did John Kerry just call soldiers stupid?

[Strangler Lewis]

Originally Posted by LSPoorEeyorick

My only disdain is for the president, for sending troops to die for a cause that seems to be the oil business. I have compassion for the troops; I'm sorry they found themselves in the position to have to go to war. I'm sorry that many of them felt like they didn't have any other choice. I'm sorry that some of them were pulled unwittingly into Vietnam: Now! With more Iraq!

On the other hand . . .

When it suits their purposes, the powers that be are perfectly capable of arguing that enlistees are not a bunch of stoic Cincinnatuses (Cincinnati?), but, rather, culturally unaware mutants who are bred for killing. This from a history of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell":

"DoD officials and members of Congress contended that integration would lead to violence and harassment against gay and lesbian service members. For instance, Senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, stated that he would "fear for the lives of people in the military themselves" if the ban were lifted too quickly. [206] Marine Corps Colonel Frederick Peck testified that a main reason he would not want his gay son to join the Marines was fear of violence: "I would be very fearful that his life would be in jeopardy from his own troops. . . . Fratricide is something that exists out there, and there are people who would put my son’s life at risk in our own armed forces." [207] One Army official testified, "There is a large percentage of individuals who have a propensity toward violence in that regard." [208] Likewise, a spokesperson for the National Guard asserted that the "sanctioned integration of homosexuals . . . will create explosive situations both in the work and living environments." [209]

I remember watching Colonel Peck's testimony on the news at the time. I found it rather chilling.