It's always wild when someone's go-to attack line is "you didn't even put on a uniform to defend freedom." I mean, did you? That may well have been your intent, but outside of, honestly, like logistics support for Ukraine, what's a conflict in the last 30 years that saw freedom defended by US troops - ThreadSky

atherton.bsky.social • 22 days ago

It's always wild when someone's go-to attack line is "you didn't even put on a uniform to defend freedom." I mean, did you? That may well have been your intent, but outside of, honestly, like logistics support for Ukraine, what's a conflict in the last 30 years that saw freedom defended by US troops

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blacknell.bsky.social•22 days ago

Can't wait until I get to witness, as an old man, someone thanking a guy who signed up to invade Canada or do ethnic cleansing in Gaza for their service.

popeye2.bsky.social•22 days ago

I'm 61 years old. No American soldier has ever died defending my freedom.
A: none of the conflicts in my lifetime have had fuck all to do with "freedom".
B: there is no freedom in America to defend.

forbesmm.bsky.social•22 days ago

One could make an argument for the counter-ISIS campaign, I suppose. Just don’t ask too many questions about the root causes underneath all of that

reverendjesus.com•22 days ago

As a veteran, I agree with Stanhope on "support the troops" and "thanks for your service"

donnieharrisonn.bsky.social•22 days ago

she nails it here

ausir.bsky.social•4 hours ago

Kosovo.

atherton.bsky.social•3 hours ago

fair!

ellocust.bsky.social•22 days ago

You would need to go back much further. Before the Korean War.

atherton.bsky.social•22 days ago

there's maybe a case that in the 20 years between Taliban rule over Afghanistan, US soldiers etc could see the work they were doing as preserving a freedom for some in the country, and that's true, though a freedom always on a knife's edge and ultimately lost with the withdrawal.

mattsteinglass.bsky.social•22 days ago

Right, but the fact they lost, or even that the mission was totally misconceived, doesn’t really invalidate what they believed they were trying to do

mattsteinglass.bsky.social•22 days ago

Though, hm. Maybe I’m wrong there. Troops in Iraq may have believed they were fighting for freedom even though that was really nonsense. So I guess subjective beliefs about the aims aren’t dispositive.

atherton.bsky.social•22 days ago

sure. I don't want to begrudge people how they understood their actions at the time, really, but work looking backwards at what was and wasn't preserved by the sacrifice of blood and treasure

tamslick.bsky.social•22 days ago

I'll give us a casus belli for a punitive expedition in Afghanistan in late '01, but that's about it.

omfproductions.bsky.social•22 days ago

In fairness, they enlist and "fight" so we as a nation have no need for a draft. Many of us have the freedom to live our entire lives as civilians, as opposed to a country that has mandatory military service, like many do. I think that deserves some appreciation.

omfproductions.bsky.social•22 days ago

That said, it does not take much asshole behavior to burn that recognition to cinders either.

atherton.bsky.social•22 days ago

the other implicit part of this, and more to the point, is the notion that US military action abroad had expanded and protected the sphere of freedom at home, within the domestic US. Nothing about the past 30 years really suggests that.

conejooaks.bsky.social•22 days ago

Isn’t it fair to say everyone who fought against ISIS fought for freedom?

atherton.bsky.social•22 days ago

that's a more plausible case than many

supersloth.net•22 days ago

Could very easily make the argument they put the argument on simply to oppress.

supersloth.net•22 days ago

Strangely worded please ignore or whatever you get the gist

atherton.bsky.social•22 days ago

I got it, no worries

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