Why Are American Soldiers in Niger? Why Don't Children of the Elite Join the Military? By Frank Scott Al-Jazeerah, CCUN, October 23, 2017

Coffin of U.S. Army Sergeant La David Johnson, who was among four special forces soldiers killed in Niger, on October 4, 2017

 

Has anyone else noticed that the issue of the day is all about how Trump did or did not speak to the widow of one of the soldiers killed in Niger?  Quickly I might add that anyone who thinks Trump is ever going to sound gracious in any situation is obviously blind, deaf, and dumb.  Who really knows what he said and the tone in which he said whatever.  And quite frankly the question is fairly high up on my “do not give a shit list”.
 
Completely out of reach of the conversation is what were any troops doing in Niger in the first place.  How many troops (and yes “special forces” are troops) do we have in that country?  Exactly what is their job in Niger (military advisor is too general a term to acceptably answer the question)?  What is the goal behind our inserting military there?  Who and what will gain if we fulfill these goals?
 
Next we should be demanding a complete listing of all countries in which the US has military forces and the exact number of the forces in each country. Then we need to ask the same questions about each and every nation in which we have a military presence.
 
We might also ask if there were any socio-economic conditions that led this young man to choose to join the military rather than some other career path and what were those conditions.  Note that the children of the elite with many life options open to them do not often join the military, so there must be some reason besides the goal of job satisfaction.
 
The problem with getting bogged down in this whole public relations (PR) mess that both sides are playing at now simply distracts us from actually getting any information that we should not only be getting, but demanding.  I doubt that either the Republicans or Democrats actually want to be put on the spot to answer any vital questions since both parties have in one way or another have been big supporters of both large and small military interventions in other nations.  
 
I am thoroughly disgusted at what passes for serious political discourse these days.  No one asks any important questions or demands serious answers in the off chance that an intelligent question actually is asked.
 
Note: From a friend who wishes to remain anonymous.
 
 email: fpscott@gmail.com

 

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