You Will Anyway: Military group condemns Trump's abuse of Alexander Vindman

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Military group condemns Trump's abuse of Alexander Vindman

A coalition of more than 1,100 veterans on Tuesday condemned President Donald Trump for his continued attacks on an Army officer who testified against him in the impeachment inquiry, noting that military rules bar the service member from defending himself publicly.

“The president should know that, despite taking aim at one Army officer, he has targeted anyone who currently wears — or has worn — the uniform,” the group stated in an open letter. “Our service members and veterans deserve the confidence of knowing that our elected leaders will come to their defense, just as they remain vigilant for ours.”

[...]

“The dismissal of LTC Vindman … appears to be motivated by nothing more than political retribution and deprives the White House of expertise necessary to defend our collective national security,” the group stated in the new letter. “The manner of these dismissals suggests that the commander-in-chief has prioritized a personal vendetta over our national security.”

The effort, organized by the anti-Trump group National Security Action, includes signatures from prominent figures such as former U.S. Army Europe Commander Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling, former Under Secretary of Defense Frank Kendall and former Connecticut Army Reserve Brig. Gen. Shepard Stone.

It also features a host of veterans activists connected to both the Truman National Security Project and Common Defense, whose leaders said their goal is to protect military members from harassment and abuse from the White House.

Military Times

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

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Life, as Explained in "Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead"

GUILDENSTERN: What a fine persecution---to be kept intrigued without ever quite being enlightened.

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ROSENCRANTZ : The only thing that makes it bearable is the irrational belief that somebody interesting will come on in a minute.

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GUILDENSTERN: But for God's sake what are we supposed to do?!

PLAYER: Relax. Respond. That's what people do. You can't go through life questioning your situation at every turn.

GUILDENSTERN: But we don't know what's going on, or what to do with ourselves. We don't know how to act.

PLAYER: Act natural. You know why you're here at least.

GUILDENSTERN: We only know what we're told, and that's little enough. And for all we know it isn't even true.

PLAYER: For all anyone knows, nothing is. Everything has to be taken on trust; truth is only that which is taken to be true. It's the currency of living. There may be nothing behind it, but it doesn't make any difference so long as it is honoured. One acts on assumptions.

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GUILDENSTERN : We act on scraps of information... sifting half-remembered directions that we can hardly separate from instinct.

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PLAYER: Life is a gamble, at terrible odds-if it was a bet you wouldn't take it.