I like the debate and love how differing opinions seem to be well tolerated where on other sites all there is, is name calling if you believe something different.
But I definitely have a different opinion as you do Luke. I am not for unjustified wars but you get rid of your military and you would quickly find out just how much other factions who do not believe as you, take away your rights to have any freedom, beliefs, or property.
Until there are no other armies or factions willing to do my country, its citizens, or its allies harm, we need a military.
There are plenty of areas of the world that do not have that luxury and others that use their military for wrongful purposes. If the military is doing wrongful things and you live in a democracy where you believe this is happening and did not help change the situation, then you as a voting citizen are just as culpable as any soldier because you support the situation or did not succeed in changing the system.
And if you say "i'm not guilty" but still enjoy the benefits of having that citizenship then you are just as guilty as the soldier if your country's military is misbehaving. The only option at that point would be to move to another country if that were the case. One that better fit your beliefs if you were unable to accomplish change in the one you live in.
So yeah I think I have a different opinion but I love the dialog and the ability to have a debate on the issue where normally people just get mad at each other.
Thank you so much for adding your perspective. I too greatly appreciate having a place to share controversial views and talk about them openly and respectfully. In a way, it's a support for my views. No government or army gave us this. It's the result of amazing blockchain technology and innovation.
How would they do this? Would they directly storm my house? Could I not defend myself or hire someone like Detroit Threat Management (which I linked to in the original post) to defend me and my family? Nation states are no longer financially incentivized to physically invade other countries for their physical resources because the most valuable resources are increasingly about the intellectual and technical skills of the service providers (i.e. the people). If another country invades and takes over silicon valley, as an example, they won't be able to extract the value there. They are much better off doing business with them and profiting from the result.
How do you know that is the single only option? How do you know you're not responding out of an indoctrinated view from your birth until now? Have you explored NVC or watched any of Marshal Rosenberg's videos I linked to? If there were other more effective options for ending violence than military force (which often initiates violence even though it is supposed to be "defensive"), would you be interested in learning more?
I don't vote anymore because I know it does no good. I don't live in a democracy, it's a constitutional republic and only those in representative power make decisions. IMO, voting has become a ritual to placate the masses. I've talked about that more in my post Should Anarchists Vote? and in The Loop: Why Voting and Revolutions Don't Work.
That's a strong stance to take, but I have considered it. I don't think the person who pulls the trigger should be considered in the same category as the person who, under threat of force, is extorted from to pay for the bullet, the gun, and the training of the solider. One voluntary signed up to murder someone else. The other has little choice as there is currently no anarchist utopia to live in where extorted taxes aren't used to fund militaries. That said, I have been looking and seriously do consider how bad things will have to get before I make a conscious choice to take my family, move somewhere else, and renounce citizenship. I hope it never comes to that, but it is something I have to consider in order to be philosophically true to the moral stances I'm taking.
Thanks again for bringing your views. There's no way any of us can learn if we stay within our comfortable echo chambers and only dialogue with those who already agree with us.
Love the debate actually, I don't care to take as much time as would be required right now to discuss each of your points but would love to debate this in some other venue at a later time. Just too much typing. It's like trying to debate using text message but not quite as bad :)
But yes I believe that a person who lives in the society and enjoys the benefits of that society are just as culpable for the actions of their country as the soldier. You support the system you live in whether voluntarily or involuntarily. And in the USA no one is forced to stay in that system so it is voluntary.
And yes, without a military you could have people take over your house by force. And depending on your bank account you could defend it depending on how large a force is trying to take it. I doubt everyone in Crimea wanted to be annexed. But the group with the strongest military didn't let everyone pick.
And I believe the technology infrastructure around the world is pretty fragile actually. If one strong country decided to take out large swaths territory against a weak nation or area then it would not be hard to strip the technology away. Hell just taking out the electric power grids would do most of it. Hard to use a blockchain without electricity. And without an allied army to disrupt that takeover nothing would stop it from occurring.
And if you think a society backed government and an army to back the government didn't allow for the technology advance due to the security it offered then we will have to just disagree. An economy which supported all these inventions and technological leaps were only possible because of the security the country provided to the businesses and the citizens.
I just don't have enough faith in humanity to play nice with each other so until then I'll choose to have an army and blame everyone in that society if it does not act right (including myself). Or at least use my vote to try and change it. And if I still can't accept the results then I would have to move. But I sure wouldn't hold the "military personnel" any more responsible than I would the citizens.
And you do elect your representatives democratically. Yes we are a democratic republic, but you do have a voice and a vote.