Major General Smedley Butler: War IS A Racket

[schuetzen]

Major General Smedley Butler: War IS A Racket
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG10C5hniV4

[Pat/Rick]

Of course it is. 10 years in 'gannistan for what?

[wreckhog]

Smedley?

[lgm270]

Butler was right.

[subdjoe]

Smedley?

Yep, Smedley.  Check "two time Medal of Honor receipients"

[ironglow]

  In an article written in 2006 it was divulged that there were 4,700 retired Generals living in the US at that time, so likely there are even more now.
  Going back to the days of old Smedley and continuing through today, It would not be hard to visualize 25,000 retired US generals through those years.
   I find it interesting that some folks find ONE general out of perhaps 25,000, who has a disagreement with his own profession, which incidently, he stayed with long enough to gather a decent pension, ...and then cite him and him only ! The other 24,999 retired generals don't count ..and obviously the military detractors didn't feel obliged to consult !
  I am not even debating his "racket" proposal, but I do take issue with folks who try to prove something by making pronouncements about a group of thousands, while only listening to a single, angry, one of them.
  Two Medals of Honor...great credit goes to him for that..but sometimes the wear & tear of earning those medals can take it's toll.  
      Benedict Arnold was a great leader and a heroic, twice wounded general officer, until one day....
  
   Look at the ex-governor of Minnesota, former pro wrestler, Navy Seal veteran..very strenuous life..lots of hard knocks.  Have you heard his latest announcements...and his wild "conspiracy theories" ?

     There are many reasons; health, personal issues, rivalry, missed opportunities etc.. why a man retired from his profession, may be super-critical of that profession. Sorry; you have to show more proof than one, single dissatisfied old, and perhaps senile, general ...in order to clinch your case.  More research needed.

[lgm270]

 In an article written in 2006 it was divulged that there were 4,700 retired Generals living in the US at that time, so likely there are even more now.
  Going back to the days of old Smedley and continuing through today, It would not be hard to visualize 25,000 retired US generals through those years.
   I find it interesting that some folks find ONE general out of perhaps 25,000, who has a disagreement with his own profession, which incidently, he stayed with long enough to gather a decent pension, ...and then cite him and him only ! The other 24,999 retired generals don't count ..and obviously the military detractors didn't feel obliged to consult !
  I am not even debating his "racket" proposal, but I do take issue with folks who try to prove something by making pronouncements about a group of thousands, while only listening to a single, angry, one of them.
  Two Medals of Honor...great credit goes to him for that..but sometimes the wear & tear of earning those medals can take it's toll.  
      Benedict Arnold was a great leader and a heroic, twice wounded general officer, until one day....
  
   Look at the ex-governor of Minnesota, former pro wrestler, Navy Seal veteran..very strenuous life..lots of hard knocks.  Have you heard his latest announcements...and his wild "conspiracy theories" ?

     There are many reasons; health, personal issues, rivalry, missed opportunities etc.. why a man retired from his profession, may be super-critical of that profession. Sorry; you have to show more proof than one, single dissatisfied old, and perhaps senile, general ...in order to clinch your case.  More research needed.

American involvement in every single major  war from 1898 onward including the  Spanish American War, WW1,  WW2, Korea, Viet Nam, 1991 Invasion of Iraq, 2003 Invasion of Iraq was  fraudulently procured.  With the exception of the Cold War, which was a continuation of WW2,  America had no business in any of those wars.  The Cold War occurred because the US stupidly got involved (on the wrong side) in WW2 and saved the USSR from destruction, with the result that we had to prepare to fight the USSR for the next 50 years. 

The Spanish American War was naked imperialist aggression against Spain so that the US could obtain control over Cuba and  gain a foothold in the Phillippeans to get a springboard to get access to the fabled "China market."  For one hundred years our rulers have pursued the illusion of the China Market with the result that China has  all our good jobs and gazillions of our dollars and we are in debt vassalage to that country.

We had no business in WW1 or WW2.  Germany was never a threat to the US in either conflict.  Our real  enemies were the British Empire and the USSR with whom we were treacherously allied to our detriment.   A few people were bright enough to ask why, after Germany was defeated in 1945, were the powers re-aligned and suddenly the USA  had to spend the next 50 years resisiting international communism and finishing the war against it that Hitler started.  We should have stayed out of WW2 or fought with Hitler against the USSR, our real enemy.  WW 2 had nothing to do with "democracy".  WW2 was a struggle between Western Civilization and Bolshevism.  Unfortunately, Western Civilization lost and we are paying the price today...pornography is legal, but saying "Merry Christmas" in public can get you fired from your job. 

When the USSR finally collapsed under the weight of its own contradictions, our rulers contrived new wars to keep simple minds occupied  and numbed with slogans about "democracy."   Now the US had 700 bases all over the world and we are the biggest imperialistic power in history and we have the least amount of freedom and safety in our history.  In the name of "democracy" and imperialistic wars abroad, we now have a police state domestically.

Butler was right: War is a racket. It is a source of money and power for corrupt powerful people who are monsters masquerading as human beings...like FDR, Churchill and Stalin....and George Bush (Jr and Sr) and Clinton and Obama. Trumped up wars based on lies and propaganda have been the means of  powerful people to deceive us and steal our wealth and freedom.   

[pmeisel]

He was the real deal.

[Dogshooter]

Smedley is a skank and anyone that agrees with him is a skank as well. He made a career out of the military and I'm sure will not refuse the retirement benefits he receives from that same organization. This country has stood up for those being oppressed since it's inception. It also stands for the right for those who disagree with it's policies. Those of you who wish to denigrade the US for the noble causes she has undertaken have every right to do so. BUT, at the same time I have the right to call all of you skanks. The old term "love it or leave it" has meaning. I am not advocating that you leave if you hate your country but just point out the fact that you certainly have the right to do so.

[ironglow]

Scheutzen....Gen Smedley Butler...right on then...right on now.


IG....People have free choice...going back to the Garden. Why people don't excercize free will properly is a bit enigmatic...If everybody excercized proper free will and judgement and mentality then there would be no exceptional Gen Smedleys....everybody would be a General Smedley in the way of unity in contrast to the division of deception in an imperfect world .  So, your complaint is a bit cynical and lacks fiber. Jesus also was shunned, ridiculed, and preached to a minority. General Butler had esoteric information, a unique history, and was so prompted to speak and act on his understandings..perhaps divinely prompted. The rest of 24,000 would be status quo...some get it and act in their way, too....some will never get it, some look but can't see, and many have signed on with the Darkness....But you're right, indirectly...the world needs many more Gen Butler's asap.
LGM270.....good comments; from my perspective accurate.
..TM7

  TM;
  It is indeed interesting that you should hold Gen Butler in such high regard, he being the only one of perhaps 25,000 who is 'marching to a different drummer'.  You even suggest that his promptings were "divinely inspired".....Hmmmmm
  Remember the Pvt lozon I told you about..how, when I was marching the whole platoon, he was often the only one out of step ?  When I pulled alongside him and told him to "skip" into step..he was convinced that he was in step and it was the rest of the platoon which was out of step !

   Is it even remotely possible that you are the current DI, agreeing with....  Gen  Smedley Lozon Butler ?  Do you not consider that Gen Smedley Lozon Butler may actually be out of step, while the other 24,999 retired generals are really in step ?

[Gary G]

American involvement in every single major  war from 1898 onward including the  Spanish American War, WW1,  WW2, Korea, Viet Nam, 1991 Invasion of Iraq, 2003 Invasion of Iraq was  fraudulently procured.  With the exception of the Cold War, which was a continuation of WW2,  America had no business in any of those wars.  The Cold War occurred because the US stupidly got involved (on the wrong side) in WW2 and saved the USSR from destruction, with the result that we had to prepare to fight the USSR for the next 50 years.  

The Spanish American War was naked imperialist aggression against Spain so that the US could obtain control over Cuba and  gain a foothold in the Phillippeans to get a springboard to get access to the fabled "China market."  For one hundred years our rulers have pursued the illusion of the China Market with the result that China has  all our good jobs and gazillions of our dollars and we are in debt vassalage to that country.

We had no business in WW1 or WW2.  Germany was never a threat to the US in either conflict.  Our real  enemies were the British Empire and the USSR with whom we were treacherously allied to our detriment.   A few people were bright enough to ask why, after Germany was defeated in 1945, were the powers re-aligned and suddenly the USA  had to spend the next 50 years resisiting international communism and finishing the war against it that Hitler started.  We should have stayed out of WW2 or fought with Hitler against the USSR, our real enemy.  WW 2 had nothing to do with "democracy".  WW2 was a struggle between Western Civilization and Bolshevism.  Unfortunately, Western Civilization lost and we are paying the price today...pornography is legal, but saying "Merry Christmas" in public can get you fired from your job.  

When the USSR finally collapsed under the weight of its own contradictions, our rulers contrived new wars to keep simple minds occupied  and numbed with slogans about "democracy."   Now the US had 700 bases all over the world and we are the biggest imperialistic power in history and we have the least amount of freedom and safety in our history.  In the name of "democracy" and imperialistic wars abroad, we now have a police state domestically.

Butler was right: War is a racket. It is a source of money and power for corrupt powerful people who are monsters masquerading as human beings...like FDR, Churchill and Stalin....and George Bush (Jr and Sr) and Clinton and Obama. Trumped up wars based on lies and propaganda have been the means of  powerful people to deceive us and steal our wealth and freedom.    

All this is true and can be traced back to the executive branch in every case.

Now I am not an antiwar guy, but all the above wars were unnecessary and have put us in a weaker position because of the tremendous debt burden. I have no use for a war used to rally the troops around the president because he has domestic problems. Our wars also changed the world. Japan would have squashed Mao, and we would not have had Korea, Vietnam. The Japanese did not want war with with the US; at least until Roosevelt cut off their oil. They were interested in China.

[ironglow]

lgm270, Gary;
   ..Guess it all falls to perception...and if one is a natural cynic;
  Do you really believe such things as WW2 were totally unnecessary ?  Do you not think that if Hitler and Tojo had tucked the rest of the world away, it would not have been too many years after consolidation, when they would have been landing on our eastern and western beaches ?
   Had you been president in 1941, what would you have done after the attack upon Pearl Harbor ?
   As far as Korea and Vietnam, I suppose it depends upon whether one should actually keep their agreements and promises. In Korea, we were acting as we agreed to work with the UN along with several other nations. In the Vietnam situation, we were signators to SEATO (South east Asia treaty organization).. which promised to come to the aid of any nation in the area which came under attack by communist forces.  Depends upon how good ones "word' is..

     In any case, these arguments sound eerily similar to the excuses given by the draft evaders of the 60s & 70s...trying to give reasons for their cowardice.   Back then it ended up in verbal and sometimes physical abuse heaped upon our troops...and I don't want to see any more of that crap !

[ironglow]

  TM;
      Not being a Hindu, I don't accept dogma of 'karma'.

[Gary G]

Ironglow wrote:

lgm270, Gary;
   ..Guess it all falls to perception...and if one is a natural cynic;
  Do you really believe such things as WW2 were totally unnecessary ?  Do you not think that if Hitler and Tojo had tucked the rest of the world away, it would not have been too many years after consolidation, when they would have been landing on our eastern and western beaches ?
   Had you been president in 1941, what would you have done after the attack upon Pearl Harbor ?

I believe the congressional investigation even showed such and that Pearl harbor was a Roosevelt setup. Now the liberal defenders of FDR will say that even so, it was best. I disagree.
On your last point, other than a few submarines, where was Hitler's Navy? He spent his resources on land forces because he never envisioned war with the U.S. and did not have the means of doing so. The war like all european wars would have ended in exhaustion and a settlement. Great Britain, who did not want to see Germany challenging their economic dominance, wanted total defeat. Thus, Roosevelt was talked into it by Churchill via a back door plan, Japan. Later, Randolph, Churchill's son said that when he had ask his dad how he would win the war, Churchill said "I will drag the United States in". Mahl, Desparate Deception, p.1
I would recommend Roosevelt and the First Shot, John V, Denson. It is well documented.

[ironglow]

Gary;
  Sorry, .....I didn't realize you were deep into conspiracy theories..

[nw_hunter]

Smedley is a skank and anyone that agrees with him is a skank as well. He made a career out of the military and I'm sure will not refuse the retirement benefits he receives from that same organization. This country has stood up for those being oppressed since it's inception. It also stands for the right for those who disagree with it's policies. Those of you who wish to denigrade the US for the noble causes she has undertaken have every right to do so. BUT, at the same time I have the right to call all of you skanks. The old term "love it or leave it" has meaning. I am not advocating that you leave if you hate your country but just point out the fact that you certainly have the right to do so.

Actually the word Skank is a slang term for a promiscuous person, usually a woman (low sexual morals)

 I think you may find the moderators frown on name calling on the forum. You do have the right to disagree, as do all others on the forum, and the door also works for you, should you decide to leave the country, instead of changing it for the better.

It's also obvious, you don't read history. You don't receive the medals he did in war by being a Skank as you call him. Butler has been dead for many years. He did receive a retirement, but could have gone even farther politically, had he not written the book.

[Spirithawk]

All I can say is WELLLL DUH! Ever stop to think of the industries that support wars and those who get rich off them?