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Essays

independence day

Strap yourself in, because this one is going to be a bumpy ride. It is entirely probable that I will offend damn near every one of you before this one is over.

Okay, after reading all of these Independence Day posts talking about how great the Vietnam and Iraq war veterans are for fighting for our freedom and how we should thank and respect them, I finally have to say this:

WAKE THE FUCK UP

The war in Iraq isn't doing dick to protect our freedom. It's actually taking more of it away. And if you don't believe that, turn off Fox "News" and read the fucking Patriot Act. This war isn't about protecting our freedom or our way of life. It's about forcing that way of life onto another country.

The first Iraq war wasn't about our freedom so much as it was about removing the occupation from Kuwait (and preserving the supply lines of oil from that country, naturally).

The Vietnam War didn't protect our freedoms either. Those boys that went over there and fought and died didn't die for us; didn't die protecting our rights. They didn't even accomplish what they set out to do!

Korea? Same shit, different country.

World War II? We were perfectly content as a country to let Hitler wipe out the entire Jewish population of Europe, until the Japanese flew over and bombed Pearl Harbor (an attack which has conclusively been proven not to be a surprise as it was originally claimed). Only then did we get involved because our collective pride as a nation was stung.

World War I? Treaty obligations drew us into that one to aid our allies against an incursion that they collectively couldn't deal with. We as a country were never directly threatened or attacked.

Civil War? The North put a carpetbagging slapdown on the Confederacy for attempting to do exactly what the colonies did to England a hundred years earlier.

French and Indian War? Nothing more than an excuse to push native peoples from their home and to the brink of extinction.

Frankly, the only wars that could be considered to have had any impact on our freedoms as a country are the Revolutionary War, which established them, and the War of 1812, which cemented them.

And, if we want to be brutally honest (and we do), let's strip away all of the pretense and speak plainly. The Boston Tea Party was nothing more than a very basic terrorist attack. The Revolutionary War was the work of a small insurgency employing guerrilla tactics against a better armed, better organized enemy considered by the revolutionaries to be occupying invaders of a foreign country.

Put in that light, it doesn't sound so wonderful and worth celebrating. But because we won, we get the prize of being able to write the history books however we want and to put whatever positive spin on it we'd like. And the mass of people in this world simply and blindly believe the candy-coated bullshit that is spoonfed to them throughout school without ever stopping to consider the world from any other perspective.

History is written by the winners in the blood of the losers. It has always been this way. But that doesn't mean that it's the only story.

Think about that next time someone tells you what a wonderful thing we're doing in Iraq and how much we owe these "heroes" for fighting to "protect our freedom".


	Disclaimer This site contains content of an adult nature, both in written and graphical versions. If you are under the age of consent in your city, state, country, or province, please click here and exit the site. Site Map home lotr fanfiction elvish rants inspiration artwork links Section Links Canon vs AU/Non-Canon Children and Music The Civil War Debunking Evil!Thranduil Elven Haircolor 101 Elvish Names 101 Elvish Names Continued Elven Population Elven Rebirth Fanon, Part One Free Speech Independence Day Bullshit Musings On The Movie "Supersize Me" The Mysterious Glorfindel Nazi Germany Symbols and Words Voting Rights Act Who Is Gildor Inglorion? Why Gay Christian Is Not An Oxymoron		Essays independence day Strap yourself in, because this one is going to be a bumpy ride. It is entirely probable that I will offend damn near every one of you before this one is over. Okay, after reading all of these Independence Day posts talking about how great the Vietnam and Iraq war veterans are for fighting for our freedom and how we should thank and respect them, I finally have to say this: WAKE THE FUCK UP The war in Iraq isn't doing dick to protect our freedom. It's actually taking more of it away. And if you don't believe that, turn off Fox "News" and read the fucking Patriot Act. This war isn't about protecting our freedom or our way of life. It's about forcing that way of life onto another country. The first Iraq war wasn't about our freedom so much as it was about removing the occupation from Kuwait (and preserving the supply lines of oil from that country, naturally). The Vietnam War didn't protect our freedoms either. Those boys that went over there and fought and died didn't die for us; didn't die protecting our rights. They didn't even accomplish what they set out to do! Korea? Same shit, different country. World War II? We were perfectly content as a country to let Hitler wipe out the entire Jewish population of Europe, until the Japanese flew over and bombed Pearl Harbor (an attack which has conclusively been proven not to be a surprise as it was originally claimed). Only then did we get involved because our collective pride as a nation was stung. World War I? Treaty obligations drew us into that one to aid our allies against an incursion that they collectively couldn't deal with. We as a country were never directly threatened or attacked. Civil War? The North put a carpetbagging slapdown on the Confederacy for attempting to do exactly what the colonies did to England a hundred years earlier. French and Indian War? Nothing more than an excuse to push native peoples from their home and to the brink of extinction. Frankly, the only wars that could be considered to have had any impact on our freedoms as a country are the Revolutionary War, which established them, and the War of 1812, which cemented them. And, if we want to be brutally honest (and we do), let's strip away all of the pretense and speak plainly. The Boston Tea Party was nothing more than a very basic terrorist attack. The Revolutionary War was the work of a small insurgency employing guerrilla tactics against a better armed, better organized enemy considered by the revolutionaries to be occupying invaders of a foreign country. Put in that light, it doesn't sound so wonderful and worth celebrating. But because we won, we get the prize of being able to write the history books however we want and to put whatever positive spin on it we'd like. And the mass of people in this world simply and blindly believe the candy-coated bullshit that is spoonfed to them throughout school without ever stopping to consider the world from any other perspective. History is written by the winners in the blood of the losers. It has always been this way. But that doesn't mean that it's the only story. Think about that next time someone tells you what a wonderful thing we're doing in Iraq and how much we owe these "heroes" for fighting to "protect our freedom".