The Evil European

NB: I tend to avoid domestic US politics, mainly because its totally nuts. However, I could not resist this.

Freud would have a field day with this guy, US Republican presidential hopeful Duncan Hunter. The USA is one of the few nations in the "developed world" which does not allow openly gay and lesbians to serve in the military. They have a policy called 'dont ask, dont tell' which roughly translates as 'stay in the closet and shut the fuck up'. There has been some discussion about ending this rather silly policy, though Duncan Hunter things otherwise.

"'We aren't the Brits. We're not the Europeans. We're not the Swedes,' says Republican presidential candidate Duncan Hunter, who is the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee. Hunter argues that gays do not belong in the U.S. military because American troops need to be hardened warriors, unlike soldiers in the 15 NATO countries where gays serve openly. 'The Fallujahs of the world, the Ramadis of the world that require heavy combat and lots of fire-fighting capability - those are the places the Americans go. The other countries tend to go to the so-called peacekeeper zones, where they have fewer fire fights and less contact with the enemy,' Hunter says. 'And the European nations show little will to send large contingents of their military people into dangerous places.'" via Towleroad

I get three things from this.
- Europen nations have namby pamby miltiaries that dont really do anything so its ok for gays to serve.
- The USA has a 'warrior' army in which REAL men serve (NO POOFS!).
- Gays and lesbians can't fight.

For starters, British troops have been involved in heavy battle in the Iraq invasion (illiegal invasion, Blair=Bush's Bitch...dont get me started on the Iraq thing!). Being gay does not prevent you blowing wholes in people. US troops have served next to gays and lesbians in NATO excercies and even in war zones.

However, my biggest issue is over what a makes a good solider. The Iraq war has seen US and British troops carry out torture and other inhuman acts. Being a good warrior... a good killer, does not make you a good solider...the opposite in fact...unless your aim is to kill everyone...civilian, men, woman and children.

The other issue I have is that a lot of men and woman are getting screwed up as a result of military service. They do and see things that people are not meant to. Mental illness is a major issue among the military and its not being dealt with. It does not help with dickheads like this Hunter twat as defining the miltiary only as warriors and not as people.

An interesting comment by James Connaughton, the senior US negotiator at the Bali conference of climate change, for me sums up the main problem with the current US mindset to not just climate change but a wide range of issues.

"The US will lead, and we will continue to lead, but leadership also requires others to fall in line and follow."
The Guardian, 14/12/07

The Bush regime is trying to water down the follow up to Kyoto which is calling for a 25-40% cut in CO2 emissions by 2020 for industrialised nations. Canada is playing along with the US but the EU, China, India and well, the rest of the planet, are not going to dance to this tune.

For me, what is interesting in the mind set of the USA which seems like a hangover form the Cold War. While the USSR pretty much told what its allies should think, the democratic nature of the West meant that disagreement was more common. However, to present a unified position, the West generally deferred to the US on important issues.

The Cold War is over, but the USA is still acting as if it has the sole right to be the voice not just of the West but the planet. Leadership is contingent on others willing to follow. The USA has forfeited the right to lead.