Leftists Support Our Troops? HARDLY!
By Doug Hagin (03/21/06)
Maybe it is just me being irritable, but the cheap shots being constantly taken against the mission, character, and intelligence of America’s armed forces is wearing on my last nerve.
The most recent example of the Leftist ideal that they can support the troops and insult them at the same time comes from actor/comedian Richard Belzer. Belzer, who stars in the NBC series “Homicide: Life on the Streets” and “Law and Order: Special Victim’s Unit”, recently took the opportunity of an appearance on “Real Time with Bill Maher” to demean the intelligence of our troops.
Last Friday night, Belzer went after Florida Congresswoman Ileanna Ros-Lehtinen for asserting that the troops she has met in Iraq and Afghanistan are very supportive of the war. Belzer called the Congresswoman’s claim and the credibility of the troops “bull----”. Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen then pointed out that she had met the troops one-on-one and that they were tellin! g her “We're proud of our mission; we know what we're doing over here. We don't want you guys in Washington to lose it over there“!
Ros-Lehtinen then went on to point out that, our force fighting is a volunteer force. They chose to join, out of a sense of duty and patriotism, and people like the Congresswoman can see this, and be appreciative of it. Leftists like Belzer, however, seem to think so little of the mental abilities of our troops that they cannot fathom, that these soldiers might be able to understand what they are doing.
Consider how Belzer responded to Ros-lehtinen "Okay, fine. No one questions the nobility and the honor that these men and woman who are serving and what they're doing. No one questions that. But now they're targets, they're not going out. Now they're just protecting each other and they're in the middle of a civil war. So it's really not fair to have these people who volunteered their lives to protect our nation under false pret! enses to now be a target ..." At this point Belzer was cut off by the loud applause of the audience, which shows how supportive of our troops the left really is. Here is Richard Belzer saying our troops are merely targets in the middle of a civil war, and how do these “supportive” people respond? By cheering like their team just scored a touch down in a playoff game.
Ros-Lehtinen then demanded that Belzer ask the troops if they think if it is fair or not. Belzer, in true scholarly fashion, responds with more hyperbole and insults. "That's bull----: Ask them! They're not .. they don't read twenty newspapers a day. They're under the threat of death every minute. They're not the best people to ask about the war because they're going to die any second." Now this paints a very ugly picture doesn’t it? According to Belzer, who apparently thinks sitting on his pompous butt and reading newspapers makes him better qualified to discuss the war than the soldiers fighting it, our tr! oops are only seconds from death. Well the casualties do not even come close to supporting such a negative view. The fact is losing 2,400 troops in a three-year war represents a miraculously low casualty rate. I guess Belzer is so busy reading newspapers he neglected to read any military history.
At this point Ros-Lehtinen brings up her stepson, who has just finished an eight-month tour of duty. Belzer’s answer to the service of this soldier? “God bless your stepson. Doesn't mean he's a brilliant scholar about the war because he's there. And God bless him." See, here is another example of how a devoted Leftist “supports” our troops. They hint that the troops are not very scholarly, in other words, stupid, and then throw in a God bless them or two to show how much they really support these stupid troops! What a convenient double standard!
At this point Bill Maher interjects his two-cents by attacking the quality of people in our militar! y. "I think the point he's trying to make is that a 19-year-old who is in that army because he probably couldn't find other employment " See, Again there is zero chance, according to these Leftist “scholars” that those in the military joined out of a sense of duty or patriotism. Oh no, they are just such pathetic losers that they had no other choice. How very supportive!
When Ros-Lehtinen responds that her stepson is a college graduate and a Marine officer, certainly not a person who “couldn’t get a job” Belzer goes right back to his troop bashing. "You think everyone over there is a college graduate? They're 19 and 20-year-old kids who couldn't get a job ..." The Congresswoman then offers up that Belzer has not been to Iraq or Afghanistan, nor has he talked to the troops. Probably too busy reading his newspapers to be bothered I guess. To this Belzer, again displaying his scholarly vocabulary, answers with this outburst “What, I don’t f---ing read?” Don't do that!" S! ee how easy it is to become an expert on war? Do not fight in a war, do not serve in the military, just read twenty newspapers a day and you too can be as brilliant as Richard Belzer can! What a perfect example of someone being educated beyond their hat size!
No, our soldiers are not scholars; they are soldiers, bright, brave, patriotic, heroes. They are risking their necks so pinheads like Richard Belzer can sit back, pretending to be military experts, and insult the very troops safeguarding his free speech!
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