I’m a military man. I spent 20 years in the USAF. I work for an Air Force contractor on an Air Force Base. I’ve been reading newspapers since 5th grade and watching the news on TV since I was even younger. I've read a lot more about history than most folks ever will.
It's been my experience from reading the news and studying history that the left is traditionally about downsizing the military. During the 1990’s, it was all about the “peace dividend”. The idea was to take all that money that was earmarked for defense and spend it on every social program the Democrats could dream up.
I remember Jimmy Carter and the hollow military. I was in it. We had few spare parts. Airplanes and equipment sat for months broken down and waiting for parts as hangar queens. We robbed and raped them for spare parts to keep the rest of the airplanes flying or equipment operating. It made for long hours because it made for twice the work and we had less people to do it in. 10-12 hour days were de rigueur.
Now comes another BRAC and it seems all the liberals are trying to out hawk the conservatives. Jayson at Polipundit writes:
I’m confused.
Shouldn’t leftists in the media be applauding the closure of those bases?
They sure applauded the closure of bases and the sharp downsizing of the military under Clinton. Man, they were in their glory. You know, the “peace dividend” and such?
And then he asks:
Have we actually arrived at the stage of the national political re-alignment process at which media liberals will be in reflexive opposition to everything – everything!!! – bearing some connection to the Bush administration?
The answer, of course, is obvious. Go read the whole thing!
Hat Tip: Polipundit
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