We can't keep quiet. U.S. veteran calls for questioning of the war against Iran

Although “as soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines we are trained to accept and follow orders without hesitation and discussion”, “at the moment, more and more Americans are dying in a fresh war, another conflict that started outside the Constitution I swore to defend. We owe no 1 silence, while another generation is sent to that world.” Veterans should not be silent, but they should ask uncomfortable questions questioning the legitimacy of the war against Iran – points out veteran fighting in Afghanistan, sergeant at rest. Dan McKnight, president of Bring Our Troops Home organization.

He is the author of an open letter expressing support for Joe Kent, a erstwhile head of the fight against terrorism in a country that late resigned, not agreeing to wage war in the mediate East.

McKnight recalls that although the fundamental rule of military life and an integral part of the well-functioning and effective chain of command requires soldiers to obey – "our task is to fulfill the mission, not to question it" – this "culture of obedience accompanies us besides after the removal of the uniform." He adds that “obedience while conducting unspoken wars in distant places extends to silence upon return home and after the ceremony of friends”, and that should not be the case.

He recalled the character of a marine soldier who "did not choose a quiet retirement". It is Smedley Butler, twice decorated with Medals of Honor, who achieved the highest rank of general, fighting in more than six countries around the world, including the Philippines during the Philippine-American War, China during the uprising of boxers, Latin America and the Caribbean during the banana war, and France during planet War I. At the time of his death, he was the most decorated marine soldier in the past of his country.

After leaving at rest, Major Butler became known as a declared critic of the war rage, which was, among another things, the consequence of inciting her by corporations pursuing their interests. He said that "We Americans who will defend our flag should have a voice on where it is displayed." Through his anti-war advocates at various marches and rallies he met with disregard and ridicule by the government and corporate press.

"Today the same destiny meets another soldier," McKnight writes, pointing to Joe Kent, who served 20 years in the Green Berets, taking part in 11 combat missions during the global war on terrorism. A soldier decorated with a Golden Star, lost Shannon's wife in Syria in 2019. He late resigned as manager of the National Anti-Terrorism Centre of the United States, opposing the U.S. war against Iran.

For this reason he is called a traitor, his merits are diminished. He himself is ridiculed by the most influential figures in politics and media.

"As president of Bring Our Troops Home," McKnight writes, I ask my comrades to halt their silence. Ask out loud the same questions you asked yourself and your comrades privately. You have earned this law more than anyone else, blood, then and tears."

Veteran "wanted" from another veterans to have the courage to question the legitimacy of the current war against Iran. “I have been asking these questions for years. Why is the justification for these wars constantly changing? Why does the mission keep expanding? Why does it always cost us? Why is Washington never responsible?’

The author of an open letter expressing support for Kent points out that no 1 has a better insight into the wars fought, like soldiers themselves “firsthand” alternatively than think tank analysts, cable tv commentators or Washington bureaucrats.

He expects U.S. veterans to argue the war, to express their position loudly, as "the prolonged silence" is now "a real disgrace".

"At the moment, more and more Americans are dying in a fresh war, another conflict that started outside the Constitution I swore to defend. We owe no 1 silence, while another generation is sent to that world. Joe Kent spoke, bearing immense individual and professional costs. This is not radicalism or anti-Americanism. This is honesty, something we erstwhile recognized better in this country," we read. And then, “I call on my fellow veterans, regardless of the kind of military, the period of service, or the current political affiliation, to add their names to this statement. Not as support for any organization or circumstantial program, but as a declaration of solidarity with Joe Kent and his final break in silence, which besides many of us have endured for besides long."

Under the letter, signatures were given, in addition to the author, by Colonel (at rest) Dr. Douglas Macgregor, erstwhile elder advisor to the Department of Defense, Lieutenant-Colonel (at rest) Daniel L. Davis, Captain (at rest) Matthew Hoh, a veteran of the Iraq War, who resigned from his position in the Department of State in Afghanistan in protest against the escalation of the war in 2009.

Source: theamericanconservative.com

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