I've noticed that Bluesky libs are making a big distinction between the cops versus the national guard/military. Many libs are agreeing (or pretending to agree) that LA cops are appalling. And they are reposting leftist livestreaming posts of cops using tear gas, etc. But now that the national guard (and military) are in the news - the libs are standing up for those groups.
NYT columnist Jamelle Bouie seems to have taken posting attacks on the national guard/military personally. And he's snarky about it too.
i sincerely think a lot of you believe that the people who join the service are robotic psychopaths who will mindlessly listen to whoever is in charge, and there is nothing i can say to disabuse you of that frankly delusional belief
https://bsky.app/profile/jamellebouie.net/post/3lr3tjgqzg22y
I'd bet money he has very good friends (if not family members) in the military.
In other news - I just finished looking at a Bluesky account where he called LA cops "racist thugs" but he had good things to say about the national guard. He went on to say he was in the NY national guard plus the army too.
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Ninja edit
LAPD is an armed gang and ICE is made of real true believer racist thugs but the national guard is 95% shockingly normal people. The other 5% are weird. This ratio may vary slightly by state
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Photo caption
Maryland National Guardsmen patrol near downtown office buildings, Tuesday, April 28, 2015, in Baltimore, a day following unrest that occurred after Freddie Gray's funeral. Gray died from spinal injuries about a week after he was arrested and transported in a Baltimore Police Department van. His death has become the latest flashpoint in the nations debate over the police use of force against black men.
More photos of Maryland National Guard on the streets at the article - https://www.militarytimes.com/2017/07/20/maryland-national-guard-troops-deploy-to-baltimore/
Mindlessly following orders is your duty as a soldier, it has nothing to do with them being robotic psycopaths or not.
Maybe fewer of them are frothing at the mouth to harm civilians the way cops are, I have no idea, but assuming an army is just not going to follow orders because you think they're "normal people" is a risky and stupid position to take.
it's like he doesn't even understand what the training is for.
You know what's kinda funny? A military that doesn't blindly follow orders is usually what you want when it comes to fighting a war. You want a degree of fluidity and adaptability. You don't want robotruppen.
But you do if the purpose of your military exists to protect the power structure and wage a war of occupation on the citizenry.
Which is exactly the kind of military you want if you're a capitalist empire dealing with internal instability.
Which is a very far cry from the ideal of the enlightened citizen-soldier the liberals are using as a brain ointment right now.
i think a lack of material analysis leads liberals to conclude that the difference between these two different formations of military operational stance can essentially be boiled down to attitudes and social magic.