Smedley Butler the Anti-War Hero

[RLeon]

I was doing some research on WW1 Marines for a project. To my surprise it turns out Major General Smedley D Butler, one of the highly decorated guys who was pounded into our brain housing group in bootcamp, was politically on the left. I typed Smedley Butler in Yahoo/Google and I got a bunch of liberal anti-war websites. Based on his views about war, He would have been againts Operation Iraqi Freedom. Here's one of his quotes from his book 'War Is a Racket'
"I spent most of my time being a high class muscle-man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism."
Well, they can't all be perfect. ;)

Seriously, even though Butler would have not approved of our actions in Iraq, I don't think he would approved of the conduct of war protesters from Veitnam to now.

[ivalis]

What do you base your "on the left" view concerning Smedley?

JUst because he called a spade a spade doesn't infer that he was for or against it.

[Phantom Blooper]

JUst because he called a spade a spade doesn't infer that he was for or against it

I agree,Major General Butler would have made a fine commandant,the problem why he was not: the "Left & Right" politicians. Didn't want to hear the truth. Things don't change much. Although I have been told in certain things "History repeats itself."

Semper Fidelis "Never Forget" Chuck Hall

[RLeon]

Originally posted by ivalis
What do you base your "on the left" view concerning Smedley?

JUst because he called a spade a spade doesn't infer that he was for or against it.

Well, I base my opinion on the fact that he was a spokesman for the the American League Against War and Fascism, a Communist Party run organization. Who's members were socialist, communist, pacifist, and liberals.
In his book 'War is A Racket'. You will see that many of his gripes are similar to the complaints made by todays Left wing thinkers about the war in Iraq; oil, Coprerate greed, etc.
I just find it interesting that most former generals write books on how to win a war, but Butler writes one on how to stop a war.