COMING HOME TO ROOST

COMING HOME TO ROOST, (FRAZER CHRONICLES)

Like the man once said, "do you want me to make a small fire in your back yard, or can I shoot you right now." The bravado we Americans carry around with us is, well.....simply amazing. Lets see, at last count the United States military was engaged in three wars, two, (Afghanistan and Iraq) more then 10 years running and Libya, approaching 1 month. The longest running wars are ostensibly in retribution for the 9/11 attacks and Libya for humanitarian reasons.

Each war was counted as small wars, would cost little to operate with a minimum loss of military personnel. However in the first two instances, they have been long wars, with a considerable loss of life and the costs have become epic in numbers.

Now we, (United States) come to Libya and all the ramifications it brings to the table, loss of life, treasure and length of the campaign. And once again, there is a link to the other two wars that we are waging, civil war. Afghanistan and  Iraq are in internal civil wars, with at least two differences of opinions and Libya with it's rebels trying to displace their ruthless leader.

How shallow we, as a nation, are. We don't learn from history, we still think that we are the biggest and baddest dudes on the block and that our military might can dictate what we believe in with regards to foreign policy. Overall we still feel that we are on the side of God and as such, he will protect and guide us. Well folks, I have a news flash for you, "God took the last train for the coast, and won't be coming back any time soon."

In 1979, Sandinista guerrillas overthrew the American lead regime of Anastasio Somoza. Unable to find support in congress, the Reagan administration resorted to an armature  scheme involving selling arms to Iraq via Israel to fund counter revolution in Central America. The ensuing mess created by a few block headed American patriots, unaccounted millions of dollars to say nothing of our stature in the world.

During the Reagan years, 7 executive branch, 15 legislative branch and 2 judicial branch scandals surfaced to preoccupy government focus activity. This is not to say that President Reagan was corrupt....kind of, just that some people around the president, were opportunists and took advantage of a situation, you know.....good old American Capitalism at it's best.

Vietnam took down two presidents and still impacts some of our electoral policies as the Kerry, McCain  elections proved. Vietnam also effects our military views today, not wanting to feel the stinging pain of defeat, America wages a more sophisticated technical war, with less danger to our troops.

We sadly view our enemies, (all of them) as barbaric, emotional and a primitive lot, living in tents, living the nomadic life of oppression, with few of the basic amenities that 21st century living entails. Unbelievably we still view ourselves as some sort of missionary nation, spreading light and modernization guided by the west.

We have yet to understand that maybe, just maybe, these barbaric, emotional nomads of the sands like their lives and are used to squabbling amongst themselves, like they have for hundreds of years. It is not possible that these puny nomadic countries can stand up to the might of the west, it is not possible that America can't bribe political and military leaders into accepting the ways of the west.

The United States military and political process has become our enemies, we practice some of the very tools of war that we say we disdain and are fighting to defeating.  Water boarding, humiliation, prisoners held indefinitely, murder and splitting up families are just a few of the tactics in use today.  The United States also uses bribes, threats and seizures of property to get their way.

The worst part of winning small wars for America and the entire western allies is that we begin to believe our own propaganda and this leads us to get involved. Can you say "misunderstood," that is the key word when anybody talks to Donald Rumsfeld, former defense secretary of the U.S. He is now running around the country talking up a book he has written and still is defending his ideals for the wars waged during the Bush administration.

Not only did Rumsfeld misunderstand the middle east and it's culture, he misunderestimated the people that had been fighting for decades. Oppression and occupation have been a part of their lives for, well, their whole lives, "chew on that one Rummy," American is just one more morsel to be bitten up and spat out.