documented that the primary states where people participate in the All Volunteer Military are the same states which vote for people like George W. Bush. This is probably something we all sort of suspected but never really thought about.
She says, “The issue now is not racial integration but cultural separation.”
My young nephews and nieces absolutely cringe and hate to hear me say it, but if the country is insistent that it is going to continually fight wars, then mandatory military service should be reinstituted.
This sounds like something a red neck would want, but it comes from a person who is fairly well educated and who has a deep love for equality and democracy. From someone who also is an honorably discharged Vietnam era veteran. I was an honors graduate from UTEP, so the Army trained me as a tank driver, the ultimate off-road-vehicle.
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