Why I Hate Charles Rangel
Of course, there are probably more reasons than I already know. Included in what I do is his position on the military draft. As a sheer publicity stunt (with the only end being his own self glorification), the move to call for a draft probably worked. However, it fails on every other possible count.
Ideologically - There are much better ways to encourage the US to avoid pre-emptive war. As a the incoming chair of the House armed services committee, I suspect you could find some. Maybe it has something to do with the military budget? Or the nice lightning speed technology that we keep paying for? The notion that the military is OK but maybe we just need to think harder about how we use it is absurd: the sacrafice of anyone for political ends doesn't become more acceptable because the people with theif hands on the lever are even more convinced of the justice in their action than usual. Thinking harder does not create justice.
Ethically - Charles Rangel has chosen to make me a political bargining chip. Calling for the draft to prove a point is playing a really high stakes game that shouldn't be played. His logic is internally inconsistant: he is now willing to gamble with the lives of potential draftees to prove that politicians shouldn't gamble with life. His bill bets for a norm that was established over 30 years ago. Which brings me to his last failure:
Political - Continually (this is at least the 2nd time I have heard of) using the draft to prove a point makes actual reinstatement of the draft much more likely. It makes the issue politically palatable, and spawns editorials such as this, this, or this. To prove his point, people will undertake 'serious discussions' about the draft, an impossible notion in a politcal world controled by televisual media and centralized media conglamorates. In the context of a very de-mobilized political space like ours, it doesn't take much more than a handful of very motivated people to construct an earthquake. Re-introducing the draft idea makes this kind of coup more likely.
Basically, Charles Rangel needs to keep his ideas to himself.
Duncan
Ideologically - There are much better ways to encourage the US to avoid pre-emptive war. As a the incoming chair of the House armed services committee, I suspect you could find some. Maybe it has something to do with the military budget? Or the nice lightning speed technology that we keep paying for? The notion that the military is OK but maybe we just need to think harder about how we use it is absurd: the sacrafice of anyone for political ends doesn't become more acceptable because the people with theif hands on the lever are even more convinced of the justice in their action than usual. Thinking harder does not create justice.
Ethically - Charles Rangel has chosen to make me a political bargining chip. Calling for the draft to prove a point is playing a really high stakes game that shouldn't be played. His logic is internally inconsistant: he is now willing to gamble with the lives of potential draftees to prove that politicians shouldn't gamble with life. His bill bets for a norm that was established over 30 years ago. Which brings me to his last failure:
Political - Continually (this is at least the 2nd time I have heard of) using the draft to prove a point makes actual reinstatement of the draft much more likely. It makes the issue politically palatable, and spawns editorials such as this, this, or this. To prove his point, people will undertake 'serious discussions' about the draft, an impossible notion in a politcal world controled by televisual media and centralized media conglamorates. In the context of a very de-mobilized political space like ours, it doesn't take much more than a handful of very motivated people to construct an earthquake. Re-introducing the draft idea makes this kind of coup more likely.
Basically, Charles Rangel needs to keep his ideas to himself.
Duncan
posted by Duncan at 5:45 PM
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