Ahem

Ahem:

You should probably read Fuzzy's post about Mr. Arkin. This is a remarkable sort of writing:

These soldiers [from the NBC piece, who said you can't support the soldiers without supporting their mission] should be grateful that the American public, which by all polls overwhelmingly disapproves of the Iraq war and the President's handling of it, do still offer their support to them, and their respect.

Through every Abu Ghraib and Haditha, through every rape and murder, the American public has indulged those in uniform, accepting that the incidents were the product of bad apples or even of some administration or command order.

I'd have to say that the soldiers probably are grateful to their fellow American citizens who do support them. I'm not sure they ought to be grateful to Mr. Arkin's ilk, who would like to suggest that Abu Ghraib and Haditha, rape and murder are not unusual violations of the military's accustomed discipline and honor.

Nor do I think that they shouldn't be allowed to say what they said. There is a fine line in what military men can express in terms of political ideas, but given that these were low-ranking servicemen plainly speaking for themselves, I think they're in line.

Oh, Arkin also goes on to suggest that a military coup would be likely, 'if this weren't the United States.' I agree that the United States is uniquely unlikely to suffer a military coup, but I wonder if he has given any thought as to why that might be. "Because the military wouldn't consider participating in a coup," is one answer; "Because the American people are well enough armed to resist it" is another. Neither of these stabilizing factors have anything to do with Arkin's kind.