Donald Trump never served in the military and his attitude toward those who do is well documented. Why would someone join the military? The president doesn’t understand what’s in it for them. Donald Trump is a transactional person who approaches all interactions on a short-term quid pro quo basis. He focuses on “what I get” in exchange for what they give. Such individuals are driven by personal gain rather than mutual benefit or genuine connection.
Pete Hegseth served in the military. He headed a group guarding prisoners in Guantanamo. He has two Bronze Stars. One for his work as a platoon leader and civil affairs officer in Iraq, and his second star was for good service as an instructor in Afghanistan. Whatever altruistic reason he may have had for joining the military has been replaced by vengeful rhetoric.
For Hegseth, moral purpose be damned. It is now about killing the enemy. At a news conference last week, he said he would have “no stupid rules of engagement.” In another, he said that the U.S. military would shower “death and destruction from the sky all day long.”
Neither Hegseth (Secretary of War) nor Trump are on the same page. While one is calling it a war that is just beginning, the other is saying it is not a war, but we could walk away now and claim victory. While wars should have clear objectives and exit strategies, this conflict has neither. The impact of the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz seems to have taken them by surprise. Opening up our oil reserves and promising to insure foreign tankers (two of which are now burning in the strait) were reactive measures.
The ever-changing explanations for our involvement in Iran tell us that they shot first and are now looking for a reason why. For Trump, the side benefit is that we are talking about war and not the Epstein files. He also seems to thrive on the attention after he makes something go boom. We may never know if Jared Kushner, Donald Trump Jr., or others in the presidential orbit made financial moves in advance of the decision for war.
In Hegseth’s case, it’s like he is on a vampire liberty. For those who might not know this term, it refers to a time when a sailor on leave could sell his blood for cash, that he would then use to buy booze. The net effect of being a pint low on blood mixed with alcohol meant a quick cheap high.
For Trump it is the fact that he gets to give the green light to war, and now as many as 18 countries are involved and the oil that fuels the world economy just got more expensive. He acts and the entire world must pay attention. I see visions of Leonardo DiCaprio yelling, “I’m king of the world.” How exciting for him.
A new term from the digital age is war porn. It refers to graphic, often decontextualized videos, images, and narratives of combat, death, and destruction, consumed voyeuristically for emotional gratification or shock value. The president and Hegseth watch war footage from the safety of an air-conditioned room. Trump’s flippant attitude about the loss of life on both sides is consistent with his personal detachment and sociopathy.
For both Hegseth and Trump there seems to be an attempt to exaggerate their masculinity. For those described to suffer from hypermasculinity, there is usually intense aggression, callous attitudes toward women, and a high-risk thrill-seeking behavior. Does any of that fit what we know of these two? This macho behavior is often reckless and rejects vulnerability. This might be fine for a WWE fighter headed into a cage match, but not something you want in a president with the nuclear launch codes.
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