Of the Americans who fought in Korea or Vietnam, none were "innocent" by virtue of having been drafted. The moral choice there was to either dodge the draft, defect to the other side, or frag the guy giving orders. Anyone who chose otherwise was a criminal and a murderer. And once the draft was over and the army became volunteer-only, all the excuses vanished. Yes, there are people who were in Iraq or Afghanistan or Syria who regretted it, but regretting your crime doesn't undo it. That's just the minimum requirement for being a decent human being in the aftermath.
To everyone who says "you leftists can't go around hating on the troops, don't you want them to join the revolution?" I say "why would they join us if they couldn't handle being told the truth about the genocidal terrorist organization they volunteered for?" If their reaction upon hearing people call the US military murderers and terrorists is to deny or equivocate or rationalize their participation, then they're not yet fit to be a revolutionary. If we're trying to dismantle the imperialist warmongering empire that continues to use its might and influence to murder millions around the world that is the United States, what good is a person who balks at the notion that the troops who volunteer to pledge their lives and their loyalty in service of this empire might be complicit in its crimes?
An American soldier or veteran who is not ready to admit they were wrong will not be any more ready to join us if we lie to them and say they made no mistake in joining the US military. We only weaken our own messaging and our own position if we refuse to condemn not just the US military as an organization but all those who continue to participate in and defend its actions. The troops are not innocent.
NYU FACULTY ARRESTED IN NYPD RAID OF CAMPUS PROTESTS
📹 The NYPD are currently conducting dozens of arrests of NYU faculty members protesting against the Gaza genocide and the Israeli occupation's ties to the university.
Love when the US gov says investing in their own country’s healthcare or transportation will make taxes too expensive. Better to invest their workers’ pay in some other country’s weapons stash.