You Care About Ukraine?

If U.S. troops were free to choose, would most of them volunteer to defend Ukraine? The answer eludes no one, considering that love of country, not of Europe, is one of the primary reasons for enlistment. Americans are free to enter the military, but once they’re in it, their freedom to exit is conditional. Servicemembers and slaves differ only in degree. When the oath they swore no longer aligns with the actions they’re ordered to take, troops have no recourse, and the effects on morale are entirely predictable and, now, obviously destructive. If you hate your job but are legally prohibited from resigning, how might that affect your productivity? Worse, what if your boss is subject to political whims rather than market forces? The military—as with every other governmental organization—embodies that atrocious combination of demoralization, ineptitude, and unaccountability, and as evidenced by the record-high enlistment bonuses, the regime is struggling to delude the country’s patriots into joining the military.

Since March of 2020, independent thinkers have witnessed among their communities a never-before-seen subservience, and though the servility has somewhat subsided, an increasing number of partisans have unleashed their inner despot, delightedly dictating their neighbors’ business instead of minding their own. If parentalists and paternalists reinforce each other, and if both groups comprise a majority of the electorate, what do those in the military believe they’re defending? And from whom? Chanting “American exceptionalism” through a mask rings hollow. Yes, foreigners continue to flock here, but does striving for “least bad” sound like the American way?

Members of the military have been coerced into vaccination against a virus that poses no threat to them, and they’ve been told that complying with the muzzle mandate is an act of patriotism. Their religious exemptions were deemed meaningless, but they must continue training to “support and defend” the 1st Amendment? H.L. Mencken wrote nearly a century ago, “The whole history of the country has been a history of melodramatic pursuits of horrendous monsters, most of them imaginary,” and that’s never been more obvious than it is today. Is that why military recruiters are failing to attract “talent”? Are the monsters no longer sufficiently scary? If fear of the “novel” virus follows fear of terrorist “sleeper cells,” for how long will impoverished Russia continue to serve as the dutiful monster?

Threats to liberty reside domestically. Vladimir Putin didn’t lock down America; state and local politicians did.

Patriots who’ve considered joining the military have no doubt wondered why they’d risk their life for the Constitution if even the “conservative” Supreme Court doesn’t respect it. And just as people don’t need to be coerced into avoiding behaviors that might lead to hospitalization or death, foreign countries don’t need the U.S. military imposing “our democracy” on them. If it’s such a great idea, it’ll be readily adopted; force would be redundant.

2020 must have been an incredibly awkward year for the regime, as it was likely the first time that many Americans questioned why they were thanking those in uniform for their “service.” And throughout 2021, curiosity gave way to contempt. After being forced out of their job and into their home, “nonessentials” found it bizarre to continue reflexively thanking veterans who force foreign nonessentials out of poverty and into their grave. How that corresponds to “protecting” America has become increasingly difficult to articulate. To commemorate Veterans Day of 2020, I wrote that Goethe’s dictum—“none are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free”—implies there are no soldiers more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are fighting the enemy. If I was fortunate to have your readership then, you might have dismissed that analogy as extreme, but can you deny it today? Who can claim with a straight face that servicemembers regard Russia as a legitimate threat to America?

Sentimental Americans claim that servicemembers aren’t political pawns, but they fail to define them. They are, indeed, political pawns, and if their deployment to Syria didn’t make that clear, then perhaps the current U.S. president—seemingly bored of his own unbridled arrogance—will help more people see the farce that is provoking other countries in the name of defense. If “war is the health of the state,” then why bother sending troops abroad when waging war on its own people is cheaper and comes with the added benefit of a servile populace and fawning corporations? The rally that occurred in D.C. on the 23rd was inspiring; however, the anti-corporate sentiment was odd to behold. Absent governmental mandates, those “greedy” corporations are just powerless puppies. Economic growth is the greatest ally of human longevity, so corporations—even the most insufferable among them—are a net positive. Growth is a consequence of liberty, so attacking corporations at a pro-liberty rally is self-defeating.

Terrorism is privatized warfare. Warfare is nationalized terrorism. Characterize American interventionism in whichever way you please, but let’s not kid ourselves. A Russian invasion of Ukraine worries Joe Biden & Co., not the average Joe. As with the latest variant, there’s no stopping the spread of irrational fear, so is it really that surprising that fewer and fewer Americans have any interest in “serving”? Democracy is revered only when its disciples get their way, and more and more people are realizing that the will of the majority—“the greater good”—is a myth. No, voting on whom will be next to trample our natural rights doesn’t warrant celebration. Enlistment bonuses might have to be given in tandem with endless “booster” shots in order to entice patriots to defend such a demonstrable sham. If democracy were so great, we could’ve voted out lockdowns, restrictions, and mandates. We could’ve voted to end military adventurism long ago. As with COVID, Russia won’t yield to the good intentions of America’s parasitic caste, and it appears that those who’ve considered joining the military have determined that neither is worth their time or attention.

This article originally appeared on UncleNap.com.