President-elect Donald Trump says he won't rule out the use of military force to seize control of the Panama Canal and Greenland as he declared U.S. control of both to be vital to American national security.
I read headlines like this and sometimes wonder if someone slipped me crazy pills. It’s just so bonkers. Greenland? WTF? Panama, I kind of understand, because reactionary old assholes have been butthurt about Panama being planned to be handed over, then actually handed over, for fucking decades and donvict is the exact type of crotchety and butthurt old dumbass that I’ve been hearing whine about it for as long as I can remember.
But why the fuck would America use military force to take either? Other than gender-affirming for someone like donvict, what do we stand to gain?
But if you read the classic fascist playbook, a military conflict is an essential stage in grabbing and especially in securing power. A conflict with a near peer like China is too dangerous and costly, but a series of minor to medium conflicts – like war with Panama to “secure” the canal or “liberating” Greenland or Canada might suffice.
Greenland is just the low-hanging fruit, an easy target. Something for the masses at home. Taking it won’t take an afternoon. In fact, they’ll just show up, plant a flag, next to it a “No Danes” sign, then call it a day. Then make a biiig celebration of it at home so everybody is distracted while they irreparably dismantle American democracy.
I read headlines like this and sometimes wonder if someone slipped me crazy pills. It’s just so bonkers. Greenland? WTF? Panama, I kind of understand, because reactionary old assholes have been butthurt about Panama being planned to be handed over, then actually handed over, for fucking decades and donvict is the exact type of crotchety and butthurt old dumbass that I’ve been hearing whine about it for as long as I can remember.
But why the fuck would America use military force to take either? Other than gender-affirming for someone like donvict, what do we stand to gain?
The US? Nothing.
But if you read the classic fascist playbook, a military conflict is an essential stage in grabbing and especially in securing power. A conflict with a near peer like China is too dangerous and costly, but a series of minor to medium conflicts – like war with Panama to “secure” the canal or “liberating” Greenland or Canada might suffice.
Greenland is just the low-hanging fruit, an easy target. Something for the masses at home. Taking it won’t take an afternoon. In fact, they’ll just show up, plant a flag, next to it a “No Danes” sign, then call it a day. Then make a biiig celebration of it at home so everybody is distracted while they irreparably dismantle American democracy.
Greenland has oil, and it’ll be prime real-estate in a decade or two once the equatorial regions are inhospitable.
People would say that call of duty was extremely unrealistic this time around if they used this as a plot element haha