Yellow Elephant Chickenhawks: Robust, Uninhibited Debate
Not everyone who supports Iraq war should, or can enlist
Talking Points Against the “Chickenhawk” argument
These are very good points made in the argument. It’s a shame that the Left has resorted to labelling non-military as chickenhawks, as civilians we have done much to support and help the valiant soldiers overseas. They spend long hours griping about how only the poor and un-educated serve in the armed forces, yet continue to restrict access to recruiters and ROTC to educated, even affluent, students that wish to serve.
By “support our troops,” I take it that the Left only supports them when they are added in the casualty count. In a very sick and disturbing way, they parade around the grief of a lost hero, yet never honor the thousands that return to their families safely and even re-enlist. They can only support the troops if they characterize them as a group that they can definitely identify with: victims. By degrading morale at home, bashing the military’s Commander-in-Chief, and never believing the mission the soldiers are sent for— it tells me that there is a huge disconnect between their rhetoric and actions.
Many of us have wondered why it is that some of the most ardent and gung-ho supporters of Our Glorious Leader’s war in Iraq are those on the Right who fight the war from the comfort of their keyboards. Amazing how easy it is to wave the flag and be uber-patriotic when the closest you will get to seeing service in Iraq are the magnetic ribbons on the back of your SUV. Yep, it’s all good, just as long as someone else’s child or loved one is doing the fighting and dying. Indeed, these folks aren’t called “chickenhawks” without good reason, eh?
We wonder, though…just how do these folks do it? How can they not see the hypocrisy inherent in their “I support our troops and the war in Iraq- primarily because I’m not there risking my sorry ass” philosophy? How can they look at themselves in the mirror, knowing that they cannot begin to justify their hypocrisy without some serious disregard of reality and some impressive logical leaps?
Honestly, the chickenhawks have it down to a science. Yes, like any other dedicated collection of Republicans, they have their talking points, which they stick to with the rabid fealty of the well-and heavily-indoctrinated. Yes, why engage in an actual honest-to-God discussion of the issues when you can deflect any and all unpleasant thoughts by merely invoking the Almighty talking points?
1) We are engaged in a war of ideas on college campuses that is essential to winning the war on terror. This is also very important since hateful professors are spewing anti-American rhetoric at the students every day and students rarely hear all sides of the argument.
A war of ideas? Man, who’s going to tend to the dead and wounded?? Oh, the humanity…. And hateful professors? Spewing anti-American rhetoric?? Yes, these folks have a SERIOUS (and completely baseless) persecution complex. But they certainly look spiffy in their Brown Shirts, don’t they??
2) The Vietnam war was lost because there weren’t enough people on the homefront telling the truth and supporting the war….
Uh, what truth? That we were supporting a corrupt and inept regime who couldn’t have governed their way out of a wet paper sack? That there was no central political or military strategy in the American Government? That American troops were asked to fight an uncovential war using conventional strategy and tactics? Or perhaps that our government completely ignored public opinion, convinced that they could not afford to lose face and still hope to keep their jobs?
Right; 58,000 Americans died for no reason. Vietnam had nothing that could even remotely be related to American national security interests. We simply took over from the French, who got their butts kicked at Dien Bien Phu, recognized they had nothing to gain by continuing the fight, and got the hell out of Dodge.
Those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it…and it cost us 58,000 lives and a broken generation to figure this out. And now a whole new generation of leaders has proven repeatedly that they know NOTHING of the lessons taught by our own history.
3) Where were these leftists when Clinton was sending our troops to Kosovo, Somalia, and Haiti? They weren’t signing up then. Also, why aren’t they serving in various UN peacekeeping missions worldwide, according to their logic?
Well, a good number of us didn’t support these missions, either, but regardless, this is an “apples & oranges” comparison. Somalia, and Haiti were “peacekeeping” missions (Kosovo was a NATO operation to counter Serbian genocide), not pointless (and seemingly endless) wars of aggression. Nice try, y’all, but you lost this argument before you even left the gate.
4) The troops in our programs tell us it is so important to continue the battle of ideas on campuses and to support the men overseas through programs like what we did with Freedom Alliance to send needed supplies and thank you notes over there during the conference.
Yes, it IS important to continue the debate. That is, after all, part and parcel of what a democracy is all about. To call this a BATTLE, however, is to prove that y’all take yourselves WAY too seriously.
What all y’all fail to realize is that those of us on the Left do not hate our troops. I am wholly supportive of any program or heartfelt effort to get anything to our men and women in uniform overseas that makes their existence more pleasant and endurable. Speaking for myself alone, I resent the implication that somehow those of us who oppose the war in Iraq also hate our troops. What an arrogant, unfounded, and cruel accusation. But then, it’s all about winning for you, isn’t it? Whatever it takes, eh??
5) We are the ones fighting for the right to serve in ROTC on campuses. The same leftists who criticize us for not joining the military are stripping willing and able college students at Yale, Harvard, Emory, Stanford, etc from their rights to serve their country.
No one is stripping anyone of their right to serve their country. Anyone so inclined can enlist. What the opposition to ROTC is designed to do is to point out that there are those of us who do not believe that the military belongs on a college campus. Join ROTC if you want. In fact, I wish you would. If you support the war so wholeheartedly, shouldn’t you be helping to fight it?
6) The majority of Americans do not serve in the military, so the Left is essentially disenfranchising them from contributing their voice to the debate.
Now THIS is a talking point. It has absolutely no basis in truth, but if you repeat it often enough, people will begin to think it’s Gospel. What a beautifully crafted piece of propaganda….
7) The logic is flawed that only people who are involved in something can voice an opinion about it. For example - the public voices its opinion about a wide range of government programs even though most people are not in the government, and people speak about welfare but not many are actually on it or administering it.
Uh…this is a pointless and useles piece of Doublespeak if ever there was one. All those of us on the Left are doing is asking that those who so wholeheartedly support the endless war in Iraq from the safety of their keyboards give some thought to putting their money where their mouth is…figuratively speaking, of course.
We have never stated that only people who are involved in something can voice an opinion about it. What we are saying is that the chickenhawks who so vociferously support the war in Iraq might be more credible if they were willing to assume some of the risks instead of fighting from the safety of their keyboards.
Of course, being a Chickenhawk means never having to actually do the heavy lifting. Think I’m kidding? Check out this list of Republican politicians, pundits, and preachers:
- Dick Cheney: did not serve. Several deferments, the last by marriage.
- Dennis Hastert: did not serve.
- Tom Delay: did not serve.
- Roy Blunt: did not serve.
- Bill Frist: did not serve.
- Mitch McConnell: did not serve.
- Rick Santorum: did not serve.
- Trent Lott: did not serve.
- John Ashcroft: did not serve. Seven deferments to teach business.
- Jeb Bush: did not serve.
- Karl Rove: did not serve.
- Saxby Chambliss: did not serve. “Bad knee.” The man who attacked Max Cleland’s patriotism.
- Paul Wolfowitz: did not serve.
- Vin Weber: did not serve.
- Richard Perle: did not serve.
- Douglas Feith: did not serve.
- Eliot Abrams: did not serve.
- Richard Shelby: did not serve.
- Jon Kyl: did not serve.
- Tim Hutchison: did not serve.
- Christopher Cox: did not serve.
- Newt Gingrich: did not serve.
- Donald Rumsfeld: served in Navy (1954-57) as flight instructor.
- George W. Bush: failed to complete his six-year National Guard; got assigned to Alabama so he could campaign for family friend running for U.S. Senate; failed to show up for required medical exam, disappeared from duty.
- Ronald Reagan: due to poor eyesight, served in a non- combat role making movies.
- Bob Dornan: Consciously enlisted after fighting was over in Korea.
- Phil Gramm: did not serve.
- John McCain: Vietnam POW, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross.
- Dana Rohrabacher: did not serve.
- John M. McHugh: did not serve.
- JC Watts: did not serve.
- Jack Kemp: did not serve. “Knee problem, ” although continued in NFL for 8 years as quarterback.
- Dan Quayle: Journalism unit of the Indiana National Guard.
- Rudy Giuliani: did not serve.
- George Pataki: did not serve.
- Spencer Abraham: did not serve.
- John Engler: did not serve.
- Dr. James Dobson: did not serve
- The Rev. Mr. Jerry Falwell: did not serve
- Sean Hannity: did not serve.
- Rush Limbaugh: did not serve (4-F with a ‘pilonidal cyst.’)
- Bill O’Reilly: did not serve.
- Michael Savage: did not serve.
- George Will: did not serve.
- Chris Matthews: did not serve.
- Paul Gigot: did not serve.
- Bill Bennett: did not serve.
- Pat Buchanan: did not serve.
- John Wayne: did not serve.
- Bill Kristol: did not serve.
- Kenneth Starr: did not serve.
- Antonin Scalia: did not serve.
- Clarence Thomas: did not serve.
- Ralph Reed: did not serve.
- Michael Medved: did not serve.
- Charlie Daniels: did not serve.
- Ted Nugent: did not serve. (He only shoots at things that don’t shoot back.)
Not a lot of military service for such an impressive collection of Republican True Believers, eh? Now, compare and contrast that list to these Democrats:
- Richard Gephardt: Air National Guard, 1965-71.
- David Bonior: Staff Sgt., Air Force 1968-72.
- Tom Daschle: 1st Lt., Air Force SAC 1969-72.
- Al Gore: enlisted Aug. 1969; sent to Vietnam Jan. 1971 as an army journalist in 20th Engineer Brigade.
- Bob Kerrey: Lt. j.g. Navy 1966-69; Medal of Honor, Vietnam.
- Daniel Inouye: Army 1943-47; Medal of Honor, WWII.
- John Kerry: Lt., Navy 1966-70; Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat V, Purple Hearts.
- Charles Rangel: Staff Sgt., Army 1948-52; Bronze Star, Korea.
- Max Cleland: Captain, Army 1965-68; Silver Star & Bronze Star, Vietnam. Paraplegic from war injuries. Served in Congress.
- Ted Kennedy: Army, 1951-53.
- Tom Harkin: Lt., Navy, 1962-67; Naval Reserve, 1968-74.
- Jack Reed: Army Ranger, 1971-1979; Captain, Army Reserve 1979-91.
- Fritz Hollings: Army officer in WWII; Bronze Star and seven campaign ribbons.
- Leonard Boswell: Lt. Col., Army 1956-76; Vietnam, DFCs, Bronze Stars,and Soldier’s Medal.
- Pete Peterson: Air Force Captain, POW. Purple Heart, Silver Star and Legion of Merit.
- Mike Thompson: Staff sergeant, 173rd Airborne, Purple Heart.
- Bill McBride: Candidate for Fla. Governor. Marine in Vietnam; Bronze Star with Combat V.
- Gray Davis: Army Captain in Vietnam, Bronze Star.
- Pete Stark: Air Force 1955-57
- Chuck Robb: Vietnam
- Howell Heflin: Silver Star
- George McGovern: Silver Star & DFC during WWII.
- Bill Clinton: Did not serve. Student deferments. Entered draft but received #311.
- Jimmy Carter: Seven years in the Navy.
- Walter Mondale: Army 1951-1953
- John Glenn: WWII and Korea; six DFCs and AirMedal with 18 Clusters.
- Tom Lantos: Served in Hungarian underground in WWII. Saved by Raoul Wallenberg.
Memo to all you Chickenhawks: the next time you feel the need to run your mouth and run down those of us on the Left for being “insufficiently patriotic”, or “anti-American”, or even “not supporting our troops”, how about getting your own house in order first? He who lives in a gas tank would be well-advised not to play with matches.
