Re: Is war the ultimate adventure of a lifetime?

On Sun, 4 Mar 2007 22:23:39 +0000, "Paul J. Adam"
<news@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

In message <1173038170.392595.137640@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Ken
S. Tucker <dynamics@xxxxxxxxxxxx> writes
On Mar 4, 11:10 am, "Paul J. Adam" <n...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I don't think you're looking at the same military I'm working with.

Take for example the Somalia incident,
was an officer held to account?

I sat down for dinner last year with Colonel Jose Mendonca, who was
investigated, charged and had said charges dismissed with contumely over
the death of an Iranian detainee in custody in 2003, so I'd say fairly
definitely that UK officers get held to account in the military I work
with.

After watching this from a distance, I'll have to agree with Paul.
Certainly in the US military the officers are held to account. My Lai
was a good example. Also for mil. aviation, Jack Broughton's disgrace
after the Turkestan incident--and that didn't involve folks other than
enemy being bothererd. Lots of examples of accountability in the last
fifty years.

It's deeper than the military, it's the culture
of disrepect for citizens and using a queen
to legally get away with it,

?Que? HM the Queen keeps her hands off Parliament, and rightly so, which
means your problem is with the elected representatives hiding behind her
name.

That one really stumbled me. AFAIK, Britain is a parliamentary
monarchy and the monarch is symbolic and ritualistic, but certainly
not executive in function.

the US wisely
dumped that program back in 1776,

And instead invested quasi-Royal powers in the President. It works for
them but I wouldn't necessarily say it was any better.

Ooops. "Quasi-Royal powers"?? A little research from our Brit and
Canuck folks on the authoring of our Constitution might reveal a very
strong bias against giving much power to the executive. The
"separation of powers" and "checks & balances" stuff we tend to rant
about is a bit different than the fusion of power of a PM in
parliament who is both chief executive and chief legislator
simultaneously.

however
the canuckistani govmint still uses some silly
old ding-bat living on a little Island on the
other side of the ocean as their "Head of State".
That's F**king ridiculous.

So is democracy, except that it works less badly than the alternatives.

Don't like it? Change it. Very few folk in the UK give a monkey's about
whether Canada keeps the Queen as head of state or not. If you like it,
keep it, if you don't then bin it, nobody's going to decide "Canada
rejects the Queen? WAR!" over it.

Head of State is a ceremonial role. It is Head of Government that
should concern you. Note, for example the President of Germany--Head
of State vice the Chancellor. Or President of France vice the
Premier--De Gaulle would never have deferred to the Premier.


Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
www.thunderchief.org
www.thundertales.blogspot.com
.

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