A.W.O.L. The Unexcused Absence Of America’s Upper-classes From The Military And How It Hurts Our Country
Frank Schaeffer

I heard this author on NPR’s TO THE POINT this afternoon. He makes the case that America’s all-volunteer military has become a warrior-class. Schaeffer likened America’s relationship to the military like that of the Persian Empire, with imperial projects all over the known world.
Those who join the service will be the ones to define its character. The navy may be more liberal than the army, mainly because it is immovably based in coastal areas. San Diego and Seattle are examples of navy towns. And a couple of famous Democrat Presidents came out of navy careers. Kennedy and Carter both had their own ships. The navy is indeed more blue than the other branches of the service. The navy guys have probably been into tattoos longer.
The air force on the other hand is in Colorado Springs. I think that’s about as far as you can get from the oceans in America. I’m not sure if there’s a worthwhile comparison between the forces. I saw a TV special about the growing Evangelical presence among Air Force officers. The implication was that this was splintering the officer corps, and affecting commands and promotions. That gave me a small chill. Those guys are missile command.
What this got me thinking was that the military is reflecting more and more the views of the hardcore red-states. I’ve discussed this with friends and we ask the question over and over: How is it that the Republicans have the exclusive on defining patriotism? It’s like they’ve wired it so that when someone questions the war, or questions the President himself, it hurts the feelings of the people serving in the armed forces. I’ve been around some active duty marines recently and it’s my opinion that you can’t speak against the war in the presence of the uniform. It’s just not cool. I suppose the people who wanted this war understood that when they embarked on the project. The harder you try to pull back, the tighter it ratchets down. Operation fishhook.
The author concludes that we need a draft to restore the All American-ness of the armed forces. Very interesting...