what an asshole.

Real easy to call him an asshole, while he's over there and you're safely behind your screen. If somebody's gotta do that job, might as well be somebody who enjoys it. Better than going insane with hate, coming home, and crawling into a bottle.
Maybe when you go off, fight in a stupid, shitty war , see some action, you can pass judgement.

But yeah, somebody shoulda checked him out before he went on air.

Stephen,

What can I say. You never cease to amaze.

Apparently, the word isn't getting out about how much fun it is to shoot "Hajis," as our young GIs affectionately call the Iraqis they've freedomized. The Marines missed their January recruiting quota for the first time in ten years. Where are all the fire-breathing, compassionate superpatriots who demanded this war, but now aren't showing up to fight in it?

ChristianLibrul
PVT-E2 US Army (ret)

hey lactar, my tax dollars go to fund the Department of Defense.. funny wording isn't it.. defense.. there's nothing "defensive" about saying how much you enjoy shooting people. My grandfater fought in WWII and when he killed, he killed because he had to do it, not because he found it "fun". And it wrecked him. So don't impugn my patriotism or courage, because you know nothing about me. If these are the types of leaders you support, then I feel sorry for your children.

"If somebody's gotta do that job..."

No one needed to do the job of the Iraq War. It happened because PNAC wanted it to happen, and they bent the intelligence to make it happen. It is a war based on lies.

"might as well be somebody who enjoys it."

I hope you are kidding. The military does not train its people to "enjoy" murder. Murder is the worst part of what the military does, and the military trains its people to view it as an expediency of war.

"Better than going insane with hate"

It sounds like this marine is already filled with hate. Someone who enjoys taking human life is not a well person. Which is why civilized societies have laws against the taking of life.

I was glad to see Cali's response. Cali was using shorthand when calling the marine an asshole. The fact is, he is someone with no regard for human life. I, too, had friends and relatives fight in WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and the first Gulf War. Not a one of them, to a man, enjoyed killing people. Those that are living still have nightmares. None of them are alcoholics, either, nor are they filled with hate. If you really think that is an acceptable position to hold, woe to you, sir.

plummer, thanks for transcribing my "shorthand". "he is someone with no regard for human life" says is all, and much more eloquently than I did.

Sure, Cali. I think it's become frighteningly easy for people to forget that human life is the most precious gift we have. To excuse the callous disregard for human life is, itself, inhuman. In a way, "asshole" is too pedestrian a word -- but I certainly think your sentiment was on the money. What this man said is horrible. Lactar choosing to argue that point is absurd. I am so utterly tired of the Lactar-adopted stance of "well, you didn't fight in a war, so you're in no position to judge the warriors." Does that mean only serial killers should judge serial killers? Should only rapists be allowed to pass judgement on rapists? Neither Gandhi nor Dr. King fought in wars (of course, their lives were wars from one sense), but I think that as non-violent activists, they were utterly qualified to judge in matters of war.

I hope Lactar gets the point about the value of human life, though.

Agree completely. Also, to add to your point, I would hope that even career military men would strongly disagree with his statement. Serving in the military is to many an honor and a privilege and the defense of one's country is respectible. To kill, while wearing the military uniform of your country, is something that you do because you have to, not because you want to, or because you derive any particular joy in it. To enjoy killing makes you a sadist.

"I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity."
 -General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Hey, I don't want to sound like I'm defending this crackpot, because I'm not, but are you really that surprised? I guess the fact that he said it on record is surprising but I'm not at all shocked by the fact that he said it.

I mean, do you guys really think that there aren't a whole bunch of other guys in the Marines who don't think the exact same way that General Bloodlust does? The reality of the armed forces as well as police work, prison guard and any other job that involves ample opportunities for legitimized killing and/or serious beat downs is that they attract violent, angry, ignorant, sadistic meatheads. The overwhelming majority of our men in uniform are clearly not these type of guys, but there's always gonna be a high sample of sociopaths in the army. And it's always been that way. Or at least it since Platoon.

One last thought: this is why you don't take a country to war unless you absolutely have to. As soon as the safeties are off, there are gonna be atrocities.

Rock on, boys.

You're absolutely correct, Martin, though I don't know if I'd assume that it's a "high sample." War is a great many terrible things, and one of them is an excuse for sociopaths to indulge their worst impulses. I appreciate Cali's posting of the Ike quote. That should be carved over the door to the White House situation room and in every hall of the Pentagon.

The century just passed is the bloodiest on record, in large measure because our technology has developed at a rapid rate, and our humanistic education has not. Most wars are, on one level, about greed. Greed over land and natural resources and capital gain for the investors in a war. The Iraq War is a prime example of greed-driven policy. Halliburton and other multi-nationals are making billions of dollars on this war. The motives are dressed up in WMDs and "freedom," but any rational person can see through those lies. This is about capital gain, more basely than ever.

And for what, Mr. Cheney? Where are you going to take all your riches when your wretched body finally gives way?

Men like the General are the reason that all you non-serving asswipes can go about your daily life without wondering if someone is going to blow me up,shoot my kids etc.If you haven't served your country your're the last piece of garbage that should be whinning[sp]Cpl F Kaner USMC Retired

Nice attitude Frank! Last time I checked it's a volunteer military, so how do you have any idea if I've served or not? Certainly they teach Marines better logic than that..

I won't pretend to give creedence to your poorly worded and virtually incoherent logic, because I doubt someone like yourself has the capacity to see both sides of an issue. To be perfectly frank Frank, I've never worried about someone blowing me up or shooting my kids because I had faith in the decisions of our military leaders.

What I do worry about is folks like you. Simple minded fools who believe that killing for sport makes you more of a man. Real military vetrans know that while killing in some circumstances may be a necessary evil, it is an evil nonetheless. I understand your fealty to a commissioned officer, and I thank you for your serivce in the name of our country, but your attitude towards this particular conflict and issue is plain wrong. No amount of bravado or loyalty will ever change that. Most Marines I know are religious men, does your God approve of your blood lust Frank?

I know too many good Marines to let someone like you change my opinion of the service, therefore it won't.

Hey, he's a bloodthirsty killer, but he's OUR bloodthirsty killer. We hire a slew of people to do our killing, and WOW, some of them like it. Suprised? I'm not. He probably just meant that they were worthy opponents. Even if he didnt, he's doing our work for us, and dont give me any "NOT MINE! IM A DEMOCRAT!". It's crap. Your fearless leaders have gone with everything the white house has said for the past four years. There are even quites from Ted Kennedy about Iraq and it's WMDs. This man fights for all of us.
The men and women who represent us hired him to go kill for us.
Any blood on his hands is on ours too.
He's just the only one who actually has to clean up at the end of the day.

Lactar, how in the hell do you read "It's fun to shoot some people" and translate it to mean "He probably just meant that they were worthy opponents"? This is like Rush equating torture with frat pranks.

As to the rest of your bizarre post: I don't read a single comment above and see anyone trying to wash their hands of the blood that's been shed on behalf of our country. Not a single person is suggesting that we are not responsible for the Iraq War, for the dead Iraqi civilians, or for men like Lt. Gen. James Mattis. It's precisely because I know that Mattis is one of my reps that I'm disturbed by his public comments and am speaking out about them and him.

I've got a book for you, Lactar, and you should give it a look, too, Frank. It's called "Blowback" by Chalmers Johnson. It's about the fruits of our imperial methodology.