Pro-war bragging. How inappropriate is this?

The BBQ Pit
1

The war in Iraq isn’t even quite over (though that is looking very likely), and it’s already begun. The pats on the back, the war-whoops, the masturbatory self-congratulatory bragging of those who supported the war. Frankly, it makes me want to vomit.

The OP of this thread and a couple of its subsequent responses represent the lowest-common-denominator of pro-war attitudes out there. This is the type of person who calls into radio talk shows to rant about the subject of their choice and play sycophant to the talk-show host, never grounded in reality or any sort of facts.

The very premise of this thread begun even before the war started windng down, strikes me this same way… a sick twisting of “facts” (which were later debunked) just to wave it in the face of people the OP disagreed with, no matter the cost, no matter the lives lost.

This is the type of person who sticks their fingers in their ears and sticks out their tongue at those they disagree with, because it make then feel good, when the reality of it is that people have died in this war, men and women on both sides of the conflict. So, yeah… rub it in some more. I hope it makes you feel good, all that blood. Well done.

Fortunately, those threads do not represent reasonable pro-war attitudes. Most of the people on the SDMB, as well as others I know, even if they were for the war, recognize that victory (if this is victory) came with a price and will not gloat about it. That is an honorable attitude, and I hope that most will espouse it. I think they will. But all the same, I think I’ll be avoiding radio talk shows for the next week or so.

For my part, I’m glad that the war appears to be almost over. I never had much doubt that the U.S. would win the military conflict. Quite frankly, that was the “easy” part (in quotes because I know that it wasn’t easy in itself, but it was comparatively easy when compared to what comes next). The more difficult part, in which the U.S. will truly show the world its mettle, will be in rebuilding Iraq with fairness and justice, and subsequently re-establishing good relations with the international community. Up to now our leader have not impressed me that they will be able to do this competently, but I hope that they can. It will be the true test of this nation to rise to the challenges that still face us. I hope we’re up to it.

The gamble is on what happens after the war, not the war itself.

2

To answer the title of the OP, very.

3

The fact that we won the war doesn’t prove that we were justified in starting it.

I’m pretty sure that I could kick the crap out of a 90 year old woman if I tried, but that wouldn’t make it the right thing to do.

4

I think it’s disgusting.

My god, this is a fucking war, here.

5

Is there a point to stating the obvious, here?

6

If I may step in and offer my liberal translating services again, I think that what is being said is that a war is tragic event and that no matter what your politics are and no matter how much you may think that it was needed that it is unseemly to whoop it up and be happy about it because it makes it look as if you are forgetting the very real fact that human beings are dying here and that is a very somber thing.

Naturally YMMV

7

There are two things going on here. The ‘We were right and you were wrong stuff’ is inappropriate, I agree. However I see nothing wrong (well other than the fact it’s premature)with the celebration of the end of war. It is a fucking war, and the end of it is a good thing, the smiles on the faces of the Iraqis is a good thing. A little ‘woohoo U.S. and the coalition, fuck you tyranny’ is in order, as a relief of tensions if nothing else. The VE and VJ day celbrations were huge whole town parties. As this war was much shorter, much less far reaching, and much less in doubt, that isn’t going to happen as probably isn’t appropriate, but a little patting on the back is. I personally am going to wait until the last bullet is fired before I indulge however.

8

Yeah, all those cheering Iraqis should shut the heck up. What are they all gloating about? The end of decades of living under a brutal Stalinist regime? Don’t they know there’s a war on? Pissers.

9

OMFG,

You bitched when the US had the ticker-tape parade in New york after wwii? You felt it inappropriate and wanted to vomit when Japan surrendered and people danced in the streets?

The gloating is over the accomplishments, not the tragedies you morons. War is bad, and the fact that it is not as bad as many of you here had asserted it would be is very much enough to gloat over. And be very happy about. I would think that you would cheer your dire predictions did not come to pass either. But no, you show the tact of complaining that others are happy that it didn’t happen. How fucking morbid is that?

How about the very real fact that humans are not dying because of the war and it’s current victories. Why do you ignore that? Because it does not fit your agenda. That is hypocritical and spineless when you only support the lives your agenda will cooberate.
Who here has celebrated the death of innocents. Or the war itself? They are fucking celebrating the accomplishments of the war that they supported to begin with. This war has saved lives and freed people. Look at the tv. If you find no cause for celebration in that light, you have no right to rebuke others for not having compassion for their fellow man. For shame.

10

Don’t get me wrong. If the war is over, I’m glad that it’s over. I won’t be “celebrating” it, but I am relieved that the end is near (assuming we don’t get embroiled in some other Middle-East hellhole).

The OP is simply a way of saying that I feel the “I’m right and you’re wrong” trumpeting coming from some pro-war people is completely inappropriate, and should be avoided. The victory of the military is not, in itself, a justification for the war, and to say it is borders on behaving like a vulture, feeding on the dead.

Spite, read the threads I linked to, and re-read my own OP. Your name suits you well. For shame, yourself.

11

—The OP is simply a way of saying that I feel the “I’m right and you’re wrong” trumpeting coming from some pro-war people is completely inappropriate, and should be avoided. The victory of the military is not, in itself, a justification for the war, and to say it is borders on behaving like a vulture, feeding on the dead.—

Why is it necessarily inappropriate? It looks very much like anti-war people are on the wrong side of history here.

12

Redundant bck-at-ya assertions are for grade school Avalonian. Why should I be ashamed of supporting and cheering victory that has cost fewer lives thans expected and freed people. Tell me why I should be ashamed besides an I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I immature attitude. YOu are the one trying to belittle a humane jubilation because it does not fit your agenda.

I read them. They were saying others were factually wrong. And celebrated the victories at hand. Quote where they celebrated the War that kills and the deaths of others, and not the war that saves and liberates and the looming end of the war.

You say they are celebrating the war itself and all it entitles. I say you are wrong and trying to highlight the flaws because you may have been proven wrong from the start. (I honeslty do not know what you felt about the war or the assertions you may have made about it so I could be wrong.)

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Read the last two paragraphs of the OP. Do you disagree with any of it?

Whether you agree or not is somewhat immaterial. Who’s on the “wrong side of history” has yet to be proven, in either case. History will be written in the months and years to come, it did not end today. And so I maintain that it is indeed necessarily and completely inappropriate.

14

Nice strawman. I don’t even need to waste time dissassembling it, as you already did a fine job yourself. I expected as much.

Please tell me that you read the part in the OP where I specified that some specific hawks (vultures) were acting inappropriately, but that there are many hawks who are behaving with decorum. Please tell me that you read that part, because it seems like you skipped right over it.

15

Seeing the celebrating in Iraq makes me think there is absolutely nothing inappropriate about it at all.

16

Right on, Avalonian! People who get a boner for war make me sick.

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And again, I have no problem with that.

Note that the OP says bragging, not celebrating. There is a difference. There is also a difference between a free people celebrating, and one person thumbing his nose at those he disagrees with war as justification.

18

There seems to be a large influx of kids in GD at the moment. No idea if it’s to do with the whole LOTR thing or something else, but it is becoming tiresome, at least for me.

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Avalonian I specifically asked for a quote of wht you thaught was inapropriate.

That quote makes my “strawman” pretty fucking solid don’t you think?

20

What is the “whole LOTR thing” by the way. Lord of the Rings?