Yellephant - Worth American Lives, Just Not Ours!

Further to our discussion of , our good friend and reluctant Republican ARM over at Judgment Proof has graciously dropped us a link and said we have some good points, but calls out the following "fallacies" in Operation Yellow Elephant, which we will address point by point.

1. many republicans/neo-cons are over there in iraq.

I have no doubt about that. In fact, I think I read somewhere that the majority of folks in the military are Republicans, if anything. But, we're short on troops, buddy. So there aren't enough folks there, be they Republican, Democrat or Whig.

2. just b/c you support something but don't have the ballz to do it yourself doesn't necessarily mean you are a bad person or should be intentionally embarrassed or that the effort is somehow not worth it on an objective basis

I don't know that it means 101st Fighting Keyboardists are "bad people," just that they have made the assessment that "worth it" means "worth someone else's ass, but not mine." If they find their assessment embarassing when exposed, that's their business.

3. i doubt if the people in charge of yellow elephant would somehow all of the sudden be for the war if many young republicans did in fact join

Nobody says they would be. Only that almost everyone agrees we need more troops and those who cry the loudest in favor of sending folks there to kill and potentially be killed seem like the ones who should be getting their hands bloody. My bet is that their couchside warlust would weaken in the face of actual warfare, but that's just my bet.

4. not all young republicans think a like and should not be stereotyped as is being done by the yellow elephant group

Fair enough. I agree that those young college Republicans who are against the war and those who have backed up their bravado by enlisting should obviously be excluded from the critique. I have a feeling that both are tiny minorities, but stand willing to be proven wrong on that.

5. this seems like just another mean spirited attack.
9. i don't think the people in charge are interested in making any point other than to embarass and ridicule (we lumped these together because it's the same point. . . see also #2)

Look, this is obviously an attack on the moral judgment made by the 101st Fighting Keyboardist types by those who disagree with that moral judgment. I, and the majority of Americans, don't think the Iraq war is worth the lives of our young men. Others, and RAM has not made clear his own opinion, believe the war IS worth American lives, just not their own. However, OYE is also a real solution to a real problem.

6. would you support my going to a homeless shelter wit the help wanted adds and ridiculing people being supported by my tax dollars? if not, why not?

So the young college Republicans are like the homeless? I don't get it. The war cheerleaders are eating or working in soup kitchens? You'll have to connect this one up for me, ARM.

7. being a ball-less wonder is a bi-partisan personality trait

No doubt. This does not address the point, though.

8. are you challenging their patriotism? i thought nobody could do that. .

That's a stretch, buddy. You understand that it is not their patriotism that is at issue. They think the Iraq war is best for America. I, and the majority of Americans, disagree. We're all patriots. Now, who should go fight the war when we run short on soldiers?

10. if republicans went to protest a young democrat group it would be the end of the world

You know, I see this same argument swarm around the left-leaning hemisphere of the blogosphere... "imagine if a Democrat did/said [insert Republican action/statement]!" I try to stay away from it, because I think it's so speculative. Also it just sounds whiney. With that said, I would not be surprised if young republicans did something like this.

11. why do you want people to go to war who don't want to be there themselves?

Because we need more soldiers. Perhaps you would prefer a draft, so that the cheerleaders for the war and those who believe it is a huge bloody mistake would both be forced to enlist.

12. i understand that the flip side is why would someone support a war that they themselves aren't willing to fight? but would bill have sent chelsea to kosovo? did you support bill in his military efforts? if so, where was your gun and armor? if not, i haven't heard you talk much about your opposition.

To be honest, in 1999, I did not follow international affairs very closely. That said, no I didn't oppose the Kosovo intervention. As I understand it, it was a relatively minor military operation that was generally supported by both parties which didn't last long and there were plenty of troops. Not exactly the contentious "generational commitment" Condi now tells us the occupation of Iraq will be.

13. just some food for thought. i thought of some better ones earlier, but they are eluding me.

We're anxious to hear them.