 One of RootsAction’s main purposes is to challenge key aspects of U.S. foreign policy. And there’s no better time to do that than right now, as the United States marks its ultimate patriotic holiday -- the Fourth of July. In an article published by Progressive Hub, RootsAction national director Norman Solomon asked, “Why are patriotism and war so intertwined in U.S. media and politics?” And he wrote: - “A notable lack of civic imagination seems to assume that there is no higher calling for patriotism than to kill and be killed.”
- “Often lured by genuine love of country and eagerness to defend the United States of America, many young people have been drawn into oiling the gears of a war machine -- vastly profitable for Pentagon contractors and vastly harmful to human beings trapped in warfare.”
- “Yet, according to top officials in Washington and compliant media, fighting and dying in U.S. wars are the utmost proof of great patriotism. We’re encouraged to closely associate America’s wars with American patriotism in large part because of elite interest in glorifying militarism as central to U.S. foreign policy.”
If you go to the Progressive Hub page featuring the full article, as usual on that site the same webpage offers not only information and analysis but also an action that you can take in response – in this case, quickly sending an email to your congressional representative urging a commitment to cutting the military budget by at least 10 percent. Norman will be discussing his new book War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine with RootsAction co-founder Jeff Cohen during a live online event July 11. You can register for that free event here.  Thanks! --- The RootsAction.org Team |
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