Elenamary

I haveTwo ex-boyfriend’s who have joined the army. One is in Iraq and I believe one will be deployed before the end of the summer. This is hard to deal with. I care deeply for them. I am most suprised by the one who may be deployed soon. Although he sometimes consciously presents himself as a Philistine he is prehaps one of the most intelligent people I have ever meet. I miss hanging out with him now, I will miss hanging out with him even more if he is dead. The following is an email conversation we had.

Jah,

I have always been in awe of your intelligence, your quick wit, and your perceptive abilities. You are a brilliant dissentient, which makes me wonder why you would join the army?

I want to shout statistics about the disproportionate amount of people of color that join the military, and the disproportionate amount of people of color that die, but I believe you know these things better than I ever will.

So Why? Why did you join?
Why did your mother’s only son join only to be subjugated to the possibility of an unjust death in name of a white man’s war?

-Elenamary

Elenamary, I joined the army because of my self destructive tendencies. In reality, though, it’s because I believe in the sanctity of human life while holding my own in little regard. I will willingly die an ignoble death in a cesspool of my superiors’ creation rather than allow this country to suffer subjugation from the hands of mad theologists and/or rampant fascists. I would much rather accede to the wishes of sychophants than allow my fellow citizens to lose the ability to call the president an asshole, failure or whatever popular expletive they feel. It’s not altruism that calls me; it’s only duty. _Jah

Jah,
i call bullshit.
possible bullshit X2 since you know it is some bullshit.

Jah, you have a great mind, and you in the military will follow orders, you will be a follower, not a leader. Many of our (the world) wars are not started by the military but by an oligarchy of political leaders.

My comparative good is less with you staying in the military. If the good that you offer me as your compatriot is freedom of speech (or any other basic freedom) you as a brilliant mind can do more outside of the military than within it. You want our country to be able to protect itself from mad theologists, rampant fascists, and be able to speak popular expletives? Donate $20 to the ACLU and work for justice using the wonderful genius God gave you.

With much love,
Elenamary