In another diary it was discussed whether, "once a Republican, always a Republican" is a fair statement. Two points to make.
- I do think most of us agree this is simply not true.
- There is nothing wrong with being a Republican. I wholeheartedly disagree with almost the entire Republican platform, but there ARE many intelligent, thoughtful people who are Republicans. People of sound mind and the best intentions can simply disagree on important issues.
So in this diary someone pointed out that Kos himself was a Republican, then switched ranks after enlisting in the US Army. They provided a link.
In it, it read the following:
After high school, Moulitsas served in the U.S. Army (1989-92) as a 13P -- Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) Fire Direction Specialist. He trained at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma and served the remainder of his three-year enlistment in Bamberg, Germany. While he entered the Army as a Republican, he abandoned the GOP soon after his enlistment.
I saw (above) a link leading to the story of why he left the GOP. "Uh-Oh", I thought. Please tell me he's not another Berkeley city counsel Code Pinko.
The thing is I am a hardcore Democrat. I'm extremely liberal on social and economic issues. But when it comes to the military and national defense I'm one of those AMERICA @#$% YEAH! types. I'm being colorful for comedic effect but it's not far from the truth. I don't believe you have to be even remotely pacifistic to be a Liberal. Like Obama, "I'm not against all wars. Just dumb wars".
As it turns out Markos speaks very highly of his experience in the US Army. I hope I'm assuming correctly that he won't mind me copying and pasting part of his bio.
***
Military service is a sacrifice from the beginning. The cheap combat boots assigned to new recruits blister the toughest of feet -- after one particularly grueling 20-plus-mile road march with a 100-pound rucksack, I literally squeezed out blood from my socks. <snip>
Markos, the best of boots will do that to fresh feet. :o) Comes with the territory I'm afraid.
But basic training was the best thing to ever happen to me. They say they break you down in basic training so they can rebuild you into a real man. I was already broken when I arrived at Fort Sill. For me, it was all building.
Eight weeks later, I emerged a brand new person, this one weighing 140 pounds. And after my three-year stint, while I was stationed in Germany and missed deploying to the Gulf War by a hair, I emerged as a Democrat.
There's a reason most vets running for office this year are running as Democrats. The military is perhaps the ideal society -- we worked hard but the Army took care of us in return. All our basic needs were met -- housing, food, and medical care. It was as close to a color-blind society as I have ever seen. We looked out for one another. The Army invested in us. I took heavily subsidized college courses and learned to speak German on the Army's dime. I served with people from every corner of the country. I got to party at the Berlin Wall after it fell and explored Prague in those heady post-communism days. I wasn't just a tourist; I was a witness to history.
The Army taught me the very values that make us progressives -- community, opportunity, and investment in people and the future. Returning to Bush Senior's America, I was increasingly disillusioned by the selfishness, lack of community, and sense of entitlement inherent in the Republican philosophy. The Christian Coalition scared the heck out of me. And I was offended by the lip service paid to national service when most Republicans couldn't be bothered to wear combat boots. I voted for Bush in 1992, but that was the last time I voted Republican.
I've emboldened the parts I felt to be important. Although I was not "broken down" when I joined, the military has done a great deal for me. And I was NOT "poverty drafted".
Lest this sound like an ad for the Army, those were different times, when our men and women weren't treated as expendable pawns in a neoconservative's game of Risk. One of the many tragedies of the Iraq War is that the military is no longer a viable option for those needing a boost up the socio-economic ladder, making college a possibility, granting people the confidence and experience that has paid such huge dividends for countless veterans.
This is where I disagree, and respectfully so. The military fulfills many needs throughout the world and stateside. Service in Iraq is only one of many places our men and women in uniform go, albeit a major one.
I spent 6 years in the Marine Corps reserves. I joined the active duty US Army in October of 2003. In the beginning I was FOR the Iraq war... BUT... I had already turned against it at the time I joined. This was after no WMD had been found.
There's a couple things to consider here.
- Whether or not we're in Iraq we STILL need to have a military.
- Anyone who decides to be a lifer, and even some who don't, WILL inevitably serve under a President they don't like or policies they don't agree with. That's why I don't believe service to country is a political choice. It's a philosophical one.
- Like or not... we DO have a military, they ARE ordered into Iraq, and so they NEED adequate support. Not just moral support. ACTUAL support from within. When Joe, who is stationed at Fort Hood, is ordered to Iraq. HE needs to their vehicles to work, which means he needs light-wheel vehicle mechanics, Abrams tank mechanics, HR personnel to make sure he gets paid, etc. At home his wife and kids still need medical care from their local army hospital. That hospital is fully staffed with doctors, nurses, lab techs, etc. who are ALL Soldiers.
The point is I can understand Markos' feelings that, with the Iraq war, the military is no longer a "viable option." But there are many, many of us Soldiers who did not vote for Bush, do not feel the war in Iraq was necessary, and STILL choose to serve with pride.
But regardless of that one disagreement I am very happy that he served with pride while he was in, and that he is proud of his service now that he is out. From his own bio he understands military service in a way that outfits like Code Pink, and even some on dailkykos, do not.
***
In closing I would like to say a big THANK YOU to Markos Moulitsas Zúniga for serving our country with distinction. And for creating such a great blog us fellow libtards (term meant endearingly).