Alex Jones going nuts on Piers Morgan

[regexcellent]

U wot m8? It's the same thing.

Ignoring your ****ty English, I'm pretty sure there are slight differences. Anyway I don't really know because I haven't taken any oaths.

[Al B. Sure!]

Pretty sure there are slight differences. Anyway I don't really know because I haven't taken any oaths.

Where's Israel in it? I'm trying to find it but I see 'defend the Constitution of the United States of America'. Nothing about Israel.

[regexcellent]

I'm sorry, your point is escaping me here. What does the US military oath of enlistment have to do with my policy preferences?

[Al B. Sure!]

I'm sorry, your point is escaping me here. What does the US military oath of enlistment have to do with my policy preferences?

Yes or no: is Israel more important to you than America is? If presented with a conflict of the best interests of America vs. the best interests of Israel, who would you side with?

How do you feel about Chuck Hagel's quote that he is a United States Senator, not an Israeli Senator? Is that the right statement for an elected leader to make?

[MichaeltheGreat]

Speer. shut the **** up already.

[regexcellent]

Wait, under what circumstances would this be a one-or-the-other decision? That's like asking if I put Canada before the United States. I don't, but I oppose any military action that would harm Canada, and I support military action that benefits Canada. Same goes for Israel.

Incidentally, what I'm told is that the New York National Guard's oath actually excludes the United States. It's an oath to New York. I believe this is broadly true for all of the National Guards.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Because he is anti-Israel and his nomination indicates that Obama is content to merely "contain" Iran as opposed to actually stop it from getting nuclear weapons, unlike he promised in the campaign (of course we have known this for a long time so that is not news). Chuck Hagel has in the past said things that were borderline anti-semitic.

Though let's try to nip this I/P threadjack in the bud.

As a practical matter, preventing Iran from getting nukes is pretty much impossible, since Russian and China will help, at least in part to give the US fits and to try to gain influence. They will just go into the MAD pile where it will be made clear that if they ever launch a single nuke, they will simply cease to exist about 40 minutes afterward. The time to have stopped Iran's nuclear program was about 10 years ago, but we were busy with the nominal Sunni clown who didn't have WMD programs in any intact form.

[Al B. Sure!]

Wait, under what circumstances would this be a one-or-the-other decision? That's like asking if I put Canada before the United States. I don't, but I oppose any military action that would harm Canada, and I support military action that benefits Canada. Same goes for Israel.

Incidentally, what I'm told is that the New York National Guard's oath actually excludes the United States. It's an oath to New York. I believe this is broadly true for all of the National Guards.

We have a lot of allies. Is your concern for Israel equal to your concern for Japan? Turkey? Pakistan? Egypt? Jordan?

As for the National Guard oath, it doesn't exclude the US. Why would you even think that? Look it up. I just did.

[regexcellent]

Whether it's possible to eliminate the nuclear program in any practical way is probably only known to some top intelligence and defense officials worldwide, but I'm with you that it's getting more difficult every day. I think successfully eliminating the program would require enlisting the support of Arab countries.

The reason why Iranian nukes scares me isn't just because the Iranians are crazy. It's because Saudi Arabia and Egypt are looking into starting nuclear programs to protect themselves from Iran, and because nuclear weapons will prop up a regime that is bent on promoting terrorism worldwide. If the mullahs weren't in power in Iran, Iraq wouldn't have the terrorist problem that it does today, and Afghanistan would probably be a lot more peaceful too. Hezbollah and Hamas would have great difficulty arming themselves. Assad would probably be dead.

xpost

As for the National Guard oath, it doesn't exclude the US. Why would you even think that?

Because I recall a National Guard officer in my ROTC cadre saying so. Frankly it doesn't really matter. It's just a ****ing oath.

[Berzerker]

Yes or no: is Israel more important to you than America is? If presented with a conflict of the best interests of America vs. the best interests of Israel, who would you side with?

Depends... If the Arabs gave us free oil to wipe Israel out I'd side with Israel

[Al B. Sure!]

Frankly it doesn't really matter. It's just a ****ing oath.

Excuse me?

When you do swear in, please tell the presiding officer what you think about the oath.

I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.

Just a ****ing oath? Yeah supporting and defending the Constitution is just ****ing words. Who the **** cares? We just want to get paid and get some GI Bill money! That's what it's all about!

[regexcellent]

What, you mean you really think it's a Big Deal when you stick your hand on a bible and say "I swear to defend and uphold" etc etc? The particular semantics don't really matter. It's what we would diplomatically call "traditional ceremoniousness" and less diplomatically call "outdated silliness." It's a grown-up version of a pinky swear.

Just a ****ing oath? Yeah supporting and defending the Constitution is just ****ing words. Who the **** cares? We just want to get paid and get some GI Bill money! That's what it's all about!

That's what it's about to a lot of people, especially non-moto retards who don't have a crushing inferiority complex that can only be satisfied by being an Officer of Men. For me it's getting in shape and getting paid $10k a year or whatever, assuming I do actually contract, which I haven't and there's a good chance I won't.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Whether it's possible to eliminate the nuclear program in any practical way is probably only known to some top intelligence and defense officials worldwide, but I'm with you that it's getting more difficult every day. I think successfully eliminating the program would require enlisting the support of Arab countries.

I think Iran learned a bit from their buffoon neighbor and the O'Chirac reactor "problem" as well. I have a hunch that having a nuclear program means more to them than does having a nuclear weapon. Having nuclear weapons in their case creates a real possibility of things hitting the fan and removes bargaining power. The Iranian leadership isn't like the DPRK's.

The reason why Iranian nukes scares me isn't just because the Iranians are crazy. It's because Saudi Arabia and Egypt are looking into starting nuclear programs to protect themselves from Iran, and because nuclear weapons will prop up a regime that is bent on promoting terrorism worldwide. If the mullahs weren't in power in Iran, Iraq wouldn't have the terrorist problem that it does today, and Afghanistan would probably be a lot more peaceful too. Hezbollah and Hamas would have great difficulty arming themselves. Assad would probably be dead.

Assad is also being propped up by Russia and to a lesser extent, China. I think it's a mistake to consider the Iranian leaders crazy - they're whackjobs, but very methodical and rational whackjobs. Ahmedinejad is just a puppet - Khamanei isn't exactly the warm, fuzzy type, but he's a master manipulator both domestically and externally.

[regexcellent]

Yes, they're methodical. Unfortunately, they're methodical about international terrorism, even when it doesn't really benefit them directly. They're interested in spreading their Islamist form of government around kind of like how the Soviet Union liked spreading Communism. Fortunately there's a much more limited audience for Islamism than for Communism, and it's mostly confined to the middle east.

[Berzerker]

i aint worried about no ghosts