The Enemy From Within

[kalm]

I was also impressed by the many younger veterans who stepped up afterwards on social media to express disapproval of what Trump and Hegseth had to say. I was particularly struck by this post from a leader of the group Veterans for Responsible Leadership, reacting to Hegseth’s boast that “America’s warriors . . . kill people and break things for a living.”

This is a disgraceful message. There was a soldier that I served with in the army that later was killed in Mosul, Iraq that said the reason he joined the military was because he believed that it was the greatest force for good that the world has ever known. He said the military not only taught its soldiers to be lethal, but it also taught us to be compassionate and empathetic and care about not only the American people but also freedom-loving and -seeking people from all over the globe. This is the true warrior ethos that so many of us veterans know and love. I’m thinking about him a lot tonight and will be damned if sons of bitches like Trump and Hegseth will transform our great military into something resembling the Russians’. His memory and service must not be in vain.

Yesterday also saw a notable contribution to our public discourse from a veteran of a different generation, a man who served a tour in the Army over six decades ago and then continued his public service with a distinguished career as a U.S. federal district court judge. William G. Young, a Ronald Reagan appointee to the federal bench in Massachusetts and now a senior judge, wrote a long and careful opinion in American Association of University Professors et al. v. Marco Rubio, finding that in one of the early ICE arrests this year the Trump administration had trampled on the free speech rights of an immigrant.

But Young chose to go beyond his important legal analysis of free speech jurisprudence to discuss the larger meaning of “our magnificent Constitution.” And so he addressed the practice of ICE agents wearing masks:

“Can you imagine a masked Marine? It is a matter of honor—and honor still matters. To us, masks are associated with cowardly desperados and the despised Ku Klux Klan. In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police. Carrying on in this fashion, ICE brings indelible obloquy to this administration and everyone who works in it.”

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-silenc ... he+Bulwark

[GannonFan]

It takes a long time to change something as large and as steeped in history as the US military. Trump has 3 and half years to go, and then he's gone. That's not enough time. The military will weather this storm.

[kalm]

Gonna be tough to shoot the messenger over these words.

what is fascism? “Fascism is not the easiest thing to identify and analyze,” it said, “nor, once in power, is it easy to destroy. It is important for our future and that of the world that as many of us as possible understand the causes and practices of fascism, in order to combat it.”

Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.”
“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. They permit no civil liberties, no equality before the law.” “Fascism treats women as mere breeders. ‘Children, kitchen, and the church,’ was the Nazi slogan for women,” the pamphlet said.

Fascists “make their own rules and change them when they choose…. They maintain themselves in power by use of force combined with propaganda based on primitive ideas of ‘blood’ and ‘race,’ by skillful manipulation of fear and hate, and by false promise of security. The propaganda glorifies war and insists it is smart and ‘realistic’ to be pitiless and violent.”

Fascists understood that “the fundamental principle of democracy—faith in the common sense of the common people—was the direct opposite of the fascist principle of rule by the elite few,” it explained, “[s]o they fought democracy…. They played political, religious, social, and economic groups against each other and seized power while these groups struggled.”

Americans should not be fooled into thinking that fascism could not come to America, the pamphlet warned; after all, “[w]e once laughed Hitler off as a harmless little clown with a funny mustache.” And indeed, the U.S. had experienced “sorry instances of mob sadism, lynchings, vigilantism, terror, and suppression of civil liberties. We have had our hooded gangs, Black Legions, Silver Shirts, and racial and religious bigots. All of them, in the name of Americanism, have used undemocratic methods and doctrines which…can be properly identified as ‘fascist.’”

it was important for Americans to understand the tactics fascists would use to take power in the United States. They would try to gain power “under the guise of ‘super-patriotism’ and ‘super-Americanism.’” And they would use three techniques:

First, they would pit religious, racial, and economic groups against one another to break down national unity. Part of that effort to divide and conquer would be a “well-planned ‘hate campaign’ against minority races, religions, and other groups.”
Second, they would deny any need for international cooperation, because that would fly in the face of their insistence that their supporters were better than everyone else. “In place of international cooperation, the fascists seek to substitute a perverted sort of ultra-nationalism which tells their people that they are the only people in the world who count. With this goes hatred and suspicion toward the people of all other nations.”

Third, fascists would insist that “the world has but two choices—either fascism or communism, and they label as ‘communists’ everyone who refuses to support them.”
It is “vitally important” to learn to spot native fascists, the government said, “even though they adopt names and slogans with popular appeal, drape themselves with the American flag, and attempt to carry out their program in the name of the democracy they are trying to destroy.”

https://open.substack.com/pub/heatherco ... nt=overlay

[Caribbean Hen]

It takes a long time to change something as large and as steeped in history as the US military. Trump has 3 and half years to go, and then he's gone. That's not enough time. The military will weather this storm.

It didn’t take the military very long at all too get their mojo back after the horrific Biden charades that tried to destroy it

All the services were having a hard time meeting recruiting numbers under Biden, but all that got resolved very quickly once he was out.

The world is in awe of what our military has accomplished recently with the spectacular capture a brutal drug dealer posing as the leader of Venezuela

Gracias Donald Trump from the people of Venezuela and thank God Cruella no brain Harris is not the president

[kalm]

It takes a long time to change something as large and as steeped in history as the US military. Trump has 3 and half years to go, and then he's gone. That's not enough time. The military will weather this storm.

It didn’t take the military very long at all too get their mojo back after the horrific Biden charades that tried to destroy it

All the services were having a hard time meeting recruiting numbers under Biden, but all that got resolved very quickly once he was out.

The world is in awe of what our military has accomplished recently with the spectacular capture a brutal drug dealer posing as the leader of Venezuela

Gracias Donald Trump from the people of Venezuela and thank God Cruella no brain Harris is not the president

[BDKJMU]

I was also impressed by the many younger veterans who stepped up afterwards on social media to express disapproval of what Trump and Hegseth had to say. I was particularly struck by this post from a leader of the group Veterans for Responsible Leadership, reacting to Hegseth’s boast that “America’s warriors . . . kill people and break things for a living.”



Yesterday also saw a notable contribution to our public discourse from a veteran of a different generation, a man who served a tour in the Army over six decades ago and then continued his public service with a distinguished career as a U.S. federal district court judge. William G. Young, a Ronald Reagan appointee to the federal bench in Massachusetts and now a senior judge, wrote a long and careful opinion in American Association of University Professors et al. v. Marco Rubio, finding that in one of the early ICE arrests this year the Trump administration had trampled on the free speech rights of an immigrant.

But Young chose to go beyond his important legal analysis of free speech jurisprudence to discuss the larger meaning of “our magnificent Constitution.” And so he addressed the practice of ICE agents wearing masks:

“Can you imagine a masked Marine? It is a matter of honor—and honor still matters. To us, masks are associated with cowardly desperados and the despised Ku Klux Klan. In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police. Carrying on in this fashion, ICE brings indelible obloquy to this administration and everyone who works in it.”

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-silenc ... he+Bulwark

[kalm]

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-silenc ... he+Bulwark

Thank you for confirming exactly what’s wrong here.

[BDKJMU]

I was also impressed by the many younger veterans who stepped up afterwards on social media to express disapproval of what Trump and Hegseth had to say. I was particularly struck by this post from a leader of the group Veterans for Responsible Leadership, reacting to Hegseth’s boast that “America’s warriors . . . kill people and break things for a living.”

Yesterday also saw a notable contribution to our public discourse from a veteran of a different generation, a man who served a tour in the Army over six decades ago and then continued his public service with a distinguished career as a U.S. federal district court judge. William G. Young, a Ronald Reagan appointee to the federal bench in Massachusetts and now a senior judge, wrote a long and careful opinion in American Association of University Professors et al. v. Marco Rubio, finding that in one of the early ICE arrests this year the Trump administration had trampled on the free speech rights of an immigrant.

But Young chose to go beyond his important legal analysis of free speech jurisprudence to discuss the larger meaning of “our magnificent Constitution.” And so he addressed the practice of ICE agents wearing masks:

“Can you imagine a masked Marine? It is a matter of honor—and honor still matters. To us, masks are associated with cowardly desperados and the despised Ku Klux Klan. In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police. Carrying on in this fashion, ICE brings indelible obloquy to this administration and everyone who works in it.”

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-silenc ... he+Bulwark

Wrong. Leaving aside whether or not the individual had his free speech rights trampled upon, the individual was not an immigrant. He was an illegal alien or illegal immigrant. The left conflating people who have come here legally with those who haven’t. They are not the same.

Can you imagine a masked Marine?

Marines aren’t being doxxed. When the lunatic leftists stop trying to doxx ICE agents, they’ll stop wearing masks.

In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police.

Because in all our history sans the last 10-15 years we have never people doxxed on the internet. In all our history sans the last 10-15 years never had virtually everyone carrying a handheld camera where videos can be put on the internet minutes after being taken and almost instantly viewed by millions.

The judge is at best stuck in the 20th century, at worst a moron.

[UNI88]

https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-silenc ... he+Bulwark

Wrong. Leaving aside whether or not the individual had his free speech rights trampled upon, the individual was not an immigrant. He was an illegal alien or illegal immigrant. The left conflating people who have come here legally with those who haven’t. They are not the same.

Can you imagine a masked Marine?

Marines aren’t being doxxed. When the lunatic leftists stop trying to doxx ICE agents, they’ll stop wearing masks.

In all our history we have never tolerated an armed masked secret police.

Because in all our history sans the last 10-15 years we have never people doxxed on the internet. In all our history sans the last 10-15 years never had virtually everyone carrying a handheld camera where videos can be put on the internet minutes after being taken and almost instantly viewed by millions.

The judge is at best stuck in the 20th century, at worst a moron.

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

[BDKJMU]

Wrong. Leaving aside whether or not the individual had his free speech rights trampled upon, the individual was not an immigrant. He was an illegal alien or illegal immigrant. The left conflating people who have come here legally with those who haven’t. They are not the same.


Marines aren’t being doxxed. When the lunatic leftists stop trying to doxx ICE agents, they’ll stop wearing masks.


Because in all our history sans the last 10-15 years we have never people doxxed on the internet. In all our history sans the last 10-15 years never had virtually everyone carrying a handheld camera where videos can be put on the internet minutes after being taken and almost instantly viewed by millions.

The judge is at best stuck in the 20th century, at worst a moron.

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

No, and we don’t have that now.

[Caribbean Hen]

It didn’t take the military very long at all too get their mojo back after the horrific Biden charades that tried to destroy it

All the services were having a hard time meeting recruiting numbers under Biden, but all that got resolved very quickly once he was out.

The world is in awe of what our military has accomplished recently with the spectacular capture a brutal drug dealer posing as the leader of Venezuela

Gracias Donald Trump from the people of Venezuela and thank God Cruella no brain Harris is not the president

My point was the military recovered just fine and rather quickly from the horrible Biden administration…. You know that president you never mention

[UNI88]

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

No, and we don’t have that now.

Yes, we do. That's what trump is creating. He and his regime are the true enema within

[BDKJMU]

No, and we don’t have that now.

Yes, we do. That's what trump is creating. He and his regime are the true enema within

[UNI88]

Yes, we do. That's what trump is creating. He and his regime are the true enema within

I said it first ...

MAQA yahoos haven't just put their spines and gonads on a shelf, they've put their brains there as well. When he tells them to drink the poisoned kool-aid, will they?

[kalm]

Wrong. Leaving aside whether or not the individual had his free speech rights trampled upon, the individual was not an immigrant. He was an illegal alien or illegal immigrant. The left conflating people who have come here legally with those who haven’t. They are not the same.


Marines aren’t being doxxed. When the lunatic leftists stop trying to doxx ICE agents, they’ll stop wearing masks.


Because in all our history sans the last 10-15 years we have never people doxxed on the internet. In all our history sans the last 10-15 years never had virtually everyone carrying a handheld camera where videos can be put on the internet minutes after being taken and almost instantly viewed by millions.

The judge is at best stuck in the 20th century, at worst a moron.

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

Unsalable truth. You’d think MAGA would be brave enough to admit it.

[UNI88]

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

Unsalable truth. You’d think MAGA would be brave enough to admit it.

It's like when trump said he didn't know what project 2025 was during the 2024 campaign and MAQA dutifully backed him up. When he began to implement it upon taking office they just said "gotcha" like it was no big deal.

Then they wonder why people don't believe them.

[SeattleGriz]

Have we in all our history sans the last year had a President create a KGB like secret police force using violence and threats of violence in an attempt to intimidate the American people into giving up their Constitutional rights and complying with the President's directives?

Unsalable truth. You’d think MAGA would be brave enough to admit it.

Says the guy who went totally fascist over COVID. You have no leg to stand on about ANY of this discussion.

[UNI88]

Unsalable truth. You’d think MAGA would be brave enough to admit it.

Says the guy who went totally fascist over COVID. You have no leg to stand on about ANY of this discussion.

I didn't.

And now the shoe is on the other foot and you're "going totally fascist over" immigration protests.

After complaining about it during COVID you and your MAQA comrades also have no leg to stand on about ANY of this discussion.

[kalm]

Unsalable truth. You’d think MAGA would be brave enough to admit it.

Says the guy who went totally fascist over COVID. You have no leg to stand on about ANY of this discussion.

Get back to me when you open a book and read up on what fascism is.

[SeattleGriz]

Says the guy who went totally fascist over COVID. You have no leg to stand on about ANY of this discussion.

Get back to me when you open a book and read up on what fascism is.

Sure, none of your actions aligned with Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns). You only missed the ultranationalism, but it could easily be argued you were doing it for the betterment of the nation...under your misguided pseudo-scientific stance.

You preach, but then don't practice.

I'm sorry you voted for a vegetable that caused true Americans to elect Donald Trump to set things back to straight.

How about an authoritarian that uses the fascist playbook? That better?

[UNI88]

Get back to me when you open a book and read up on what fascism is.

Sure, none of your actions aligned with Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns). You only missed the ultranationalism, but it could easily be argued you were doing it for the betterment of the nation...under your misguided pseudo-scientific stance.

You preach, but then don't practice.

I'm sorry you voted for a vegetable that caused true Americans to elect Donald Trump to set things back to straight.

How about an authoritarian that uses the fascist playbook? That better?

You do know who was President when COVID hit and Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns) were first put in place don't you?

[SeattleGriz]

Sure, none of your actions aligned with Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns). You only missed the ultranationalism, but it could easily be argued you were doing it for the betterment of the nation...under your misguided pseudo-scientific stance.

You preach, but then don't practice.

I'm sorry you voted for a vegetable that caused true Americans to elect Donald Trump to set things back to straight.

How about an authoritarian that uses the fascist playbook? That better?

You do know who was President when COVID hit and Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns) were first put in place don't you?

And? This is about Klam acting like people wanting law and order is a problem, but cheering on censorship, not honoring bodily autonomy and mandating lockdowns. Support all that, but Trump's going too far trying to keep law and order? It's why I told him he had no leg to complain when he supports all sorts of authoritarian/fascist dictates. That's not a good look.

Lastly. Jesus H Christ. Get some TDS help. This had nothing to do with Trump. You are a broken record.

[kalm]

Get back to me when you open a book and read up on what fascism is.

Sure, none of your actions aligned with Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns). You only missed the ultranationalism, but it could easily be argued you were doing it for the betterment of the nation...under your misguided pseudo-scientific stance.

You preach, but then don't practice.

I'm sorry you voted for a vegetable that caused true Americans to elect Donald Trump to set things back to straight.

How about an authoritarian that uses the fascist playbook? That better?

You clearly don’t realize that EVERY time you’re losing an unrelated argument you clumsily go back to Covid as if it was some great victory for you.

Remember the great 1918 breakout of fascism?!? (Lockdowns and social distancing were used with success then too)

Or the 18th and 19th century fascistic vaccine mandates?

[SeattleGriz]

Sure, none of your actions aligned with Suppression of Dissent (Censorship), Subordination of the Individual (Bodily Autonomy), State Control (Lockdowns). You only missed the ultranationalism, but it could easily be argued you were doing it for the betterment of the nation...under your misguided pseudo-scientific stance.

You preach, but then don't practice.

I'm sorry you voted for a vegetable that caused true Americans to elect Donald Trump to set things back to straight.

How about an authoritarian that uses the fascist playbook? That better?

You clearly don’t realize that EVERY time you’re losing an unrelated argument you clumsily go back to Covid as if it was some great victory for you.

Remember the great 1918 breakout of fascism?!? (Lockdowns and social distancing were used with success then too)

Or the 18th and 19th century fascistic vaccine mandates?

Jesus, really. You think you are winning the argument that "the enemy within" is a problem? You think asking our military to help enforce laws is a bad thing?

You also apparently don't remember I warned you during Covid that I was going to remind you how wrong you were and weren't going to allow you to use the "science changes" line.

What you advocated for did far more damage to the American fabric than Trump marshalling troops to uphold the law. THAT is why you have no leg to stand on. Your suicidal empathy choices consistently put you on the wrong side. It's why CH nailed it on the head when he stated that you have bad instincts.

Your 1918 example proves my point. The IFR for COVID was close to a bad respiratory illness season. The 1918 pandemic was far deadlier. Not even close to the same. Surprisingly you also don't know that health officials realized many things, like the whole protocol you advocated for didn't help the 1918 pandemic and was trotted out during Covid, but there you are, speaking out your ass when it comes to facts/data. Jesus, you even butchered the 1918 pandemic.

[kalm]

You clearly don’t realize that EVERY time you’re losing an unrelated argument you clumsily go back to Covid as if it was some great victory for you.

Remember the great 1918 breakout of fascism?!? (Lockdowns and social distancing were used with success then too)

Or the 18th and 19th century fascistic vaccine mandates?

Jesus, really. You think you are winning the argument that "the enemy within" is a problem? You think asking our military to help enforce laws is a bad thing?

You also apparently don't remember I warned you during Covid that I was going to remind you how wrong you were and weren't going to allow you to use the "science changes" line.

What you advocated for did far more damage to the American fabric than Trump marshalling troops to uphold the law. THAT is why you have no leg to stand on. Your suicidal empathy choices consistently put you on the wrong side. It's why CH nailed it on the head when he stated that you have bad instincts.

Your 1918 example proves my point. The IFR for COVID was close to a bad respiratory illness season. The 1918 pandemic was far deadlier. Not even close to the same. Surprisingly you also don't know that health officials realized many things, like the whole protocol you advocated for didn't help the 1918 pandemic and was trotted out during Covid, but there you are, speaking out your ass when it comes to facts/data. Jesus, you even butchered the 1918 pandemic.

Blah blah blah Covid denial blah blah blah…that’s all I read.