Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking. Login or Take a Tour!
scarp · 4669 days ago · link · · parent · post: In Germany, soldiers are viewed with contempt and mistrust
The worrying thing is that not everyone separates those policy disagreements from the soldiers, so there's a divide there: one the one side you have people cheering the soldiers because they support the war and the vague notion of "defending our freedoms." On the other side you have people accusing every soldier of being a simple-minded, doggedly patriotic lemming willing to fight in any war that protects "American interests" (a term which in many cases is used as a perverse euphemism for morally objectionable acts -- but that's another discussion).
RE: treatment of soldiers. I've always been uncomfortable with the unconditionally glowing praise we give them. The attitude our country takes towards soldiers takes for granted the fact that morality is not black and white. Sometimes our soldiers do bad things, but we always downplay that like it's a non-issue. I'm not saying that we should assume that every soldier is guilty; I'm saying that we shouldn't assume anything. Doctors and scientists have a direct, positive effect on our daily lives, but we don't automatically assume that all of them are imperfect and worthy of praise -- nor should we.