The guy is trying to sell a book. He talks about the historical decline of the liberal institutions in USA. Since he dates the beginning of this decline to the USA entry into World War I, I am inclined to give him a lot of credibility because that is how I read history as well. BOTH of my grandfathers--who were quite unalike as men--refused to cooperate with their draft boards during WW I--one for religious reasons, the other for political ones. Hedges talks about how they shut down the magazine "An Appeal to Reason." My grandfather subscribed to that too.
Good stuff!
That's why I have come to the belief that until a strong majority of the electorate insists on at least 2 years of universal conscription with next to nothing in terms of deferments or exceptions (hey, the Americans with Disabilities Act will find jobs for the disabled in the military as well - perhaps in forward combat zones!), things will never change with the how this country is the slave to the MIC, and guys like McCain & Graham will literally dictate national policies either directly or derivatively. Just as with Viet Nam, universal conscription will engender an overwhelming faction of self-interested American families who will see and follow the liberal position on oligarchical wars of imperial conquest.
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