Thursday - July 16, 2009

The Military and Men

Now this is the Law of the Jungle -- as old and as true as the sky;
And the Wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the Wolf that shall break it must die.
As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk the Law runneth forward and back --
For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.  Rudyard Kipling

The Pentagon, that vague entity that is cited whenever a controversial policy or decision is announced, has pubished a report recommending that people in the military be prohibited from using any kind of tobacco product, indoors or outdoors, in uniform or out of uniform, in battle or in garrison.

What could they possibly be thinking?  That the recommendation is not being approved at this time is no excuse for even thinking such thoughts.

The most obvious is that this is a precursor to what we can expect with nationalized medical care.  Because the military pays for its people's medical bills and because it can claim that the strength of the military is impacted by smoking, they feel it perfectly reasonable to even suggest that they can regulate every behavior at all times.  When the government pays for everyone's medical bills, it won't be long before they start taxing behavior and eventually outlawing it.  The crime wave from alcohol prohibition will have been nothing compared to a prohibition of tobacco.

But more immediately important to me, beyond the national political ramifications for socialism and marxism and the further proof that we have in the end actually lost the cold war, is the complete disdain for the type of men we need to recruit and retain in the military.

What kind of men are in the military now, especially the ground combat arms?  Real men.  Manly men.  Men who aren't ashamed of or afraid to act like men, to be overtly masculine where the wider culture has nothing but disdain for masculinity.  Men like the lance corporal pictured here who probably aren't successful in academics or fancy talk or genteel ways, but who revels in being tough, being perceived as being tough, and being around others that he perceives as being tough.  

What does it mean to be tough?  This is the crux of the matter.  Different cultures have different meanings of tough, but among them are the beneficial traits:  A willingness to face danger, accepting pain as something to be tolerated, believing that showing traits of pain is a weakness, a drive to win at all costs, and a hunger to dominate others.

It's true that smoking or chewing tobacco doesn't make one tough, in and of itself.  Frankly, I have to say that I don't even understand why people like the stuff.  What I know is that a lot of people like tobacco and this has been true in western civilization for about five centuries.  Tobacco doesn't make one tough, but there is a mindset among tobacco users that makes people in the military more likely to use it.

Tobacco has been vilified for generations.  Parents teach their children in schools and in every setting possible that smoking is bad.  Yet many kids still smoke.  Why?  Because kids like to rebel. In many ways and to many people, smoking or chewing tobacco is perceived as adult behavior and a sign of being independent and free of childish controls.

Our military has come close to banning alcohol consumption.  There is such a strong negative association with drinking and alcohol that the club systems throughout the Marine Corps are failing.  Clubs used to be some of the hottest joints in town.  

Very soon, homosexuals will be welcomed in the military.  Homosexual behavior will be tolerated, which is another way of saying that Marines, soldiers and sailors will be inflicted with mandatory instruction on how to welcome homosexual behavior.  

And now, in the near future smoking will be prohibited.  

The military needs violent men.  It needs a lot of young, violent men, but what we're saying now is that we want men who are tough, but we'll tell them what to eat, what to drink, and what they can and can't smoke or chew.  There will be no range of behavior that will be outside of government approval.  Soon, our military will require men to sit down to piss.  

What kind of men join the military now?  All sorts, but one big category is young men who want to prove to themselves and to others that they are tough, virile, manly, and desirable to women.  It will be much harder to recruit this category of men into the military.  Soon our military will be made up of men who may be openly homosexual, who can't eat or drink what they want, and who are considered such children that they aren't allowed to use tobacco.  Oh, but don't worry.  Hairdressers will quit their jobs in droves to enlist, I'm sure.  

And the men who can actually do what is needed, who can locate, close with and destroy the enemy in a very personal way will find other ways to prove their manhood.

The military will consist of tofu and quiche eating tee totaling children.  I'm sure our enemies will tremble with fear.  

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